Protecting In-House Correspondence from Disclosure: The Troublesome “CC”
11/28/18
By: Jake Carroll
Commercial disputes present complex issues of causation—what caused the accident, who is responsible, what is impacting company revenue. But before the dispute even arises, in-house attorneys are frequently copied on correspondence with team members and employees evaluating …
Who’s Liable for Letting the Dogs Out?
10/23/18
By: Wes Jackson
“Cry ‘Havoc!,’ and let slip the dogs of war.”
William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar act 3, sc. 1.
Havoc indeed—in a case argued before the Georgia Supreme Court on October 10, two pit bulls slipped out of …
YMCA Owes No Duty To Provide Or Use AEDs When Renting Field To Private Soccer Club
10/17/18
By: Carlos Martinez-Garcia
California’s Fourth District Court of Appeal recently affirmed the trial Court’s order granting summary judgment in favor of the YMCA, disposing of a wrongful death lawsuit involving a patron who died of a heart attack on their …
Insuring Against Rule 68 Offers of Settlement
6/28/18
By: Matt Grattan
One tool defense lawyers in Georgia frequently use to induce settlements is an offer of settlement under O.C.G.A. 9-11-68. Rule 68 allows either party to a tort action to serve a written offer to settle the claim, …
Shortening the Statutory Limitations Period in a Residential Lease
5/23/18
By: Jake Daly
Every state has statutes or rules governing the time within which various types of claims must be filed. In Georgia, the general rule is that a personal injury claim must be brought within 2 years of the …
A House of Cards: Stacking Inferences to Prove Liability
5/10/18
By: Melissa Santalone
A Florida appellate court recently reaffirmed Florida’s state law prohibition against stacking inferences in personal injury cases with a reversal of a $1.5 million verdict in a slip-and-fall case against Publix. In Publix Super Markets, Inc. v. …
Not Just for Trust Fund Babies Anymore
5/3/18
By: Bryce M. Van De Moere
Even with the existence of the Affordable Care Act, the preferred way to get health benefits is still through your employer. Health insurance packages have become an integral part of employee compensation. As employers …
Court Ruling Highlights Importance of Policy Language
4/11/18
By: America Vidana
In Mt. Hawley Insurance Co. v. Tactic Security Enforcement, Inc., No. 6:16-cv-01425 (M.D. FL. 2018), U.S. District Judge Paul Byron of the Middle District of Florida recently denied an insurance company’s motion for summary judgment, in …
Economic Resolution of Cases Through An Expedited Jury Trial
3/16/18
By: Melina Shahbazian
It is no secret that litigation is time consuming and extremely expensive. Sometimes, depending on the circumstances of the case, the lengthy costly litigation process is the only choice. Other times, particularly with lesser value cases, the …
3/2/18
By: Erin E. Lamb
Citizens from outside Pennsylvania can now sue Pennsylvania businesses for transactions that occurred outside the commonwealth, under the Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices Consumer Protection Law (UTPCPL). The Pennsylvania Supreme Court, in a unanimous ruling, affirmed such …
Beware The Egg Shell Plaintiff
2/13/18
By: Jared K. Hodges
Recently, a jury from a historically conservative venue in Georgia awarded $2.7 million to a man who claims he was injured in a 4 m.p.h. rear-end collision. This unusual verdict should serve as an expensive reminder …
Waymo v. Uber – Addressing the Stakes of Driverless Car Trade Secrets and Intellectual Property
2/12/18
By: Courtney K. Mazzio
The litigation surrounded a man named Anthony Levandowski, a former Waymo employee who took thousands of documents with him when he left Waymo in 2015 to pursue his own company. Uber purchased Levandowski’s company, giving Levandowski …