Law school professor, David Yamada, wrote a blog post saying essentially that many employer side lawyers in employment cases are "attack dogs" (my paraphrase) because many employers are "attack dogs" themselves. Such abusive employers tend to seek out abusive lawyers, he writes. See David Yamada’s blog post. Law school profs are in a position
Litigation and trial practice
Defendant Seeks Facebook and MySpace Entries
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Litigation and trial practice
In a lawsuit in Houston, the defendant has filed a writ with the Texas Supreme Court seeking access to a plaintff’s Facebook and MySpace entries. The defendant wants the entries because they represent a "compilation" of who the plaintiff is. See petition for writ of mandamus. In Re Magellan Holdings, LP And…
Judge Sanctions Defendant for Electronic Discovery Abuse
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Litigation and trial practice
Light is shed on a new area of law in a decision out of East Texas. Electronic discovery is still a very new area in the litigation business. A federal judge in the Eastern District of Texas imposed sanctions one year after a case settled. The judge found that the defendant failed to impose a…
Plaintiff Sanctioned with Dismissal of her Case
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Litigation and trial practice
Discrimination lawsuits, like many lawsuits, rely heavily on discovery. Discovery is the process by which we seek the other sides’ evidence. In employment cases, the discovery process takes on added importance because the employer has most of the key evidence. The employer, for example, posses personnel records regarding other employee who were terminated for similar…
San Antonio Juror Facing Jail Time
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Litigation and trial practice
Judges always tell jurors not to do their own legal research during a trial. A jury is supposed to use the legal terms provided by the court. Our judicial system relies on legal standards that are known to both sides, defense and prosecution. The two sides to any trial will devote considerable time and energy…
Blog Entry Leads to Request for New Trial
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Litigation and trial practice
It was a difficult case, even heart-wrenching. A policeman had rushed to a low priority call and had accidentally struck and killed another San Antonio police officer. See San Antonio Express News report. The policeman in a hurry was David Seaton. Proceeding at 100 mph without lights or siren on, he ran a red light…
Facebook Becoming Essential to an Employment Lawsuit
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Litigation and trial practice
The first thing one defense lawyer does when he is hired for an employment case is check the employee’s Facebook account. See blog post. Eric Meyer, a defense lawyer, looks for references to the work place or the employer. He prints out any pictures. He looks for any information that refutes or refers to…
Settling Discrimination Lawsuits is Complicated
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Litigation and trial practice
Settling a discrimination lawsuit is never easy. The employee and employer both have to develop some understanding of evidentiary issues, personnel issues and employment caselaw within a very short amount of time. I have discussed settlement before, here, and here. The client must also come to some understanding of the opposing side…
Two Lawyers Sanctioned by the Florida Supreme Court
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Litigation and trial practice
As lawyers and advocates, we have to be assertive on behalf of our clients. And, yes, more than we should, we get emotionally wrapped up in our cases and our client’s cause. But, two Florida lawyers took the advocacy part of the job way too far. One lawyer referred to the other as "retard." The…
Man Tries to Cancel His Own Hearing
By Thomas J. Crane on
Posted in Litigation and trial practice
A podiatrist from the Hondo, Texas area tried to cancel his own hearing in US District Court. See San Antonio Express News report. Donald E. Robinson faxed papers to the federal courthouse announcing that his hearing had been canceled and naming himself as a surety for a $300 million bond, I presume to guarantee…