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Arbitration Jiu Jitsu: Increasing the Pressure to Settle With a “Sealed Settlement Offer”
June 21, 2018
The cost of arbitration, including attorneys’ fees, can be substantial, commensurate with the matters in dispute. Your desire to settle a dispute that is going to arbitration is often as or more substantial. But sometimes your adversary is not willing to settle at your very rational number. What next — increase your settlement offer or reduce your demand? How about using the anticipated arbitration costs to your advantage? Consider incentivizing your adversary with a “sealed settlement offer,”...
June 21, 2018
The cost of arbitration, including attorneys’ fees, can be substantial, commensurate with the matters in dispute. Your desire to settle a dispute that is going to arbitration is often as or more substantial. But sometimes your adversary is not willing to settle at your very rational number. What next — increase your settlement offer or reduce your demand? How about using the anticipated arbitration costs to your advantage? Consider incentivizing your adversary with a “sealed settlement offer,”...
Body Language Can Speak Volumes About You
June 20, 2018
Persuasive speakers and influencers know that communication is not only about what you say, but how your nonverbal, body language expresses your intentions and emotions. Someone’s words may say one thing, but their body language may signal something different. Being mindful about body language can help you clearly communicate your message and lessen the risk of being misunderstood in your communication, relationships, and negotiations. An article from Lifehack highlights...
June 20, 2018
Persuasive speakers and influencers know that communication is not only about what you say, but how your nonverbal, body language expresses your intentions and emotions. Someone’s words may say one thing, but their body language may signal something different. Being mindful about body language can help you clearly communicate your message and lessen the risk of being misunderstood in your communication, relationships, and negotiations. An article from Lifehack highlights...
Fraudulent Inducement Claims Go To Arbitration
June 20, 2018
A recent case out of the Eastern District of Missouri, Schoemehl v. Unwin, No. 4:18-cv-00031-JAR, underlines the fact that...
June 20, 2018
A recent case out of the Eastern District of Missouri, Schoemehl v. Unwin, No. 4:18-cv-00031-JAR, underlines the fact that...
Houston COA Denies Petition for Mandamus Relief Over Arbitration Order
June 19, 2018
In a 2-1 decision, the Court of Appeals for the First District of Texas has refused to issue a writ of mandamusdirecting a lower court to vacate its order compelling arbitration. In the case, In re Vantage Drilling Int’l, Vantage Deepwater Drilling, Inc., and Vantage Energy Services, Inc., No. 01-17-00592-CV (June 5, 2018), Vantage Drilling International and its affiliate companies (“Vantage”) hired a law firm, Martinez Partners, to represent the company in a Foreign Corrupt...
June 19, 2018
In a 2-1 decision, the Court of Appeals for the First District of Texas has refused to issue a writ of mandamusdirecting a lower court to vacate its order compelling arbitration. In the case, In re Vantage Drilling Int’l, Vantage Deepwater Drilling, Inc., and Vantage Energy Services, Inc., No. 01-17-00592-CV (June 5, 2018), Vantage Drilling International and its affiliate companies (“Vantage”) hired a law firm, Martinez Partners, to represent the company in a Foreign Corrupt...
An Arbitrator’s Power May Be Greater Than That of a Judge
June 19, 2018
Arbitration is a creature of contract, and an arbitrator’s powers are in effect defined by the parties’ arbitration agreement. Paradoxically, although an arbitration agreement can be written (double-spaced) on one side of a cocktail napkin, in some cases it may grant greater authority to an arbitrator than a judge has. For example, in Timegate Studios, Inc. v. Southpeak Interactive, LLC, Case No. 12-20256 (5th Cir. Apr. 9, 2013), the Fifth Circuit confirmed an arbitration award in which...
June 19, 2018
Arbitration is a creature of contract, and an arbitrator’s powers are in effect defined by the parties’ arbitration agreement. Paradoxically, although an arbitration agreement can be written (double-spaced) on one side of a cocktail napkin, in some cases it may grant greater authority to an arbitrator than a judge has. For example, in Timegate Studios, Inc. v. Southpeak Interactive, LLC, Case No. 12-20256 (5th Cir. Apr. 9, 2013), the Fifth Circuit confirmed an arbitration award in which...
