A blog about the work lawyers do to win commercial disputes by Will Newman
How does someone take thousands of emails and decide which get produced? And are there a bunch of complicated rules and procedures that would surprise someone who doesn’t do this all the time? The answers are “a variety of ways” and “yes.”
Read MoreIn a recent decision, an appellate court in Manhattan reversed the dismissal of a lawsuit based on a contract with no written end date. It held that, to determine whether the contract is still in effect, the parties needed to present evidence of how long the parties originally intended the contract to last and whether the defendant is still receiving a meaningful benefit from it.
Read MoreAt the first instance, a judge hears a case alone. The procedural rules provide that a party can request the dispute be considered by a panel consisting of one professional judge and two so-called arbitrazh assessors, who are people with specific knowledge in certain areas of economics, finance and management. But judges actually appoint arbitrazh assessors only in very rare cases.
Read MoreWhy should you consider having a lawyer get admitted pro hac vice instead of just hiring local counsel to represent you? Because if you already have a relationship with a lawyer you trust, you may feel more comfortable with them representing you that with a stranger. This is especially true if you believe that your lawyer is particularly skilled or capable. And if you use your existing lawyer, you don't need to pay to bring a new lawyer up to speed on facts of the case if your existing lawyer already knows the facts.
Read MoreWitnesses swear to tell the truth at the start of their depositions, just as they do when they testify in court. And violating that oath is technically a crime, just as it would be for lying in court. And a court reporter makes a verbatim transcript of the deposition, which allows lawyers to submit the exact same testimony at trial.
Read MoreLawyers in British Columbia only have to wear a gown for civil trials and when appearing before the Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada.
Read MoreAnswers are usually relatively inexpensive documents to draft because they do not need to be well-crafted narratives that persuade people of the defendant’s innocence. Defendants have other opportunities in a lawsuit to explain their story, such as in motions to dismiss the case and at trial.
Read MoreA Manhattan appellate court recently held that a sexual harassment plaintiff needs to disclose in discovery the application she submitted to stay in the United States through a visa program for the survivors of human trafficking. The court held that the plaintiff’s objection to producing the application did not specify any ground, and so it waived any objection “based on any ground other than privilege or palpable impropriety.”
Read MoreWhen a client tells a lawyer she wants to sue someone, she may not know all of the possible causes of action. She may just know that the defendant has done something wrong. It is up to the lawyer to use her own knowledge and research to determine what causes of action address the defendant’s conduct.
Read MoreThe most straightforward thing that people can seek in a lawsuit is money. If you allege in a lawsuit that a defendant caused you to lose a certain amount of money, or failed to live up to a promise to pay you a certain amount of money, you can seek a judgment that directs the defendant to pay you that money.
Read MoreLand matters are complex since a lot of the testimony comes from old people and some have a hard time traveling from other islands. Rules for intervention during a case are lax, so people will often show up midway through a case. Some land cases in Palau last literally decades.
Read MoreThe wheels of justice move more slowly than many people expect. Lawsuits, even ones where you are very much right and the other side are bad people, often take months or even years.
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