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Month: May 2011

THE 80/20 RULE APPLIES TO JURY SELECTION AS WELL AS POLITICS

THE 80/20 RULE APPLIES TO JURY SELECTION AS WELL AS POLITICS

Sheryl Gay Stolberg wrote in last Sunday’s New  York Times about the Congressional hearings involving appointee Elizabeth Warren to head up the consumer protection agency. Warren is a Harvard law professor who exhibited a lot more courage then any other recent appointees by not taking bullying from Republican committee members and member Patrick McHenry a North Carolina Republican, in particular. The Republican committee members had already made it clear they had no intention of voting in her favor. When McHenry continued…

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HOW TO ADMIT YOU WERE WRONG & ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY

HOW TO ADMIT YOU WERE WRONG & ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY

Recently I read a short article by Annie Mueller about fixing mistakes.(wisebread.com) She  advocated a seven step process for dealing with mistakes. As I read the article I thought about admitted liability cases where the defense admits fault in an effort to minimize the verdict through excluding evidence of fault. In a state like Washington where we have no punitive damages, that means zero information is allowed about the negligent conduct. Of course, the defendant still is in a state…

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DAVID BALL NEW BOOK DAMAGES 3

DAVID BALL NEW BOOK DAMAGES 3

I am a great admirer of David Ball because he is one of very few people who has taken the effort to spell out the steps and procedures for trying a civil case based upon sound research and experience. Many people have explained procedures and concepts, but few have done so in a “paint by the numbers” style of teaching. His latest edition of Damages 3 is a book every trial lawyer should own, read and put into practice. Here…

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