Houston Federal Court Confirms Consent Award Based on New York Convention
June 18, 2018
The Southern District of Texas in Houston has confirmed a $14 million arbitration award in an international oil and gas dispute. In Transocean Offshore Gulf of Guinea VII Ltd., et al. v. Erin Energy Corp., No. H-17-2623 (S.D. Tex. Mar. 12, 2018), the London Court of International Arbitration issued a consent award in favor of Transocean related to a dispute with an oil and gas exploration company, Erin Energy, over a contract for work that was performed off of the coast of Nigeria. After...
June 18, 2018
The Southern District of Texas in Houston has confirmed a $14 million arbitration award in an international oil and gas dispute. In Transocean Offshore Gulf of Guinea VII Ltd., et al. v. Erin Energy Corp., No. H-17-2623 (S.D. Tex. Mar. 12, 2018), the London Court of International Arbitration issued a consent award in favor of Transocean related to a dispute with an oil and gas exploration company, Erin Energy, over a contract for work that was performed off of the coast of Nigeria. After...
Deloitte Will Acquire Part of US Law Firm in New Legal Venture
June 18, 2018
The Big Four are continuing their march into the legal services realm. In addition to an alliance with Berry Appleman & Leiden's U.S. operations, Deloitte UK will acquire the firm's eight overseas offices. The British arm of Deloitte is announcing a “first of its kind” alliance with U.S. immigration law firm Berry Appleman & Leiden, as the Big Four accounting firms continue their push into legal services. In addition to the alliance, which gives BAL access to Deloitte’s...
June 18, 2018
The Big Four are continuing their march into the legal services realm. In addition to an alliance with Berry Appleman & Leiden's U.S. operations, Deloitte UK will acquire the firm's eight overseas offices. The British arm of Deloitte is announcing a “first of its kind” alliance with U.S. immigration law firm Berry Appleman & Leiden, as the Big Four accounting firms continue their push into legal services. In addition to the alliance, which gives BAL access to Deloitte’s...
What Awaits Legal Tech 2018-19?
June 17, 2018
The legal tech industry says that growth is not only the growth in the number of products, but also the number of customers which grows proportionately with the trend to introduce innovations among lawyers. Online dispute resolution. In May in the US, a conference, organized by Codex – The Stanford Center for Legal Informatics, was held about the future of the law. The President of the American Bar Association, Hilarie Bass, asked a rhetorical question: “Why should we go to court for a resolution...
June 17, 2018
The legal tech industry says that growth is not only the growth in the number of products, but also the number of customers which grows proportionately with the trend to introduce innovations among lawyers. Online dispute resolution. In May in the US, a conference, organized by Codex – The Stanford Center for Legal Informatics, was held about the future of the law. The President of the American Bar Association, Hilarie Bass, asked a rhetorical question: “Why should we go to court for a resolution...
Katz on the Criminal Law Origins of Family Law
June 17, 2018
Elizabeth D. Katz (Stanford Center for Law and History) has posted Family Law as Criminal Law: The Forgotten Criminal Origins of Modern Family Laws and Courts (University of Chicago Law Review, 2019) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: This Article challenges core understandings about the family law canon, the growth of probation, and the criminal-civil divide by providing the first history of a formative yet forgotten chapter in the development of specialized family courts and child support enforcement....
June 17, 2018
Elizabeth D. Katz (Stanford Center for Law and History) has posted Family Law as Criminal Law: The Forgotten Criminal Origins of Modern Family Laws and Courts (University of Chicago Law Review, 2019) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: This Article challenges core understandings about the family law canon, the growth of probation, and the criminal-civil divide by providing the first history of a formative yet forgotten chapter in the development of specialized family courts and child support enforcement....
Streamlined Three-Arbitrator Panel Option for Large Complex Cases
June 16, 2018
In 2017, seven out of every 10 AAA® commercial cases with claims of $1 million or more settled prior to going to award. For that reason, the AAA has introduced the Streamlined Three-Arbitrator Panel Option to help parties in large cases lower the costs and escalate the speed of the dispute resolution process. When parties’ agreement calls for three arbitrators to hear and decide their case, the Streamlined Three-Arbitrator Panel Option allows them to utilize a single arbitrator for the preliminary...
June 16, 2018
In 2017, seven out of every 10 AAA® commercial cases with claims of $1 million or more settled prior to going to award. For that reason, the AAA has introduced the Streamlined Three-Arbitrator Panel Option to help parties in large cases lower the costs and escalate the speed of the dispute resolution process. When parties’ agreement calls for three arbitrators to hear and decide their case, the Streamlined Three-Arbitrator Panel Option allows them to utilize a single arbitrator for the preliminary...
