Can’t Compel Arbitration if You Deny the Contract’s Existence

Sometimes reading my statistics page is the best way I have of taking the pulse of my readers and diagnosing the current actual rather than the aspirational state of settlement and mediation practice. Listen.  Only the squeakiest client or party wheel will tell you that he is feeling coerced into settling the litigation that has become a millstone around your neck. I’m talking to attorneys here -- but settlement officers, judges and mediators should pay attention as... more

But if you are still practicing law, download this great practice guide from Merrill-Legal Maintaining the Chain of Custody in Civil Litigation .   ... more

If the political season(s) have gotten too serious for you, check out I’ve Got a Crush on Obama below.   Moment of Nostalgia :  When I was in high school, I was too frightened to compete in the impromtu or extemporary speech categories and too lazy to prepare all those 3x5 cards for debate.  Therefore I competed in state-wide speech tournaments through the National Forensic League in three categories -- humorous and dramatic interpretation and ... more

The New York Times Reported today that 44,000 people have signed up for the Vioxx settlement here .  Excerpt below.  For full report click on link. More than 44,000 people have signed up for a piece of a $4.85 billion settlement over the withdrawn painkiller Vioxx, a sign that the deal is on track to go forward, the drug’s maker, Merck & Company, announced Monday. Of roughly 47,000 people who registered for the settlement this year, more than 44,000 have submitted ... more