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Two Courts Permit Defendants to be Served on Facebook
October 16, 2014
When the defendants could not otherwise be located and served by paper, face-to-face, two Judges ordered service on Facebook...
October 16, 2014
When the defendants could not otherwise be located and served by paper, face-to-face, two Judges ordered service on Facebook...
Do the Capital Markets Value Delaware Corporate Law?
October 15, 2014
In a recent paper, Jeffrey Manns (GW Law) and I use a new empirical technique to estimate the value of Delaware corporate law relative to that of other states. We find that the capital markets place little, if any, value on Delaware corporate law, suggesting that Delaware's dominance is instead the result of herding effects and network externalities. You can read the paper here, and the abstract is pasted below: Delaware dominates the market for company incorporations, which places one of America’s...
October 15, 2014
In a recent paper, Jeffrey Manns (GW Law) and I use a new empirical technique to estimate the value of Delaware corporate law relative to that of other states. We find that the capital markets place little, if any, value on Delaware corporate law, suggesting that Delaware's dominance is instead the result of herding effects and network externalities. You can read the paper here, and the abstract is pasted below: Delaware dominates the market for company incorporations, which places one of America’s...
John Doe Can Remain Anonymous and Not Be Deposed in Pre-Litigation Discovery
October 15, 2014
Since the plaintiff did not a file a lawsuit against John Doe, the Texas trial court had no jurisdiction to allow the plaintiff to take the deposition of “Trooper,” an anonymous blogger who launched on on-line attack on the CEO of a company who lives in Houston. In the case of In Re John Doe a/k/a “Trooper” on August 29, 2014 the Texas Supreme Court ruled 5-4 the pre-litigation discovery seeking John Doe’s identity is unacceptable in Texas, and the discovery to learn the identity of John...
October 15, 2014
Since the plaintiff did not a file a lawsuit against John Doe, the Texas trial court had no jurisdiction to allow the plaintiff to take the deposition of “Trooper,” an anonymous blogger who launched on on-line attack on the CEO of a company who lives in Houston. In the case of In Re John Doe a/k/a “Trooper” on August 29, 2014 the Texas Supreme Court ruled 5-4 the pre-litigation discovery seeking John Doe’s identity is unacceptable in Texas, and the discovery to learn the identity of John...
New York Federal Court Cannot Compel Arbitration in Georgia
October 15, 2014
A New York federal court recently was presented with a motion to compel arbitration in Georgia. The district court first concluded that the arbitration provision was enforceable and then proceeded to the question of whether it had the authority to compel arbitration in a district other than its own. The court described what it deemed an “internal conflict” within the Federal Arbitration Act because the Act provides both that (1) courts must enforce an arbitration agreement in accordance with...
October 15, 2014
A New York federal court recently was presented with a motion to compel arbitration in Georgia. The district court first concluded that the arbitration provision was enforceable and then proceeded to the question of whether it had the authority to compel arbitration in a district other than its own. The court described what it deemed an “internal conflict” within the Federal Arbitration Act because the Act provides both that (1) courts must enforce an arbitration agreement in accordance with...
Court Approves Use of Predictive Coding Despite Objection to “Unproven Technology”
October 15, 2014
Dynamo Holdings Ltd. P’ship v. Comm’r of Internal Revenue, Nos. 2685-11, 8393-12 (T.C. Sept. 17, 2014) In this case, the court approved petitioners’ (Dynamo Holdings Ltd. Partnership et. al.) use of predictive coding to identify potentially responsive and privileged data contained on two backup tapes, despite respondent’s (Commissioner of Internal Revenue) objection that the technology was “unproven.” In response to respondent’s motion to compel the production of information contained...
October 15, 2014
Dynamo Holdings Ltd. P’ship v. Comm’r of Internal Revenue, Nos. 2685-11, 8393-12 (T.C. Sept. 17, 2014) In this case, the court approved petitioners’ (Dynamo Holdings Ltd. Partnership et. al.) use of predictive coding to identify potentially responsive and privileged data contained on two backup tapes, despite respondent’s (Commissioner of Internal Revenue) objection that the technology was “unproven.” In response to respondent’s motion to compel the production of information contained...
Proclamation of Mediation Week in San Antonio
October 15, 2014
As part of San Antonio hosting a mediation competition at St. Mary's Law School today and the 12th Annual Advanced Mediation & Advocacy Skills Institute at the Hyatt Regency tomorrow and Friday, Mayor Ivy Taylor kindly issued the following: PROCLAMATION WHEREAS, the American Bar Association will observe Mediation Week October 12 – 18, 2014 and this year’s theme is “Stories Mediators Tell – From Rookie to Veteran, Exploring the Spectrum of Mediation”, and WHEREAS, mediation and other...
