Litigation Legal Questions

I am very limited in what I can say here, an Attorney owes an absolute duty of loyalty to the client's interest. It follows that any disparaging comments about you would be a disturbing violation of that duty and the trust you put in the attorney. You have 2 issues, did you lose the defamation case by legal malpractice? And did the attorney's comments reflect a breach of duty to you? Be very careful what you post publicly because, if you post anything disparaging against the prior attorney in a public place, if the attorney sees it, they will file a defamation case against you. You will need to find the right attorney to help on this.... Read Answer

Lawyers respond more often to written requests.  Have you emailed, faxed or sent a letter? Have you tried scheduling a conference with him? You can always fire your lawyer but that may not be in your best interests, particularly if you don't have a new attorney and something sensitive like a deadline is occuring.   Please feel to contact us with any other questions or concerns 203.870.6700.  Good luck.... Read Answer

I am a certified divorce and family law trial attorney by the NJ Supreme Court and comfortable talking about litigation claims in the family court, but it sounds like you have filed a civil lawsuit - so you are better off directing your question to a civil litigation attorney to determine what steps you need to take next, including determining whether you are qualified to handle this matter on your own. There is a difference between a defendant filing an affirmative defense and his filing of a counterclaim or 3rd party claim and you also need to know the legal significance of the affirmative defenses pled. You also need to know whether the lawyer can represent all of the defendants or whether there is any conflict.... Read Answer

Anyone is free to hire or fire anyone, including an attorney, at any time. The only exceptions would be contractual obligations which can merely result in a breach of contract claim.  That does not exist with an attorney.  You may owe the attorney money based on the status of invoices and fees, but you remain free to fire him.    I trust this answers your questions and, if you live in the Delaware Valley, feel free to call or email me on a free initial basis. Best Regards,   Matthew R. Nahrgang, Esquire 35 Evansburg Road, Ste 400 Collegeville, PA 19426 (610) 489-3041 o (610) 489-3042 fax nahrganglaw.com... Read Answer

Your sister has no right to keep your stuff, in fact, if she keeps it, she can be sued for three times the worth of the property. Additionally, for items of unique personal value, you can demand she return those items specifically as your damages are the personal value, not the dollar value of the property. Technically her actions constitute conversion under Michigan law. She would be very wise to consult an attorney to learn the full extent of her potential liability and just return your property at once. Additionally, the statutes also provide for attorney fees. You should send her a certified letter demanding the return of your property and demand that she must return your property or you will take her to court. It is not clear what your property is worth so it is not clear if this is small claims, general civil or a circuit court matter. ... Read Answer

In general, your daughter should handle a case this small on her own in small claims court.  The cost of an attorney would be more than the case is worth, and, unless the parties' contract provides for the losing party to pay the winner's attorneys' fees, or unless Colorad has a statute which allows the winner to collect attorneys' fees in these circumstances (I doubt it but I'm not a Colorado attorney), each side would pay its own.  Moreover, they may allow certain liberties and informality in small claims court that would neer fly with an attorney representing you, such as using an email as testimony without the mechanic actually testifying under oath and subject to cross-examination.  Your  daughter also has a problem if she cashed the $100 check, as the mechanic will almost certainly make a very credible claim that he gave her the $100 in full settlement of her claims.... Read Answer

While notice is usually longer than that, motions to reconsider are not generally allowed nor granted. Family matter rules allow for such motions, but general civil matters usually do not.  Each county has their own rules, but I suggest emailing the judges secretary, copying defendant so that it is not ex parte, and request a continuance due to the facts you mentioned. I trust this answers your question, and if you are in the Delaware Valley, feel free to call or email me on a free initial basis. Best Regards,   Matthew R. Nahrgang, Esquire 35 Evansburg Road, Ste 400 Collegeville, PA 19426 (610) 489-3041 o (610) 489-3042 fax nahrganglaw.com... Read Answer

You can include any defense you have to the eviction claim in  your answer, including any defects in the notice or other paperwork your received.  That doesn't necessarily mean that those errors will be sufficient for you to withstand eviction, but you can certainly raise them. ... Read Answer

You don't indicate whether this was a civil or criminal case, but I'm not sure that matters.  You also don't indicate what the video was, i.e. whether it was something which is required to be kept confidential, such as video of a medical procedure.  In general, there is no reason why evidence in a litigaiton cannot be viewed by the public.  If there is evidence that one party believes should be kept confidential, that party would ask the court to seal it.  If the evidence is not required to be kept confidential, and there is no court order sealing it, there is generally no reason why it can't be viewed by anyone.... Read Answer

I'm not sure whether the insurance to which you refer is your former employer's policy or your own, but either way it would not cover damages that you caused to yourself.  Thus, if you were drunk, that fact would be relevant to show that you were negligent and thus your injuries are wholly or partly your fault.  If you are suing your former employer, or her insurance company directly (in New York you would be suing the former employer and the limits of her policy would have nothing to do with the lawsuitk, but I know that some states allow direct action against the insurer and AR may be one), you can ask for more than the policy.  If you are suing your own insurer seeking coverage, as a general rule you can only get what you would have gotten had the insurer complied with your policy, plus interest.   However, you may be able to get more if you can show that the insurance policy acted in bad faith in refusing to pay your claim.... Read Answer

Anybody can sue anybody for anything, but given that you (presumably not YOU but your LLC) are offering a full refund already, and assuming that this customer did not suffer any additiional damages beyond what the LLC is offering to refund, there seems to be little pont to rthe suit.  She can ask for whatever documents she wants, but if the llc doesn't have them, it doesn't have them (although you coudl be sanctioned if the court believes that you destroyed relevant records deliberately, but again, since you are offering a full refund, why would you do that?)  Assuming that you operated your LLC correctly (e.g. not commingling funds with your personal funds, etc.), you would not be personally liable for its obligations.... Read Answer

The rules of civil procedure will give you a baseline on how to proceed.  (link below)  You also will want to check to make sure you follow any local rules for the court that has jurisdiction to hear the matter. Your local law library may have some additional books you can read to get a baseline understanding. How to proceed is a complex question and there is no simple answer.  A full analysis of the case and surrounding details is needed to determine any possible causes of action that exist and the liklihood of prevailing on those matters. https://www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/LegalResources/Rules/civil/CivilProcedure.pdf    ... Read Answer

Yes of course you can sue him.  If you think he"LLP respond to you without a lawsuit, you can speak to him and ask for money, but of course you can't force him to pay anything without suing him.  If you don't want to engage an attorney, the website for NY courts offers a guide to pro se litigants which will help you do it yourself. ... Read Answer

Your son's ex can sue him for anything she wants, but if the Court believes that the property was given as a gift (as opposed to a loan or whatever claim she may make) he will not have to return or pay for it.  It is possible, but very unlikely, that the police would arrest him over this type of dispute.   They are likely to tell her, correctly, that it si a matter for the civil courts.  Of course, if she alleges some other crimes, particularly involving violence, things may go differently.... Read Answer

Yes you can sue a company from another state, the question is where, e.g. does the company have sufficient contacts with your state for the courts of your state to exercise jurisdiciton over it relating to this dispute or do you have to sue it in its home state?  In this case, because the company solicited you (presumably in your home state) I think you could probably sue it in your home state except that it is likely that your contract will have either an arbitration clause (requiring you to litigate any dispute in arbitration) or an exclusive forum clause (requiring you to litigate any dispute in a particular court of a particular jurisdiction).... Read Answer