Bottom line: Attorneys who help reporters tell their stories are likely to find that such assistance will pay dividends in the short term and the long term for both those attorneys and their clients. There is a mindset that most media-savvy attorneys have. It is a mindset that you should adopt if you too want… Read More Media-savvy attorneys employ THIS mindset to become trusted resources for reporters
Bottom line: Public statements about lawsuits that do not address the allegations in those lawsuits lack credibility and are not persuasive. Image credit: Ashford University Last week, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced that California was suing for-profit college Ashford University and its parent company Bridgepoint Education for allegedly engaging in unlawful business practices. The… Read More A defendant’s public statements about a lawsuit should actually address the allegations in that…
Bottom line: The savviest prosecutors know how to engage the Court of Public Opinion. Defense attorneys should not allow prosecutors to do so unchallenged. The criminal case involving Penn State frat members whose alleged hazing of 19-year-old sophomore Timothy Piazza led to his death was back in the news this week. The news coverage of… Read More District Attorney in the Penn State hazing case once again shows her public relations skills
Bottom line: One way to obtain the upper hand in the Court of Public Opinion is by pointing out adversaries’ inconsistencies among each other which may call into question their motives for a lawsuit. Image credit: Edie Baskin (Associated Press) Trek Bicycle is facing a new lawsuit filed by Make Him Smile, Inc., the company… Read More Trek Bicycle’s response to a new lawsuit against it concerning Chris Farley’s likeness might help…
Bottom line: Documents and testimony unearthed during the discovery phase of a lawsuit can be newsworthy and pose problems for a litigant both in present and future legal disputes, and in the Court of Public Opinion. Image credit: Food Network When reporters cover lawsuits, they typically cover the filing of a complaint, developments in a trial,… Read More Paging Paula Deen: Discovery documents and testimony can be their own press releases
Bottom line: Law firms sued by clients over conflicts of interest must respond publicly to such lawsuits because the suits’ allegations could call into question the firms’ loyalty and commitment to their clients. When an ex-client sues a law firm alleging that the firm had a conflict of interest and acted against that ex-client’s best… Read More Don’t be conflicted: Law firms that do not publicly respond to conflicts of interest lawsuits by…
Bottom line: Using a public statement to describe the impact of a court decision may substantively and persuasively frame the issue for both the public and for an appellate court. Using such a statement to describe what the court did or how an attorney feels about it will do neither. Recently, the Pennsylvania Superior Court… Read More No one cares about your feelings: When commenting on a court decision, attorneys should talk about…
Bottom line: An organization’s statement about a lawsuit it is involved in which ignores the obvious will likely create credibility and reputational problems for it. A new lawsuit filed in Texas state court claims Comcast cut the wires of a small competitor in Texas — Telecom Cable LLC — effectively forcing the company out of business because it could… Read More Accused of actual cord cutting, Comcast kinda, sorta denies it
Bottom line: When an attorney’s client is a defendant in a high-profile case, no request for comment from the media should go unanswered by that attorney. Image Credit: Tap Production/Rex/Shutterstock (via BloombergBusinessweek) This is a post about BloombergBusinessweek’s recent article on the lawsuit filed by the creators of “This Is Spinal Tap” against Vivendi. The… Read More BloombergBusinessweek’s article on the “This Is Spinal Tap” litigation is another example of…
Bottom line: With multiple attorneys defending multiple parties whose interests are likely to diverge from each other at some point, the odds of finger-pointing among the parties are about the same as the odds of a collaborative defense. Image credit: Penn State University In early February 2017, Timothy Piazza, a 19-year-old sophomore at Penn State… Read More Penn State frat house death case will test defense attorneys’ willingness and ability to coordinate…
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