The Right Attitude and Frame of Mind During Litigation
No matter how compelling the facts of your case are, if you don't have the right mindset and the right mental approach to your case and to the litigation process, you are not going to do well, or you are not going to do nearly as well as you could. Below are simple but critically important tips to help you have the right approach to your case and to your relationship with any attorney you meet with to discuss your case or who represents you:
1. From Now On, It's Business Only
One close friend and a mentor told me about this dirty "j" word in the legal world - "justice." There is no such thing as justice in injury and employment cases or any other civil case. No one is going to give you your healthy back or neck back, just like on one is ever going to apologize for firing or discriminating or retaliating against you, and you are most likely not going to get your job back, no matter how egregious the employer's conduct was. The only remedy you have, whether you settle the case earlier, or later or win in court, is monetary compensation.
2. More Facts Is Not Always Better
When I, and many of other employment attorneys I know, hear that someone has a "complicated" case, I start suspecting that they probably have weak case or no case. A good employment case with actual violations can be summarized easily into just a few sentences. A good case can be articulated in a few sentences. For instance: "I have been working as a mechanic for this company for 20 years and received great performance reviews all along. One month after suffering an on-the-job injury and going on medical leave, I was placed on a performance improvement plan and was terminated for "not being a team player". There are facts in your case that you think are very important, which makes little difference legally or are even irrelevant. At the same time, there are facts that you think don't matter, which matter a lot as far proving your case goes. Your attorney should be able to distill the important facts from those that are not important or not relevant.
3. Remember Your Case is Important But it's Not the Biggest Case Out There
Your discrimination or termination, or a car accident or slip-and-fall injury is probably not the most catastrophic injury that anyone has heard of. You are probably better off than a disabled soldier who came back from Iraq without legs, and you are probably better off than an electrician who was electrocuted and paralyzed for life at work. As painful and frustrating as your firing at work or injury might have been, don't make more out of it than it is and keep things in perspective. The moment you make more out of your situation than it really is, it's going to hurt your case results. You must never give the other side, or the attorneys or the court any reason to think that you exaggerate. When you make sure you don't come across as someone who has an entitlement mentality or victim mentality, you send a strong message to your attorney that you are great (potential) client and you also send a strong message to the other side that the court / jury / arbitrator will likely you and will therefore be more generous with you, so they better consider setting with you sooner than later.
4. No Case is Perfect
By nature, no employment case is perfect, and most injury cases are no perfect either. The employer will always have reasons and excuses for taking action against you. And the insurance company will always try to undermine your injuries by either pointing at your previous injuries, or using other common arguments. As untruthful as employer might be, they still have some evidence on their side, even if it's only their word, which often counts for a lot, especially if you were an at-will employee. It is important that you share with your attorney not only the good facts that support your case but also the bad facts that the employer will most likely try to use to defend their case. Did you receive a warning a few months before being terminated? Were you accused of harassment shortly before being termination, even if it was a totally false accusation? Did you misrepresent your educational level or prior job experience on your resume when you were applying for that job with the employer-defendant? Were you injured did you complain about back or neck pain within a year before your accident? Did you file for bankruptcy recently? Your lawyer needs to know this kind of information, so that he can prepare to deal with it early on, rather than be surprised later by finding this out from the other side at the wrong time.
5. If You Can Leave With The Worst Case Outcome, You Have Nothing To Worry About
Think about it - the worst thing that can happen in a case has already happened to you. You have already been injured or terminated. Filing a case is not going to cause you another injury. The worst case scenario is that there is a chance that despite all of efforts, you will lose your case and you will be exactly where you are now, all other things equal. Your attorney will do his best to recover fair compensation for you (and for himself). However, if you can live with knowing that there is a chance that you will get $0 in the end, then you should be ready for whatever is coming way, and you have nothing to lose.
1. From Now On, It's Business Only
One close friend and a mentor told me about this dirty "j" word in the legal world - "justice." There is no such thing as justice in injury and employment cases or any other civil case. No one is going to give you your healthy back or neck back, just like on one is ever going to apologize for firing or discriminating or retaliating against you, and you are most likely not going to get your job back, no matter how egregious the employer's conduct was. The only remedy you have, whether you settle the case earlier, or later or win in court, is monetary compensation.
2. More Facts Is Not Always Better
When I, and many of other employment attorneys I know, hear that someone has a "complicated" case, I start suspecting that they probably have weak case or no case. A good employment case with actual violations can be summarized easily into just a few sentences. A good case can be articulated in a few sentences. For instance: "I have been working as a mechanic for this company for 20 years and received great performance reviews all along. One month after suffering an on-the-job injury and going on medical leave, I was placed on a performance improvement plan and was terminated for "not being a team player". There are facts in your case that you think are very important, which makes little difference legally or are even irrelevant. At the same time, there are facts that you think don't matter, which matter a lot as far proving your case goes. Your attorney should be able to distill the important facts from those that are not important or not relevant.
3. Remember Your Case is Important But it's Not the Biggest Case Out There
Your discrimination or termination, or a car accident or slip-and-fall injury is probably not the most catastrophic injury that anyone has heard of. You are probably better off than a disabled soldier who came back from Iraq without legs, and you are probably better off than an electrician who was electrocuted and paralyzed for life at work. As painful and frustrating as your firing at work or injury might have been, don't make more out of it than it is and keep things in perspective. The moment you make more out of your situation than it really is, it's going to hurt your case results. You must never give the other side, or the attorneys or the court any reason to think that you exaggerate. When you make sure you don't come across as someone who has an entitlement mentality or victim mentality, you send a strong message to your attorney that you are great (potential) client and you also send a strong message to the other side that the court / jury / arbitrator will likely you and will therefore be more generous with you, so they better consider setting with you sooner than later.
4. No Case is Perfect
By nature, no employment case is perfect, and most injury cases are no perfect either. The employer will always have reasons and excuses for taking action against you. And the insurance company will always try to undermine your injuries by either pointing at your previous injuries, or using other common arguments. As untruthful as employer might be, they still have some evidence on their side, even if it's only their word, which often counts for a lot, especially if you were an at-will employee. It is important that you share with your attorney not only the good facts that support your case but also the bad facts that the employer will most likely try to use to defend their case. Did you receive a warning a few months before being terminated? Were you accused of harassment shortly before being termination, even if it was a totally false accusation? Did you misrepresent your educational level or prior job experience on your resume when you were applying for that job with the employer-defendant? Were you injured did you complain about back or neck pain within a year before your accident? Did you file for bankruptcy recently? Your lawyer needs to know this kind of information, so that he can prepare to deal with it early on, rather than be surprised later by finding this out from the other side at the wrong time.
5. If You Can Leave With The Worst Case Outcome, You Have Nothing To Worry About
Think about it - the worst thing that can happen in a case has already happened to you. You have already been injured or terminated. Filing a case is not going to cause you another injury. The worst case scenario is that there is a chance that despite all of efforts, you will lose your case and you will be exactly where you are now, all other things equal. Your attorney will do his best to recover fair compensation for you (and for himself). However, if you can live with knowing that there is a chance that you will get $0 in the end, then you should be ready for whatever is coming way, and you have nothing to lose.