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| Settlements on the Courthouse Steps Jury duty
is a responsibility to which many are called, but few are chosen.
Some attorneys may spend their entire careers without sitting
on a jury, and some may never be summoned.
My opportunity to serve as a lawyer-juror came only recently. After REVOLVING DOOR After patiently reviewing the jury information
pamphlet for a few minutes, I heard from the bailiffs that we would
be called to serve as potential jurors in a civil matter. A few minutes later, a member of court administration
walked into the jury assembly room, thanked us for being there, and
then told us we could all leave. What? We were incredulous! The administrator explained that late the previous
evening, the parties had reached a settlement. I had mixed reactions to this announcement,
and my fellow public servants visibly displayed their mixed reactions
— some of which have no place in a professional magazine. While there was some feeling of relief that
we could now get back to our normal routines, there was also disgust
for the complete waste of time and resources the last-minute settlement
caused. I know that lawsuits are frequently resolved
on the courthouse steps, if not late on the eve of trial. I know that last-minute settlements are “standard
operating procedure” for many lawyers. I know that the pressure of an imminent trial
date sometimes has more influence over parties’ decision to settle
than any other factor. Now I also know what it feels like to be
a potential juror who shows up at the courthouse on half a day’s notice,
only to be told that the parties were able to resolve their differences
late the night before (while I was still rearranging my schedule so
that I could perform my civic duty).
WASTED RESOURCES But there’s more to this than jurors’ disgruntlement
at having their lives disrupted and their time wasted. The last-minute settlement also wasted this community’s resources. The judge, the judge’s staff, and court administration
all spent time gearing up for the trial they believed was going forward. Bailiffs were called in. Jury duty fees and mileage were paid to the
would-be jurors. All of this waste could have been avoided
if the settlement had been reached mere hours earlier. Do what you can to settle your lawsuits
in an orderly and timely fashion.
Remember that we are all paying for settlements that are reached
late in the day. MELINDA M. SANDERS is a shareholder
with the law firm of Quinlivan & Hughes.
While not in law practice, parenting her children, or responding to
jury summonses, she volunteers with the local Chamber of Commerce,
is President of her Kiwanis Club, and coaches
soccer. |
