I just finished a criminal trial and a week later, mediation in a civil case. Each reminded me that this is an adversarial system. Your case is not necessarily about the truth. Harsh? Maybe, but that is the reality.

Whatever type of case you are involved in, the legal process involves two different narratives, or stories. In the criminal case
Continue Reading Save that story for your lawyer!

The lawsuit brought by the victims and survivors of the explosion and fire at Tamarack Resort in 2017 has been settled. The settlement amount is confidential. With Dan Fleck and Gabe Phillips from the Spence Law Firm in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, we represented James Harper, whose son and grandson tragically died as a result of a gas leak, that led
Continue Reading Tamarack Explosion and Fire Case Settled

Impartiality is a myth. So the idea that you will start with an impartial jury or fact finder (maybe a Judge) misses the mark. We all have inherent bias and prejudice that colors our decision making. All of us.

Let’s start with a simple example involving cars. I have a bias (or preference) in favor of Westfalia vans and Porsche 911s. The two are polar opposites – sexy German sports car and utilitarian German fun wagon. If I had both in my garage I would be a happy camper. Over time I have had both but modern automobiles have taken my eyes away from each. So too the two grandkids I cart around daily.Continue Reading Start with Bias and Prejudice – your story must deal with these or you lose!

I recently attended the depositions of a couple clients who faced questioning about their lives by insurance lawyers. These depositions were really not intended to get to the “truth” of anything. The lawyers wanted to see our clients and hear their story as a means of valuing their cases. An insurance adjuster sat in on the questioning, likely trying to
Continue Reading Depositions – really a tool to evaluate the parties and value the claims

 So I took a little break from blogging about criminal defense, DUI defense, civil trials and matters of wrongful death. And then things just started "popping up." A new case or twelve. A kid in jail who just could not get it together. A former Marine facing life changing decisions. The mentally ill – fearing life and death as they

Continue Reading And now a word about blogging – BACK!

 

Years ago I was getting ready for a monster trial – pitting the ultimate power of the United States against a little guy who held out in the face of an all out attack on his home. People died. Protestors gathered. Television cameras rolled and major magazines wrote headlines in anticipation of an almost certain end. Tanks and helicopters ferried officers  and snipers about until the thing finally ended. 

As the time for trial neared – nearly nine months after the siege – the question of whether we could settle the case arose. The Sage – a burley mountain man of a lawyer who was our leader – looked me square in the eyes and said it best: 

"We only go to trial if we have to. If we can settle any case and walk away with our heads up, that’s what we do."

To win your case at trial you have to know if it can be won. Then again – what is winning?

If you are charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon (pointing a gun at someone, a felony) and the government offers to accept a plea to simple assault (a misdemeanor), should you go to trial? I suppose it depends on your tolerance for the pain of a possible felony conviction. Sometimes you know that what you did went too far, and you can swallow a little crow and pay a small price to avoid the possibility of a felony conviction. Sometimes you can’t. And sometimes the government makes that decision for you – they refuse to negotiate and settle. 

Then you try your case.

Here’s the starting point: is there an alternative to trial? 

Last summer we prepared for a wrongful death trial in Wyoming. Our clients had lost their son while he was skiing at a well-known ski resort. This was the second such case we had handled against that resort in the past five years or so. In each case, the lawyers were the same, the decision-makers were the same, even the experts were the same. Two lives lost. Families destroyed. The ski industry almost never settles until you are almost at trial. They spend money defending their industry, even in the face of an unnecessary death. 

The case settled just a few weeks before the trial was to start. Why? Because each side understood the risk of going to trial. We all knew that juries are impossible to predict, regardless of how many mock trials or focus groups are done. And we did not have to try the case to win.

Our clients had already lost their son. They wanted a resolution that mostly included an acknowledgement of their loss and the defendants’ partial responsibility. A mediated settlement achieved that solution. 

If you have a case – civil or criminal – and a trial is your only way out, by all means, go and fight and do everything you can to "win." But after 31 years in the courts, I can tall you the Sage is right. If there is another solution, explore that option first. 

Think you have a civil case? Wrongful death? Personal injury? Wrongful discharge? Or a criminal matter? Maybe we can help you win – whether you go to court or not.

 

Continue Reading Win Your Case – go to trial if there is no other way out!

A former engineer has been charged with destroying over 200 emails that were requested by prosecutors and investigators in the 2010 BP Gulf oil disaster. One of those emails reported that the spill was far worse than had been reported by BP.

According to CNN, Kurt Mix faces charges that he intentionally destroyed evidence that had been requested by

Continue Reading Deleting Emails Leads To Criminal Charges in BP Disaster

 Today’s Idaho Statesman contains an article about a lawsuit filed by a young woman who was at a University of Idaho frat party, apparently got intoxicated and fell out of a third story window.  The issue here is liability: is the University or state board of education liable for injuries sustained by a person who is herself violating the law by illegally consuming alcohol? More interesting than the legal question is the comment section of the on-line version of the story – and it serves as a good reminder of how public perception plays a role in our assessment of any civil case. As the lawyer looking at a personal injury case or a wrongful death case, I always start with the obvious – how will the man on the street look at the facts of this case? After all, if the case goes to a jury you will be asking the man on the street for money.

