Long Island Law Firm, Markotsis & Lieberman, P.C., Lists and Explains Some Things to Do During Commercial Litigation
HICKSVILLE, N.Y., Feb. 25, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Commercial litigation can arise with customers, vendors, business partners, or even an employee. Whether you or your company filed the lawsuit, or one is filed against you or your company, you now need to take steps to obtain the best result possible. Once a suit is commenced, the time spent related to the lawsuit is critical and needs to be treated as so. Long Island Real Estate Law Firms and Business Law Firm, Markotsis & Lieberman, P.C., compiled a list of some tips on what to do once a lawsuit has started. Read on to make sure you're doing everything you can to get the best outcome for your organization.
Cease communications with the other side. Once a lawsuit is pending, you should no longer have any direct contact with the other side, unless approved by your lawyer. You do not want to say or write anything that is detrimental to your position.
Start gathering documentation; this includes hard copies and digital. Your documentation will assist in determining what claims or defenses you may have. Also, during discovery, documents that are relevant to the case will be turned over to the other side. This applies to both hard copies of documents and anything digital such as emails, text messages or Microsoft Office documents.
You must preserve evidence. All related documents, hard and electronic, must be preserved. Do not destroy any documents, even if you think that they may not be relevant. If you have a document destruction policy, it should be suspended with respect to documents related to the litigation during the litigation. If you are not sure whether something is relevant, err on the side of it being relevant, and run it by your attorney.
Recognize that things may not go as expected. Even when efforts are extremely organized and planned with every minor detail, you never know what the future holds in litigation cases. There are many factors and variables, and even a case that looks like a sure winner may take a turn for the worse when something unexpected happens, like a witness testifying differently than you thought or a document being produced that you had no idea about. You need to expect the unexpected.
Have a post-litigation discussion. Regardless of the outcome, every litigation should be treated as a learning experience. There may be certain policies or procedures which led to the commencement of the suit, which such policies or procedures can be changed to limit a future lawsuit. Or maybe an early offer of settlement should have been accepted.
Commercial litigation involving your company can occur at any time. If you stay organized and collected, it puts you in a better position to receive the optimal outcome. By following these tips, you can be prepared if and when a situation arises at your organization.
About Markotsis & Lieberman, P.C.: Markotsis & Lieberman, P.C. Real Estate Attorney is a general practice law firm. Practice areas include litigation (commercial and civil), real estate, business formations, agreements and transactions, and wills, trusts and estates. Our team of seasoned attorneys is here to guide you through every step of the legal process providing personalized attention to every client. When you're facing a complicated legal situation, our team of legal experts is there to fight for your rights.
SOURCE Markotsis & Lieberman, P.C.
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