Legal Commentary

Getting to the end sooner

By Patrick J. Lamb

Imagine this scenario: 

Bill, the General Counsel, walks into the CEO's office.  "Jane, I have great news.  You know our problem with ABC Widget?  I have figured out a great way to get rid of those problems.  I am going to walk out on the street and find a stranger walking by and have her decide whether we're right or ABC is right.  OK?"

Or, the same characters, Bill speaking: "Jane, I have an even better idea on how to get rid of our problem with ABC Widget.  I am going to go out on the street and find 12 random people and put them in the room to discuss our problem while we're not there and then vote on whether we're right or ABC is right."

How many of you believe Jane would be impressed with Bill's approach to dispute resolution?  Of course, Bill would be using the words "judge" and "jury," but the thought's the same.

With the caveat that I love trying cases more than anything else I do, let me say that it is a good tool for resolving business disputes only as a last resort.  With my caveat out of the way...

1.    Almost 99% of all cases settle.  The percentage is increasing.

2.    A very high percentage of the cases that settle do so after all the discovery is taken.

3.    Law.com article: Life in the Doldrums Continues for Civil Litigators

4.   Commercial verdicts down in 2009 from $1.4 billion to $420 million.

These points raise two questions:

Are in-house lawyers learning that litigation may not be the best tool to resolve business disputes?

If they are learning this lesson, how do you help them?

Full post as published by In Search of Perfect Client Service on March 16, 2010 (boomark / email).