Tag Archives: litigation

When “Being Done Wrong” is not enough in court?

We get clients come into The Mark Bamberger Co., LLC almost daily with perfectly good (sounding) cases. They have been wronged! There is little doubt from the passion of how they relate their story that they have been wronged; and further that they indeed deserve justice in an Ohio or Federal court. My staff and I listen to client cases and empathize. But remember the old adage “…if you want a friend, buy a dog”? Welcome to our system of justice; in all its splendor and candor. Although Lady Justice is blind and wielding a sword along with scales; if you look closely, she is also bruised, cut, and bleeding.

This is not easy business. The rate of alcoholism is about as high for attorneys as for any other profession besides professional drinkers and bar flies. It is hard to be empathetic and supportive on one side, but also equally realistic about the odds of winning any particular case on the other. The difference between “being wronged” and being able to prove in a court of law (be it criminal, civil, or domestic) that a client was wronged to the proper legal standard is no business for the faint of heart.

I tell my staff that the most important aspect of being a good lawyer (besides basic competence) is the ability to tell the truth. That means not only telling the truth to judges or fellow attorneys, but perhaps hardest of all telling the truth to crying clients who plead for the “launching of their judicial armada”. The litigation process is long and painful. Having said that, when there is a case to be won, we here at The Mark Bamberger Co., LLC go after the bad guys with passion and all the weapons at our disposal. The joy of that is that we usually represent the “little guy” against corporations, governments, and so on. The victories are sweet and we have won far more than lost. But loss is part of the equation that must be considered throughout the litigation process (see past articles on civil litigation and criminal defense).

The bottom line is that all clients want a legal champion, but at times what they need is the straight truth about the pros and cons of their case and a candid analysis of the chance of victory. If their definition of victory is realistic, we can often make it happen.

MJB 4/14/10

Laboring through Employment Law

Ohio is a tough place to do employment law!  Being one of the dreaded “at will” states, an employer can pretty much rid themselves of an employee without much cause.  No reason need be given.  What cannot be given is an illegal or unconstitutional reason.  There is tremendous statutory leeway provided to Ohio employers to follow their business models.

As difficult as it is to pursue a labor or employment law civil litigation cases in Ohio, The Mark Bamberger Co., LLC finds opportunities to represent employees who have been wronged.  The challenge is to define with our clients the difference between being wronged in fact and being able to prove that a client has been wronged in a court of law.

The litigation process begins by deciding if a client has a constitutional claim, such as gender, age, or racial bias; or else some noted violation of an existing contract or union agreement.  Most of the labor clients we see did not sign a contract with their employer, are not part of a union, and do not have a viable constitutional claim to proffer.  That makes litigation tough.  Additionally, our clients need to consider the potential outcome.  They typically fall into one of three categories: (1) those who continue to hold their jobs, yet want some remedy for a wrong; (2) those who lost their job and want it back, if at all possible; and (3) those who lost their job and do not want to go anywhere near the place ever, ever, ever again.  Different approaches and sensitivities are indicated depending on which category is applicable in the case at bar.  Some law firms go right for the civil complaint (suing the “SOB/s”).  At The Mark Bamberger Co., LLC, we often find that a three-step approach provides the best opportunity for our clients to get where they need to go; with only the third and final step being a civil complaint.

Overall, the most important thing for our clients in ANY litigation environment to do is to define what a “victory” looks like.  Many times they just need help in order to move on with their life with some version of closure; be it financial, psychological, or otherwise.

MJB 3/10

Civil Litigation

As our client, you may be experiencing a legal dispute with another party that seeks monetary damages or specific performance rather than criminal sanctions. The Mark Bamberger Law Co. LLC represent our clients in trials, hearings, arbitration and mediation before administrative agencies, and federal, state and local courts.

The Mark Bamberger Law Co. LLC manages a broad range of disputes.  Several common types of civil litigation include:

* Landlord/Tenant
* Products Liability
* Personal injury
* Construction
* Medical Malpractice
* Employment & Labor
* Real Estate
* Anti-Trust
* Intellectual Property
* Environmental
* Worker’s Compensation

Since civil litigation is an adversarial process, litigation attorneys and paralegals from The Mark Bamberger Law Co. LLC assume an oppositional position and embrace conflict and controversy. We often work long hours, especially during trial, and perform occasional travel, always to ensure that your case is handled with the most favored outcome in mind.

We handle all seven stages of the civil litigation process: investigation, pleadings, discovery, pre-trial, trial, settlement and appeal. Please be aware, not every lawsuit passes through each stage of litigation; most lawsuits are settled prior to trial and many cases that reach a trial verdict are not appealed.

The lifespan of a lawsuit can range from several months to several years. Complex civil litigation often takes years to pass from pre-suit investigation through trial/settlement.

We have found that discovery can be the longest and most labor-intensive stage of civil litigation. Contrary to the images portrayed by television, civil litigators spend very little time in trial; most of our time is actually devoted to the discovery stage of litigation.