Call us for a consultation: Call us for a consultation: 706-510-0000

Call us for a consultation: [nap_phone id=”LOCAL-REGULAR-NUMBER-2″]

What Commercial Litigation Lawyers Wish Their Clients Knew

by | Nov 8, 2017 | Commercial Litigation

There are a few things that clients of commercial litigation lawyers should know and understand.

Throughout handling a case, commercial litigation lawyers need to think about many considerations. Some of these concerns may be hard for clients and non-legal professionals to understand. Here are a few facts top commercial litigation lawyers wish clients knew:

Going to Court Is Expensive

Clients should understand that trying a case in court should be a means of last resort. This is because of high monetary and time cost. Taking a case to court can cost tens of thousands of dollars in your own legal fees and court costs. But this amount could almost double if you lose the case and the court orders you to pay your opponent’s legal fees.

Then there’s the time cost. The trial may only last a few days, but the time it takes to get the court can take years and take up a lot of your time. There are the depositions and the time to prepare for them. Then you’ll need to provide documents and information to comply with your opponent’s discovery requests. Finally, there are the countless phone calls and meetings with your attorney and other individuals involved in the lawsuit. This can add up to hundreds of hours of lost time.

You Can Lose Money Litigating

Generally speaking, there will be a limit on the amount of money you can expect to recover from a lawsuit. For example, in a breach of contract, you can only recover your actual damages, for the most part. On occasion, you can recover double or triple your actual damages and attorney’s fees. Even if that’s the case, there’s still an upper limit on what you can recover.

However, there is no limit on what you can spend to try a case in court. If you’re not careful, you can spend more money litigating than you can expect to obtain through a court judgment. There can sometimes be “soft” costs of litigation, such as decreased productivity, bad press and lost business. In the long-run, these soft costs can add up to more than any potential recovery.

 

Many Cases Begin Because of Principle

Why is it so easy for a court case to result in lost money, even if the client obtains a favorable jury verdict? Because many business clients want to go to court based on principle. They feel like someone wronged them and they want their justice, revenge, satisfaction or whatever they want to call it. This is completely understandable, but clients who want to litigate based on principle need to understand what they’re doing and how it may end up losing them money.

 

Business Clients Can Sometimes Be Emotional

Why do so many business clients want to fight in court because of principle? Sometimes it’s because they are emotional and can’t stand the idea of someone else taking advantage of them. Yes, letting someone else take advantage of you and not doing something about it seems like a weak thing to do. But instead of spending $2 to recover $1, it’s probably more cost effective to take steps to avoid doing business with that person again and be more careful next time in a business deal. Hiring a good business litigation attorney can help you take steps to avoid making the same mistake again.

Connect with our legal team at Wilbanks Law Firm, P.C. online now to learn more about commercial litigation lawyers.