Articles Posted in Miscellaneous

Client loses products liability case on summary judgment.

Client gets different law firm and sues expert and expert referral service, saying that expert was unqualified and misrepresented qualifications. Client does not sue lawyer.

Expert and expert service then sued the plaintiff’s lawyers for equitable indemnification, saying that the lawyers should pick up part of the loss. The experts said the lawyers waited too late to hire an expert, did not supply the expert with the right information, did not rehabilitate the expert after his deposition, etc. Lawyers moved to dismiss the indemnification claim, arguing a host of issues.

We can’t always talk about negligence and other tort law topics.

Here is a fascinating article by Frank Rich.

I apologize for the absence of a post yesterday. I got to the office at 7:00 a.m. and sat down to do a little fact research on the computer. I got wrapped up in that research and it gave rise to re-writing two motions on discovery issues in a pending case. Those motions turned out to be ten and five pages in length respectively, with a total of 24 exhibits. When I left the office at 6:20 p.m., already 45 minutes late for my son’s baseball game, jumping on the computer again was simply not going to happen.

But, it is now 5:00 a.m., I’m at our cabin at Tim’s Ford Lake, and I am ready to rock ‘n roll.

This should scare the hell out of every one of us who try lawsuits for a living and have to rely on or fight against “scientific studies.”

This article from the Washington Post tells us that (a) “more than 5 percent of scientists answering a confidential questionnaire admitted to having tossed out data because the information contradicted their previous research or said they had circumvented some human research protections;” (b) “ten percent admitted they had inappropriately included their names or those of others as authors on published research reports;” (c)”more than 15 percent admitted they had changed a study’s design or results to satisfy a sponsor, or ignored observations because they had a “gut feeling” they were inaccurate;” and (d)
“13.5 percent who used research designs they knew would not give accurate results.”

It is no surprise that the survey of the 3247 scientists was conducted anonymously.

I argued a case before the Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday, and reflecting on that experience last night gave rise to several thoughts that I would like to share.

First, although I have had the opportunity to argue cases before the Court in the past, yesterday is a particularly memorable experience. June 8th was the Chief Justice’s last day of hearing oral arguments, and our argument was the 2nd to last argument he heard as a judge with 35 years on the Bench. Those of you from Tennessee know that Chief Justice Drowota is a good man who has served our State in exceptional fashion. His presence will be missed, his absence felt. I hope that his successor will bring the same sense of honor, compassion and commitment to excellence to the Bench.

Second, the Court’s first order of business yesterday was to swear in a new lawyer who could not attend the group ceremony the day before. I had not attended one of these ceremonies in many years, and it moving to hear the Chief Justice administer the oath. Those of you who have not heard it in a few years need to find an opportunity to hear it. Those words give us strength to fight the good fight.

The Internet is the great equalizer. It allows solo practioners in Burning Stump, Tennessee to have access to the same information available to the biggest law firm in the biggest bank building in the the biggest city. All you need is a computer, an Internet connection, and time.

Gloria Miccioli, a law librarian for 23 years, has written a great article that will help us get a grasp on the vast resources available to those of us who do medical research on the Web. It is filled with information about free sites and fee-based sites. If you do (or should be doing) medical research you will want to read this article.

Thanks to Gloria for sharing your knowlege with us. And thanks to Evan Schaeffer and his wonderful blog for informing me about this great article.

I would say that this is a familiar story, but that would only be partially correct.

Ok, it starts out familar. Man has affair. He says he loves his girlfriend. He says he is going to leave his wife. He leaves his wife. He and his lover live together. They travel together. They talk about marriage. He says he will support her. But he doesn’t divorce his wife. He stays married. OK. But now we break from the story line we have heard in the past.

This goes on 23 years. That’s right, 23 years. He breaks off the relationship. He gives her some back end cash. She’s upset, and sues him for breach of the promise to marry, fraud, palimony, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and more.

That’s right. I just finished a ten-day vacation and now I have decided to take Saturday off. I can’t help it. I have a hearing that will consume June 2, 3, 6 and 7, an argument in the Tennessee Supreme Court on June 8, and a mediation in a major case on June 9. That schedule – coupled with a status conference in another case on June 1 – has made the last 5 days a whirlwind. So, no substantive blog today.

Have a wonderful weekend.

I was out of town for ten days on what I believe was a well-deserved vacation. I got back in town Saturday night. Sunday morning my wife and I got on our motorcycles and had a beautiful ride through rural Middle Tennessee. The honeysuckles are in bloom; the smell is intoxicating.

Joy and I went to Paris (France, not Tennessee) and had a wonderful time on our vacation. Warning: do not try to touch Napoleon’s desk at Fontainebleau – an alarm will sound.

Those of you who do not drink wine should stay away from Paris unless you have money to burn. Per serving, both Coke and water in restaurants are more expensive than wine. As a boy originally from rural Wisconsin, I was happy to save money and drink wine. I was amazed to learn that in France they sell wine in bottles that have corks in them. When do you think we will start that in the good ol’ USA? The screw tops on the wine bottles I usually buy here are convenient but I have to admit that cork thing is cool!

You cannot count on getting more time to do “discovery” in response to a motion for summary judgment. In Guzman-Ruis v.. Hernandez-Colon the defendant filed motion for summary judgment. Plaintiffs received one extension of time to respond, but failed to respond by the extended deadline. Some two months later, plaintiffs requested another extension to conduct further discovery. The court of appeals affirmed the district court’s denial of plaintiffs’ motion, stating that such extensions required due diligence both (a)in pursuing discovery before the summary judgment initiative surfaces and (b)in pursuing an extension of time thereafter. Read the opinion here.

To avoid this problem, start your discovery as early as reasonably possible. If the motion for summary judgment comes early, immediately serve the discovery you need and seek the depositions you need. Make sure your motion for an extension does not just ask for “more time;” be specific about what you need. And, for heaven’s sake, if you get an extension do your best to get your discovery done in the time you have been given.