Business Litigation Legal Questions

Mr. Murray Your relatiosnhip with BCBS is, of course, controlled by the terms of the contract.  If you can show that BCBS was aware that you were selling other products and raised no objection, there might be a waiver but that would depend on whether the rep was a BCBS employee or agent so that the knowledge of the agent would be imputed to BCBS.   Additionally, hopefully you have something in writing that you can point to which will establish the knowledge on the part of the BCBS agent.  Otherwise it would be a swearing contest and that makes it an "iffy" lawsuit.  As far as other BCBS agencies doing the same thing, in my opinion that would be irrelevant to your issue which is contractually based.  Whether BCBS chooses to enforce other agents' contracts or not is not legally relevant to your situation. Jay Levy... Read More

If they refused to accept a return contrary to what they represented to you online, that would be a breach of contract.  I would look at the "small print" of what is represented online, however, to make sure.  For example, does it limit that policy to only certain goods or outlets?  Does it say something like "these policies in effect only at participating locations", or something similar?  Does it say something to the effect of "these policies subject to change at any time?"... Read More

It probably depends on the nature and specificity of the representations and whether they were in writing. The more specific the representations the more likely there is a case.  It also depends on the language of the contract of sale as to whether you can rely on oral representaitons.   Also in transactions of this type, there is a certain level of due diligence required of the buyer.  For example, did you check the books and records of the company before buying to verify the representations.... Read More

You have a very complex process ahead of you to try and collect.  You may still have rights in the collateral - it depends on wehther there was a priority lien prior to the judgment.  You need to pursue the judgment debtor as directly as possible.  YOu may be able to obtain injuctive relief against him. Please contact our office to schedule time to discuss further.   Andrew J Thompson THOMPSON LAW OFFICE LLC (317) 564-4976... Read More

They can quit, too. In order to determine whether other relief is even theoretically possible, you'd have to provide much more detail to more fully describe this alleged "hostile" environment. If by hostile, you just mean the boss is a jerk, you likely have no complaint, and should learn to accept certain facts of life. Or,  start your own business, and be the kind of person you think others would want to work for. Whether your example would succeed in business setting is a separate discussion. Either way, there are not enough facts provided here for any attorney to say much more than that, presently. ... Read More

An attorney would have to file a response on your behalf, whether that response is an answer, demurrer, motion to quash, motion to strike, etc.  An attorney should be able to get an extension of time to file that response on your behalf.  Email or call an attorney for a full consultation. ... Read More

Any answer here will depend on the contract you signed.  If you were contractor and the contract says are you paid on monthly basis, then you may not be owed the money.  I think that would be unlikely, however.  So, you should have attorney reveiw contract -- or, better yet, just file small claims court action.  It is easy and you can do yourself.... Read More

Your first step should be to try to work this out with the auto repair shop.  Your second step should be to complaint to the California Bureau of Automotive Repair.  Your next step should be to have an attorney draft a demand letter.  Your final step should be to sue the repair shop.... Read More

Is this litigation in small claims court or superior court?  You can check the court's website to see what response was filed.  A response to your complaint can be a demurrer, a motion to quash, an answer, etc.  You should be served with the response, but you can get a copy from the clerk's office or online. What you do next depends on so many factors that it's impossible to give you an answer here.  Your best move would probably be to hire an attorney.... Read More

Yes.  The arbitration company wants to be paid and won't perform its arbitration services if it isn't paid.  It doesn't care from whom.  If you lose, you might challenge the award on the basis of bias, i.e. that the arbitrators were biased in favor of the respondent because the respondent paid all of the fees, but I doubt that argument would succeed, especially since you could have avoided any such bias by paying the fees you owed.... Read More

If you can prove a pattern of shortchanging and/or that you were intentionally shortchanged, you may have some sort of consumer fraud claim (consumer fraud statutes vary in each state and I don't know the particular statute which would apply in Georgia, but I'm confident that there is one.)  Absent such proof, however (for example, testimony from other customers who had had the same problem), you can sue the store for $15.  Since it is basically your word against the store's, you might not win.... Read More

If your brother stole a check made out to you, he stole your money.  Homelessness has nothing to do with it, nor do civil liberties.  Your brother appears to have committed a crime.  Also, if you want to sue him in a civil suit, he appears to have committed the tort of conversion.... Read More

Based on your very limited fact pattern, and assuming there is no other disclosure or something in your partnership aggreement which allows those actions, then the answer is no. You should contact an attorney to investigate your case, and perhaps work to intercept the profits and even possibly dissolve the partnership.... Read More

There may be different rules in different jurisdictions, and the answer may also differ depending on the particular material being sought and the burden of producing it, but in general the fact that a party has copies of the documents he/she is seeking is not a valid objection to production (although, to be fair, I see lawyers raising such an objection all time.)  How can Dick possibly know that he has all the emails and one wasn't accidentially deleted?  How can he be sure that Joe will not claim that some other email was exchanged between them, or that he never received some relevant emails?  Of course, if you're talking about thousands of emails here so that the cost of searching and producing them was truly prohibitive, the answer might be different, but as a general matter, I think Joe would have to produce the emails.... Read More

Or it could be the carrier you had at the time the claim was asserted.  It depends on the language of each of the policies.  For example, a policy can cover claims made during the coverage period, or claims which accrue during the coverage period.  Depending on the language of the policy, there may be coverage under both policies, or neither.  The practical answer is always the same, however - SEND THE COMPLAINT TO ALL CARRIERS AND MAKE A CLAIM UNDER ALL POSSIBLE POLICIES.... Read More

Neither.  In NY, the statute of limitations for accountant's malpractice is three years from when the malpractice occurred.  Thus, if your accountant screwed up on March 25, 2014 preparing your 2013 tax return, you would have until March 25, 2017 to sue him/her on that claim.  However, there are some things which can extend the statute of limitations, including continuous representation (the limitations period on a malpractice claim generally does not start to run until after your accountant has ceased to act as your accountant) and (under some circumstances) concealment of the claim by the accountant.... Read More

From what you've written, it appears that you won the motion, but that doesn't end the case.  Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment was denied, but that doesn't mean that plaintiff can't prevail at a later stage of the case, like after trial.  Now there needs to be an order so stating. While I don't practice in North Carolina, this seems like circumstances with which I often deal, preparing an order for the Court to sign embodying its decision on a motion.  Presumably, since the Court is asking you to draft the order, it need only be a "short form order", basically reciting what the motion sought, what papers were submitted in support of and against the motion, when the motion was argued (if it was), and that the motion was denied.  You can probably find a form in a law library.  ... Read More

Assuming you have no contract which limits your right to compete, and you were not an owner of your former employer, you can contact past and present clients, or compete in any other lawful way you see fit, EXCEPT that you may not use your former employer's trade secrets to do so.  In some cases, a customer list could be considered a trade secret, but if customer names are readily ascertainable from available information (usually including your unaided memory), they would not be a trade secret.... Read More