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Five Questions To Clarify for Yourself Before Getting Involved in Litigation

Written by: Mazin Ahmad Sbaiti

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Business Intellectual Property

Posted almost 3 years ago. 1 helpful vote, 0 comments

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What Is the Business Purpose of this Case?

Too often businesses get involved in litigation and they just go and fight the suit--whether they are a plaintiff or defendant. The real question to ask yourself is how does this litigation impact your business--what outcome would be good for your business and what outcome would be bad for your business.

What is the Value of the Optimal Result?

Even those businesses who have a basic idea of why they are in litigation never set a budget -- the best way to set a budget is to first cap the amount you're willing to spend. The best way to figure that is to decide what the case is worth to you ... at what cost is the case not worth it anymore. If you know this, then you can start analyzing the fees you are confronting.

What Fee Structure Protects My Investment in this Case?

Once you have a value for your case, you have to decide whether it is worth it to you to go forward, and if so, under what terms with your attorney. Do you pay a flat fee up front? Do you pay hourly as they go? do you get them to take the case on contingency...in which case the lawyers will probably get more of the cash settlement (if successful) than if you went with one of the other two ways? Or do you go with a hybrid arrangement? The key question is to ask yourself how you want to invest in the case, and what arrangement works best given the value of the case to you, and given your cash flow situation.

Do I want to go with a trial boutique or large law firm?

This question often comes up because there are pros and cons to going with a trial boutique versus a large law firm. Generally, trial boutiques can be more flexible on fee arrangements, and have unique courtroom and advocacy skills that, frankly, because of the size of their average cases, large law firm lawyers don't have. On the other hand, large law firms tend to have more internal resources to draw upon, more lawyers to do a large volume of work in a short period of time, and are generally very consistent.

Is there any way I can my attorneys fees back?

Keeping in line with the theme of this posting which is to make a sound business decision when considering litigation: one question that often gets overlooked is whether you can get your attorneys fees back. In Texas, for example, a plaintiff can get their attorneys fees for breaches of contract actions.