As you might expect, the plaintiff in the U of I case was seriously injured, and it seems likely mounting medical and rehabilitation expenses have motivated her and her family to look for some help in trying to rebuild the young woman’s life. She claims generally that the University and the state board of education did not do enough to safeguard her time at the University. Had window locks or similar devices been installed, perhaps she would not have fallen out of the window and been so seriously injured. In legal terms we would talk about causation here – was the University’s failure the cause of the injury or was there another intervening cause?  Maybe her voluntary intoxication?

Check out the comments to the story to see what a tough case this might be to win.  Most of the folks posting their "two cents worth" assume the case is frivolous or absurd. As I write this, only one post speaks to the question of whether the University has a duty to do something to safeguard students in the face of known underage drinking at frat parties. And our answers to this question likely are influenced by our own behaviors as college students, and the fear we have as parents of college students that they get drunk and end up with some serious injury.

Shouldn’t the law protect people at their weakest moments? Shouldn’t it protect us – to some degree – against ourselves? Can it? 

This is a great case to watch for anyone interested in the intersection of personal responsibility and expected campus party behavior. The plaintiffs have a long battle before a jury considers the question of responsibility here. And we might check back in on this one when the question of summary judgment arises.

 

Continue Reading If You Fall Out of a Third Story Window, Is the University of Idaho Responsible – Most Comments Say “NO”

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) recently identified 149 potential sources of human error in the analysis of crime scene fingerprints.  In an article published by NIST, the results of a study by a working group of 34 scientists, NIST recommends changes to reduce human error and make conclusions more reliable.  You can download the report at this site.

Fingerprint evidence is difficult to deal with in trial because the examiner offers his or her "opinion" as if it were indisputable fact. In truth, the examiner identifies a number of points of comparison and then, if similar to the known sample (for example, from our client), declares that the prints "match."  He or she may use fewer than 7 points of comparison in many jurisdictions and still declare the "match."

How do you handle this type of evidence at trial?  Start with NIST article and think about the issue as if it was any other opinion, subject to attack on that basis. Expert opinions are conclusions based on a review of facts (like points of comparison on fingerprints), and are subject to human error. Opinion testimony is also subject to cross-examination for bias (testimony that favors a position) and prejudice (testimony that opposes a position).  For example, an examiner may be part of the "prosecution team," with an agenda to obtain a conviction.  He or she may acknowledge that there are no real standards with respect to how many points of comparison are required to state the opinion. Perhaps he or she has been retained in a case and has been paid for the opinion.  

My point is simple – treat this witness just like any other "expert" and cut away at credibility, in part by focussing some of your cross-examination on human error.

But recognize that jurors love "scientific" evidence.  Science has certainty, or at least the appearance of certainty, for that moment in time. Turns out the earth is not flat – regardless of the opinions offered to the contrary. And maybe that "matching" fingerprint is a match only because the analysts are subject to human error. Jurors will need a reason (or 149) to not believe the conclusion that the prints match, so go slow and go broad. The more potential doubt the expert can concede, the better you will do. 

 

Continue Reading 149 Reasons Why That Fingerprint Expert Might Be Mistaken

 If you have been injured by an Idaho state, county, or city employee and you want to bring a civil lawsuit for damages, you MUST file a notice of tort claim before you can bring a lawsuit to recover for your injuries. Even if the potential defendant is not an employee – you still must file the notice of tort claim to have a chance to recover money damages from injuries or death that resulted from a government employee or agent’s negligence.  The law in Idaho requires that the tort claims notice must be filed WITHIN 180 days of the date of your injuries. Again, if you do not file the notice of tort claims within that time, you HAVE NO RIGHT TO SUE.  

If your case involves any of the following types of entities or their employees or agents, you will need to file a Tort Claims Notice before you can bring suit:

  • State office or department;
  • State agency, authority, commission or board;
  • State hospital;
  • State college or university; 
  • County;
  • City;
  • Municipal Corporation;
  • Health District;
  • School District;
  • Irrigation District;
  • Special Improvement or Taxing District;
  • Hospital or Nursing Home established by a County or City;
  • Any other State or local governmental entity

There is no "form" that is required for your tort claims notice, but it must include certain information including the conduct and circumstances which brought about the injury; the nature of the injury or damage; the time and place the injury or damage occurred; the names of all persons involved; the amount of damages claimed; the residence of the claimant. 

This is a very important requirement that you may not get right if you rely on your own understanding of the law. If you get this one wrong – you have no case, so get some help. Call a lawyer who has experience with this. I have had to tell that potential client that his right to sue under state law was gone because he had failed to file a proper notice of tort claim, and that was a conversation I will never forget. So get some help.

 

Continue Reading Injured by an Idaho State, County or City Employee? You Need To File A Tort Claims Notice To Bring A Lawsuit