Divorce Windfall Not Unconscionable
'Courts will not set aside an agreement on the ground of unconscionability simply because it might have been improvident,'" a panel recently held in <i>Etzion v. Etzion</i>, 2008-00759.
Court-Appointed or Jointly Retained Financial Experts
Financial experts are generally used in matrimonial matters to identify, value and help in the distribution of marital assets and also opine on issues such as income, cash flow, tax consequences or marital liabilities. This article focuses on the expert who is retained to render his or her own opinion.
Case Notes
Recent rulings of interest to you and your practice.
Coming Soon to a Theater Near You
On May 20 of this year, the members of the American Law Institute (ALI) unanimously approved a project that was five years in the making ' "Principles of Aggregate Litigation." Although it encompasses all of the many forms of aggregated lawsuits, the Principles really focus on the most controversial one: The class action.
Federal Rule of Evidence 502
This article summarizes the law of inadvertent waiver of privilege and the evolution of courts' approaches to this problem, describes the changes brought about by newly enacted Federal Rule of Evidence 502, and offers a roadmap for the product liability practitioner to keeping privileged documents out of the hands of one's adversary.
Optional Safety Equipment and the Savvy Purchaser
In a recent divided decision, New York's highest court may have changed some contours of product liability law as it affects cases involving optional equipment, knowledgeable purchasers and off-product warnings.
Practice Tip: Trying the Design Defect Case
A properly pleaded Complaint in a design defect case will permit the plaintiff to try his case on several different theories: negligence, strict liability and breach of warranty. Nevertheless, certain cases would be most efficiently tried only as a breach of warranty.
Preemption Paradox
The two recent Supreme Court decisions in <i>Riegel</i> and <i>Altria Group</i> are difficult to reconcile in fundamental ways, and, consequently, they did little to provide meaningful guidance to litigants and lower courts.
Maximizing Law Firm Mergers in the Media
Grappling with an unprecedented recession, law firms are merging out of both necessity and opportunity, according to a recent client advisory from Hildebrandt and Citi Private Bank.
