Bringing a motion to secure this discovery prior to trial, is the most important step a plaintiff ‘s attorney can take in order to ensure she has placed herself and her client in the best position to secure a punitive damages award at trial. The burden warranting permission from the court to obtain the defendant’s financial records and information is a high one, but it is
not an insurmountable one. Bringing a motion for discovery of financial records during the discovery stage is by far the best way to ensure, or at least greatly increase the chances, that you will be permitted to obtain these records in time. So what do you do?
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Types of Cases
Proposed Form Interrogatories for Construction Litigation
By Katherine Gallo on
Posted in Construction
Five years, twenty drafts and hundreds and hundreds of non-billed attorneys later, the Civil and Small Claims Committee of the Judicial Council is recommending the Form Interrogatories – Construction Litigation be adopted and has invited the public to comment.
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The First 120 Days of Insurance Litigation
By Katherine Gallo on
Posted in Discovery Plans, Insurance
Your clients have been sued by their insurance company for Declaratory Relief. The insurer asserts that there is no coverage under your clients’ liability insurance policy for a claim made against them. In deciding how to proceed, there are a few things to remember in dealing with insurance litigation. First, the duty to defend is a legal question based upon the “potential” that the lawsuit against your client could result in damages covered by the insurance policy. Montrose Chemical Corp. v. Superior Court (1995) 6 Cal. 4th 287, 300 (pdf). For the duty to defend, therefore, think summary judgment, rather than trial. Second, for indemnity (actual coverage): is the carrier defending or not? With regard to indemnity, whether the insurance company is defending affects the burden of proof. Ultimately, the insured should be prepared to prove, in order to recover indemnity or settlement costs, that their liability is in fact covered by the insurance policy.
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