The practice of law has many dimensions and many tools at one's disposal to accomplish a resolution of a contested matter. Most recently, our firm engaged in a multi-party mediation involving forty-six claimants and a handful of defendants. The initial lawsuits centered on a very serious bus accident involving one death and multiple extensive injuries to numerous passengers. The very real legal concern for all the defendants was that the value of the injuries far exceeded the ten million dollars of available insurance coverage. This exposed our client to millions of dollars of potential liability which in turn threatened its very corporate existence.
Fortunately, we were able to resolve all forty-six claims within the policy limits without any contribution from the client. There were several key factors that contributed to this successful outcome but three stand out.
First, the importance of securing an experienced mediator with a track record of resolving multi-plaintiff tort cases cannot be understated. Thus, a good practitioner must thoroughly research the mediator's credentials and check references before selection.
Second, the attorney must be factually prepared to defend his valuation of each case within a settlement range that enables the cumulative valuation to fall within the policy limits.
And thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, is the need to impress on all plaintiffs' counsel that they are in effect competing with the other plaintiffs for a limited pot of money. They need to be advised that if they do not to resolve their claims at the mediation, they will not receive more later on during the litigation and indeed their individual position may worsen to the extent that the remaining plaintiffs settle for the balance of the available proceeds.
The combination of these factors, coupled with a united and cooperative front amongst defense counsel, produced a successful resolution that enabled our client to continue its operation uninterrupted.
If I can ever be of service, please feel free to reach out.
Sincerely,
Mario Biaggi Jr.
212-233-8000