Tag Archives: legal process
Can I Change Lawyers in a Personal Injury Case?
The Rules of Professional Responsibility require that a contingent fee agreement “be in writing and signed in duplicate by both the lawyer and the client…” S.J.C. Rule 3:07, Rule 1.5(c). The rule sets out the cases in which a contingent fee is permissible—there must be a res, Latin for a thing or object, and in […]
Is 93A Useful in an Accident Case?
Plaintiff lawyers often lament how the Supreme Judicial Court has authored opinions that restrict the rights of plaintiff litigants. But, in truth, there have been many instances where the court has been sensitive to the rights of victims. One such case is Rhodes v. AIG Domestic Claims Inc. 461 Mass. 486 (2012) which gave liberal […]
Of the Library and the Law
The cross-section between academics and the actual practice of law clashed somewhat humorously for me thirty years ago. I was telling two very experienced trial lawyers that one of my law school’s evidence professors was working on an article regarding Congress’ 1934 Rules Enabling Act. They laughed loudly. These trial lawyers must have felt that […]
Law Through a Lens
Cameras are not used in the federal system. See Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 53, which states, “Except as otherwise provided by a statue or these rules, the court must not permit the taking of photographs in the courtroom during judicial proceedings or the broadcasting of judicial proceedings from the courtroom.” There has, of course, […]
The No Nonsense Approach
The course of a trial is often very different from what is shown on television. The very best trials proceed in a smooth way with a minimum of theatrics. The tempo should really be one of consistent questioning and answering, and very little in the way of objecting. To be sure, objections may be necessary […]
It May Be After the Fact, But…
A common theme in representing victims of accidents, especially those injuries that occur on premises, is that the landowner or other entity in control of the property may change the conditions that gave rise to the accident after it occurred. Certainly, then, it is imperative for the lawyer to video or photograph the scene as […]
The Open Air of the Courtroom
It has often been said that two things you don’t want to see are “how a sausage is made” and “how laws are made”. In contrast, the philosophy behind civil cases is that there should be full disclosure of information by and to both sides. Rules have been in place for decades now that are […]