Lawyer thread

Discussion in 'The Mainboard' started by Jax Teller, Apr 8, 2015.

  1. Bricktop the white

    Bricktop the white Well-Known Member

    I drafted and filed my first lawsuit today. (previous litigation job had a complaints department that did all that for me).

    Client was hit by a box truck that lost lane integrity on a turn, box truck didn't notice collision and was eventually flagged down by client. tortfeasor tells cop that "design of the intersection... would cause the rear of his vehicle to swing left enough to make contact with vehicle #2". Cop further writes "The damage on vehicle 2 is consistent with statement of driver 2. I must conclude that vehicle 1 was at fault for the accident". Photos show a relatively light impact but back up my client's version of events.

    Carrier outright denied liability and refused to make any offer.

    this is the way to do it.
     
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  2. Gallant Knight

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    if any of yall have decent offers on any fred loya cases you should probably take them.

    their in house people in san antonio apparently used to have an office of 8 and they're down to 2 with no plans to fix that apparently. would be stunned if they're still in business by the end of the year
     
    BUstang likes this.
  3. Bricktop the white

    Bricktop the white Well-Known Member

    GEICO has shuttered a bunch of staff counsel offices too, might just be a shift away from the model.
     
  4. Gallant Knight

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    GEICO still hires experts on their cases and makes offers to settle them though!
     
  5. El Tiburon

    El Tiburon Well-Known Member
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    Got a great liability case (lady died from a damn kidney stone despite 4 visits to the same hospital), but the economic damages aren’t great because she wasn’t working and she died before any real treatment was given. Presuit ends today and I got a formal demand for arbitration from two of the defendants. This would cap my damages against them Dammit. Holding out hope that the two remaining defendants just deny the claim.
     
  6. Gallant Knight

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    omg just talked with a lawyer i used to work with who has some fred loya cases. she said they did a mediation in dallas a couples months ago and at the mediation they went down on their offer instead of up!
     
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  7. El Tiburon

    El Tiburon Well-Known Member
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    I’d show up at the next Fred Loya mediation dressed as their offer.
     
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  8. Gallant Knight

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    I didn’t even know they were doing mediations I thought they were trying everything in an effort to not actually have to cut settlement checks
     
  9. Gallant Knight

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    Now fred loya attorney, who literally never responds to emails, is claiming she needs to hire a PI to find her client

    I looked at our records when we served her client and first attempt wife answers the door and is like yep this is the right address please come back around 6:00 and my husband will be home. Next day server goes at 6:15 and service is perfected

    Heard a lot of lawyers left fred loya because they thought they were doing shady shit. Sounds like they might be trying to fake their way around pulling coverage
     
  10. Sean Connery

    Sean Connery I'll take Whore Ads for $200
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    I just started a new job today after leaving a firm where the majority shareholder was recently recommended by one of the Florida DCA’s to be suspended by the bar for ethical stuff. I took that as a hint to gtfo.

    Now learning construction defect, which I expect to be considerably more boring.
     
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  11. Sammy Meatballs

    Sammy Meatballs DeBoer on the Floor
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    did you work for that fuckface Dale gobel
     
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  12. Sammy Meatballs

    Sammy Meatballs DeBoer on the Floor
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    Just got $1,512,000.00 for a meniscus tear and arthroscopic surgery from a jury in Georgia.

    First trial in over 5 years.
     
  13. BUstang

    BUstang Lawyer

    Great work. That's a huge # for a knee case.
     
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  14. Sean Connery

    Sean Connery I'll take Whore Ads for $200
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    :popcorn:
     
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  15. Sammy Meatballs

    Sammy Meatballs DeBoer on the Floor
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    Dale is an absolute piece of shit who should have been disbarred a long time ago.

    he has gotten away with lying to judges for so long. He continued chasing the whole reverse Boecher thing even after Worley.

    I don’t know a single lawyer that likes him. He’s a disease on the legal community.
     
  16. CF3234

    CF3234 Fan of: Bandwagons
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    Did a little of that. It’s VERY boring but pretty easy. Most everything settles quickly before the first hearing. At least the few things I did.
     
