TV News LIES

Thursday, Mar 28th

Last update03:41:26 AM GMT

You are here News Domestic (USA) 9/11 Case Could Bring Broad Shift on Civil Suits

9/11 Case Could Bring Broad Shift on Civil Suits

E-mail Print PDF

But something much deeper and broader was going on in the decision, something that may unsettle how civil litigation is conducted in the United States. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who dissented from the decision, told a group of federal judges last month that the ruling was both important and dangerous. “In my view,” Justice Ginsburg said, “the court’s majority messed up the federal rules” governing civil litigation.


For more than half a century, it has been clear that all a plaintiff had to do to start a lawsuit was to file what the rules call “a short and plain statement of the claim” in a document called a complaint. Having filed such a bare-bones complaint, plaintiffs were entitled to force defendants to open their files and submit to questioning under oath.

This approach, particularly when coupled with the American requirement that each side pay its own lawyers no matter who wins, gave plaintiffs settlement leverage. Just by filing a lawsuit, a plaintiff could subject a defendant to great cost and inconvenience in the pre-trial fact-finding process called discovery.

Mark Herrmann, a corporate defense lawyer with Jones Day in Chicago, said the Iqbal decision will allow for the dismissal of cases that would otherwise have subjected defendants to millions of dollars in discovery costs. On the other hand, information about wrongdoing is often secret. Plaintiffs claiming they were the victims of employment discrimination, a defective product, an antitrust conspiracy or a policy of harsh treatment in detention may not know exactly who harmed them and how before filing suit. But plaintiffs can learn valuable information during discovery.

The Iqbal decision now requires plaintiffs to come forward with concrete facts at the outset, and it instructs lower court judges to dismiss lawsuits that strike them as implausible.

More...


Most Recent Related Stories...


FTX's Sam Bankman-Fried Sentenced To 25 Years Over Cryptocurrency Scam

Sam BankmanDisgraced cryptocurrency entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison Thursday for presiding over...

John Eastman, architect of Trump’s 2020 election plot, should be disbarred, judge rules

John Eastman A California judge on Wednesday recommended the disbarment of John Eastman, calling to revoke the law...

Suspected gunman charged; Thousands expected to attend wake for slain NYPD Officer Jonathan Diller

Officer Jonathan Dillard The suspected gunman has been charged as the heartbroken loved ones of fallen NYPD Officer...

MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell faces warehouse eviction, owes $200K in rent

My Piilow guy faces evictionIn October, Lindell's lawyers said he was out of money and unable to pay them for...
 
America's # 1 Enemy
Tee Shirt
& Help Support TvNewsLIES.org!
TVNL Tee Shirt
 
TVNL TOTE BAG
Conserve our Planet
& Help Support TvNewsLIES.org!
 
Get your 9/11 & Media
Deception Dollars
& Help Support TvNewsLIES.org!
 
The Loaded Deck
The First & the Best!
The Media & Bush Admin Exposed!