Tennessee Injury Law Center
Yesterday, former New York mayor and disbarred lawyer Rudy Guiliani was found in contempt of court. By way of background, Mr. Guiliani lost a defamation trial and now owes $148 million dollars to two poll workers he falsely accused of helping to steal the 2020 election. Following the judgment, the lawyers for the poll workers have tried to determine the nature and extent of Mr. Guiliani’s assets so that those assets can be seized and sold to pay them for the sums owed. To date, the judge has not yet ruled what penalties he will impose on Mr. Guiliani for his contempt, but he could face jail time. In addition, the judge could strike his defenses in a January 16th trial over his Florida condo and whether it is a primary residence thereby exempting it from seizure. All this legal maneuvering provides a great opportunity to remind anyone who is involved in litigation of some Dos and Don’ts.
First and foremost, be truthful. Be truthful in the beginning, in the middle and the end. Be completely truthful. Half-truths do not count. To prove a defamation case, one must show that the defendant made an untrue statement that harmed someone’s reputation. Thus, it was a lack of honesty that landed Mr. Guiliani in this situation. His continued lack of candor is only making his situation worse.
Second, a party’s conduct in the discovery phase of the trial is critically important and the parties should treat it with the same respect and diligence as if they are in court in front of a jury or judge. Let us explain. The discovery phase of a case is the period before the trial in which each side is permitted to seek information from the other party. The Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provide several vehicles to obtain information from a party to the lawsuit.
Interrogatories: These are written questions that must be answered under oath. The rules limit the number of permissible interrogatories, but the court can increase the number.
Request for Production of Documents: This is exactly what it sounds like; it is a request to a party to produce certain documents. For example, in a trucking accident case, the injured party might send request for production of documents to the trucking company that would include such things as the driver’s logs, the maintenance and repair history for the truck, any videos taken from the cab of the vehicle (not actually a document but included within the scope), etc.
Request for Admissions: A party can ask any other party to the lawsuit to admit certain facts. For instance, in the same trucking case, the injured party might ask the trucking company to admit that the driver was an employee and not an independent contractor or that the driver was driving on a suspended license, etc. If the party admits the fact, that is deemed conclusive and does not have to be proven through a witness or document at trial.
Requests to Inspect Property: This too is exactly as it sounds. Let’s assume, there was an accident on the premises of a business. A party can ask to inspect the premises.
Depositions: This is a question-and-answer session, under oath, in front of a court reporter who will transcribe every word. It usually takes place in a lawyer’s office and lawyers for all parties involved in the lawsuit are permitted to ask questions.
If a party fails to fully and honestly answer discovery, the court can issue sanctions/penalties and/or find a party in contempt. Sanctions could include fines, the striking of defenses or claims, the dismissal of the case or an adverse judgment being entered against the defendant. For contempt of court, additional fines could be imposed and/or jail time. Penalties can also be levied against the lawyers if they knew or should have known of their client’s lack of candor, which is why Guiliani’s former lawyer and longtime friend resigned telling the court Mr. Guiliani was not cooperating in the discovery process.
As always, we are here if you need us.
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