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  17. Sean Connery

    Sean Connery I'll take Whore Ads for $200
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    Pretty much what I’ve gathered. I had my own caseload and took over a bunch of new cases so I was pretty insulated from dealing with him since they weren’t close to trial. But yeah, plaintiff’s attorneys want his head after him making so many enemies after all these years. So yeah that was a huge reason for my departure.
     
  18. wes tegg

    wes tegg I'm a Guy's guy, guys.
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    Hell of a job!

    The last one of those I defended, plaintiff got $60k. My client was driving a G-Wagon and subsequently died.
     
  19. Oranjello

    Oranjello Well-Known Member
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    Was talking to a partner who is a specialist tonight about something a client asked about. During the course of the conversation, I mentioned how I’m leaving town Friday - Tuesday and since I have no need to be on the call with the client, I asked if he could handle it solo. Guy I’m talking to is probably 50 years old, generally pretty cool for a lawyer (all things considered), and someone I occasionally grab a beer with. He’s a normal dude. When I mentioned leaving town, his tone and demeanor completely changed and he made the comment, “I haven’t had a vacation in 21 years and you’re leaving town and want my help?” I was completely taken aback and had no idea what to say, so I just responded to something to the effect of, “yeah but I’ve worked a ton lately.” He dgaf.

    Thinking back on it, I don’t think I’ve ever had a work convo where someone explicitly resented another person taking a quick vacation. Which is a great thing in retrospect
     
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  20. RJF-GUMP

    RJF-GUMP Daubert Qualified in Cooler Thermodynamics
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    If that left the guy's mouth he sucks. Sounds like the firm sucks too.
     
  21. (Z)

    (Z) Well-Known Member
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    If I hadn’t had a vacation in 21 years, I would shoot someone.
     
  22. Oranjello

    Oranjello Well-Known Member
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    :meh:
     
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  23. Oranjello

    Oranjello Well-Known Member
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    I’d quit
     
  24. Sammy Meatballs

    Sammy Meatballs DeBoer on the Floor
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    I have a hard time making it 21 days without a vacation.
     
    Nug likes this.
  25. Oranjello

    Oranjello Well-Known Member
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    Define vacation
     
  26. RJF-GUMP

    RJF-GUMP Daubert Qualified in Cooler Thermodynamics
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    You need to be taking like a solid week long or at least 5 day vacation every quarter, every 6 months at the least. And take some long weekends here and there on top of that.
     
    (Z) likes this.
  27. RJF-GUMP

    RJF-GUMP Daubert Qualified in Cooler Thermodynamics
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    Sent a good faith letter because it was obvious in defendant employer's responses that they had statements/affidavits from former employees about a workplace injury that they weren't producing. They supplemented and produced an affidavit but then also said they had another affidavit/written statement and a recorded statement that they weren't going to produce because they were taken in anticipation of litigation. Sounds like BS to me. About to research this issue and if the law looks favorable file a Motion to Compel. Somehow have never had to fight this fight before. Usually they produce this stuff.
     
  28. Bricktop the white

    Bricktop the white Well-Known Member

    If i'm doing something for 21 years straight with no vacation i better end up warren buffet rich at the end of it.
     
  29. bwi2

    bwi2 Not affiliated with BWI
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    If you’re doing something for 21 years straight with no vacation to get Warren buffet rich, break that up with a few vacations and be Warren buffet rich minus a few bucks

    there is no reasonable explanation for neglecting yourself (and any hypothetical family, even if it’s just parents, much less a spouse or kids) to that degree
     
  30. herb.burdette

    herb.burdette Meet me at the corner of 8th and Worthington
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    He’s either lying about the 21 years thing or he’s completely ungrounded from reality of work/life balance.

    What’s the point of working so much if you can’t enjoy the money it provides?
     
  31. El Tiburon

    El Tiburon Well-Known Member
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    This is precisely the thing I used to tell my former partner. But he's a turd, so it's not like I could summon any sympathy for him.
     