October 15, 2014
As part of San Antonio hosting a mediation competition at St. Mary's Law School today and the 12th Annual Advanced Mediation & Advocacy Skills Institute at the Hyatt Regency tomorrow and Friday, Mayor Ivy Taylor kindly issued the following: PROCLAMATION WHEREAS, the American Bar Association will observe Mediation Week October 12 – 18, 2014 and this year’s theme is “Stories Mediators Tell – From Rookie to Veteran, Exploring the Spectrum of Mediation”, and WHEREAS, mediation and other...
Four Reasons to Mediate Your Employment Case Early
October 15, 2014
Considering the ever-increasing costs of litigation and that most employment disputes are dismissed or settled before going to trial, counsel should give serious thought to early mediation for these matters. Here are four reasons why mediation makes sense in employment litigation. 1. Choice of Mediator Mediation allows counsel to choose a mediator with substantive knowledge of employment law. An experienced employment mediator can listen to each side’s concerns and empathize with their situation...
October 15, 2014
Considering the ever-increasing costs of litigation and that most employment disputes are dismissed or settled before going to trial, counsel should give serious thought to early mediation for these matters. Here are four reasons why mediation makes sense in employment litigation. 1. Choice of Mediator Mediation allows counsel to choose a mediator with substantive knowledge of employment law. An experienced employment mediator can listen to each side’s concerns and empathize with their situation...
Models for Use of Mediation in e-Discovery
October 14, 2014
Many commentators and courts suggest that cooperative approaches to e-discovery planning hold the key to lower-cost, higher-quality e-discovery processes. 1 Yet, admonitions to cooperate hardly suffice to motivate self-interested parties. 2 Some system to foster cooperation, beyond the parties themselves, appears essential. 3 One system proposed as a means to promote e-discovery cooperation involves use of mediation. 4 This Article outlines an array of mediation techniques that could be used...
October 14, 2014
Many commentators and courts suggest that cooperative approaches to e-discovery planning hold the key to lower-cost, higher-quality e-discovery processes. 1 Yet, admonitions to cooperate hardly suffice to motivate self-interested parties. 2 Some system to foster cooperation, beyond the parties themselves, appears essential. 3 One system proposed as a means to promote e-discovery cooperation involves use of mediation. 4 This Article outlines an array of mediation techniques that could be used...
Texas Supreme Court Limits Reach of Pre-suit Discovery
October 14, 2014
The Texas Rules of Civil Procedure provide potential plaintiffs in Texas courts with the broadest power to conduct pre-suit discovery in the country. Under Rule 202, a Texas court can authorize a pre-suit deposition to investigate a potential claim before an actual lawsuit is filed. Rule 202 has been used in numerous contexts, but plaintiffs increasingly have found Rule 202 to be the preferred path for investigating claims involving on-line activities, as it allows them to notice a deposition of an on-line...
October 14, 2014
The Texas Rules of Civil Procedure provide potential plaintiffs in Texas courts with the broadest power to conduct pre-suit discovery in the country. Under Rule 202, a Texas court can authorize a pre-suit deposition to investigate a potential claim before an actual lawsuit is filed. Rule 202 has been used in numerous contexts, but plaintiffs increasingly have found Rule 202 to be the preferred path for investigating claims involving on-line activities, as it allows them to notice a deposition of an on-line...
Social Networks as a Forum for Legal Notice
October 14, 2014
In a fascinating development, albeit packed with potential problems, a judge in New York has allowed serving legal notice via social network. The New York Post article reported that “in a groundbreaking court ruling, a Staten Island man got permission to use Facebook to serve his ex-wife legal notice that he doesn’t want to pay any more child support.” The article quoted lawyer Michael Stutman of Mishchon de Reya in Manhattan as saying "the idea that physically handing someone a piece of paper...
October 14, 2014
In a fascinating development, albeit packed with potential problems, a judge in New York has allowed serving legal notice via social network. The New York Post article reported that “in a groundbreaking court ruling, a Staten Island man got permission to use Facebook to serve his ex-wife legal notice that he doesn’t want to pay any more child support.” The article quoted lawyer Michael Stutman of Mishchon de Reya in Manhattan as saying "the idea that physically handing someone a piece of paper...
