Three Steps To Take Before Noticing The Deposition of a Corporate Witness

In June of this year The United States District Court for the Northern District of California adopted “Guidelines for Professional Conduct” These guidelines are a very good resource for new plaintiff lawyers. For example, new plaintiff personal injury litigators working to set up oral depositions of corporate employees for the first time should review both…

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What is a Lawyer Power Team? An Introduction to SFLN

In October I was invited to speak at the San Francisco Lawyers Network aka SFLN on The Top Twenty Steps To A Successful Personal Injury Trial. SFLN is a diverse group of lawyers from different practice areas that meet the last Thursday of each month at First Republic Bank in San Francisco. Thank yous go…

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Understanding and Identifying Improper Speaking Objections

An improper speaking objection is an objection at a deposition or trial that is made in an argumentative or suggestive way. A speaking objection includes commentary beyond the specific legal grounds on which the objection is based. Speaking objections are sometimes used by attorneys who are attempting to coach a witness. A proper objection is…

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SignUp To Settlement Screencasts are Complete!

This week I taped the final screencast for the final session of Signup to Settlement, A Personal Injury Law Boot Camp. The twelve sessions of the course flowed from 20 years of personal injury trial practice and was the culmination of twelve months of thinking, planning, outlining and discovery. Like everything in life, it all…

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Rick Friedman: The fallacy of comparison

Last Friday afternoon I saw trial lawyer Rick Friedman speak at the Consumer Attorneys of California State Convention in San Francisco. Rick spoke about how destructive if can be for a trial lawyer to compare themselves to another trial lawyer.

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Personal Injury Cases: Costs to Evaluate Before Trial

Determining the case costs for a personal injury case is far from a clear cut calculation. There are variables that can occur throughout the life of the case, such as the expense of expert discovery and trial that can add up quickly.

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Personal Injury Cases: The Treasured Timeline

When you’re preparing to go to trial, you have a lot of things on your plate. You’re watching the clock and making sure that your subpoenas are served and your documents are filed on time.

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Two Pivotal Points Every Attorney Needs to Understand

Trials can be incredibly stressful events, and the last thing any attorney wants to do is complicate his or her case even further by having vital witnesses and evidence excluded from the case. When I wrote the article, “What trial teaches us about discovery” for Plaintiff magazine recently, my goal was to help attorneys better understand the impacts that can come from proper (and improper) procedures.

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Three Cases Every Personal Injury Attorney Should Understand when It Comes to Discovery

Recently, I wrote an article for Plaintiff, a magazine that is founded on supporting plaintiff’s attorneys. My contribution to the magazine explores looks at the impact of discovery responses on the trial process. The article will help you analyse the merits of the boilerplate motion in limine to exclude evidence not produced in discovery.

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Helping Your Community, By Sharing Your Knowledge

This month I presented on the problem of uninsured drivers. On average about 14 percent of drivers have no car insurance. The main way for responsible motorist to protect themselves from this problem is by purchasing underinsured motorist coverage with their car insurance.

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Personal Injury Cases: Prepping Yourself for the Judge

Meeting with the judge that will be presiding over your case is a necessary part of the process. As a personal injury attorney, you should approach each meeting with the judge as though you’re going into a job interview. Be as prepared as possible, and have answers to any possible questions that you can anticipate the judge asking

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Your Law Firms First Photo Shoot

Getting together with a photographer for your law firm’s first photo shoot begins the process of introducing your law firm to the world you intend to serve. The day of the photo session can be fun, thought provoking, and inspirational as well.

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Personal Injury Attorney 101: Serving a Trial Subpoena

If you’re working on a personal injury case that’s set to go to trial, you are dependent on a number of witnesses and experts that must show up to trial. Serving trial subpoenas is an important part of that process.

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Tips for Working with a Personal Injury Deposition

Surprisingly, many cases have been won because of stellar depositions. If you have ever sat through a deposition with an experienced personal injury lawyer, the process can appear to be simple. As a result, most young or novice lawyers fail to appreciate some of the more intricate aspects of taking a deposition.

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Prepping for a Personal Injury Case: Meeting with the Medical Experts

It’s highly unlikely that you’ll be involved in a personal injury case that doesn’t involve medical experts. After all, the burden of proof is on the plaintiff, and if he or she is trying to prove that any injuries were sustained as a result of the defendants’ actions, an expert is likely going to be necessary.

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