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  32. herb.burdette

    herb.burdette Meet me at the corner of 8th and Worthington
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    I think Oranjello should introduce this 21 year no vacation guy to Nug
     
  33. Nug

    Nug MexicanNug
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    Most big firms are just pyramid schemes. "Firm culture" is a fancy way of them pretending to feign interest in your persona life. They don't. think it can be true for smaller firms, though.

    They're not making money unless you're doing 2,000+ hours. They don't want you to take vacations.
     
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  34. CF3234

    CF3234 Fan of: Bandwagons
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    I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that he's on his 3rd or 4th marriage at this point.
     
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  35. wes tegg

    wes tegg I'm a Guy's guy, guys.
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    No, I bet he’s on his first. She just hates his ass.
     
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  36. RJF-GUMP

    RJF-GUMP Daubert Qualified in Cooler Thermodynamics
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    I wouldn't make it a day in a firm like that.
     
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  37. wes tegg

    wes tegg I'm a Guy's guy, guys.
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    I just had a captive counsel for a really shitty nonstandard insurance carrier that cut me a check for $1.5 million in January because they fucked up a minimum policy claim so badly lecture me on what a jury in the county where my wife grew up would think of my case. “I guess we’ll see, man.”
     
  38. Nug

    Nug MexicanNug
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    One of my first cases with the PI firm I've started with is a dog bite case. Never handled one on the defense or pltf side before.

    Also being brought in early for a 17-year old cheerleader that was a passenger in a flipped golf cart, busted her hip real bad and will need surgery. Parents knew the driver was wild and it was at a County park that was supposed to have supervision. Contingency baby babyyyy
     
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  39. herb.burdette

    herb.burdette Meet me at the corner of 8th and Worthington
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    There are layers in between these days. We found that we were losing too many good associates after 3-5 years so we created non-equity tracks that pay objectively based upon smaller hour goals.

    We retain a lot more people that want to work, but also want to be a primary care provider for their kids and we’re pretty flexible about work from home.
     
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  40. Nug

    Nug MexicanNug
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    There are certainly outliers, maybe like your firm .My main experience is ins def which is just a race to the bottom.
     
  41. wes tegg

    wes tegg I'm a Guy's guy, guys.
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    You also started at one that is notoriously bad.
     
    Nug likes this.
  42. Nug

    Nug MexicanNug
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    Looking back on it I shake my head. Still keep in touch with a handful of lawyers that are still there.

    Soul crushing. It's a shame because the firm's namesake is a brilliant guy and tremendous person.
     
    wes tegg likes this.
  43. (Z)

    (Z) Well-Known Member
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    Yeah, I need time away.

    I probably take 5-6 weeks of vacation a year.
     
    Gallant Knight likes this.
  44. Oranjello

    Oranjello Well-Known Member
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    false - I've never billed 2k hours and been profitable most/all years
     
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  45. Gallant Knight

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    I haven’t taken a full week off since 2015
     
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  46. Oranjello

    Oranjello Well-Known Member
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    Divorced! No second wife
     
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  47. colonel_forbin

    colonel_forbin Well-Known Member
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    I do it once a year. A few other 3-4 day long weekends.
     
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  48. Oranjello

    Oranjello Well-Known Member
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    Y'all are painting with broad brushes. This firm is more of "it is what you make it" type thing. I posted in here a few weeks ago about how I took 5-6 weeks off last year. It's 100% on the guy and not the firm forcing him to do it (although its incentive structure may).

    This is much more accurate and applicable to my firm than forcing people to work without vacation.
     
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  49. Oranjello

    Oranjello Well-Known Member
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    I took off last Friday, taking off tomorrow, Monday, and Tuesday.

    Y'alls firm must suck if they won't let you do that /s
     
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  50. Gallant Knight

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    Losing a bunch of associates after a couple years is not a good idea unless most of the work you’re doing can be done by baby lawyers

    my dad was the hiring partner at his firm in south Texas for about a decade and 100% of the women he hired stopped practicing law when they got pregnant. He got so frustrated that he eventually had to stop doing it
     
    bigred77 likes this.