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Smightmite t1_j2c17vn wrote

Reply to comment by Scumandvillany in Roxborough homeowner says developers destroyed her property while building next door by JClurvesfries

I mean the construction company will be liable for her lawyer and court fees after she wins

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Scumandvillany t1_j2c1zmw wrote

Not exactly how it works. You'd think so, but only if it goes to trial, and believe it or not, trial can cost 30k. Hell the lead up to trial can cost 30k. I'm familiar with a similar case, but more damage, lawyers racked up 50k in the year of litigation. Parties agreed to settle for 100k. Person took home 50k. If it had gone to trial, would have cost even more, but there's no guarantee a jury would award that much.

Vast majority of these cases are settled.

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Smightmite t1_j2c24al wrote

Interesting thank you for clarifying!

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Scumandvillany t1_j2c2uzz wrote

The only reason this person walked away with 50k is that he was willing to spend 50k, and had it to spend. It sucks. This is why you gotta get ahead of it at.

Fuckin lawyers. Pretrial motions, motions in limine, motions to dismiss, expert witnesses, depositions, discovery, statements of fact, opposing statements of fact, motions upon motions, it adds up. A civil case right now can take years to get to trial.

IANAL

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usernametakensofme t1_j2cosf2 wrote

Settled to account for these costs. She will come away, if not whole, better off. The Developers insurance will pay but it may take time.

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MrMcFunStuff t1_j2cpyrv wrote

They’re probably a LLC that’ll just fold at the first sign of trouble and nobody will be held accountable.

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lucascorso21 t1_j2dhmmu wrote

That practice doesn’t really work anymore.

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wawa2563 t1_j2dkjwy wrote

All ears/eyes. Tell us why.

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eapocalypse t1_j2dm9lu wrote

I mean even if they do their liability insurance will still be on the hook. It really only serves to protect the business owners and if they didn't do anything fraudulent then you can't pierce the veil and go after them anyway

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lucascorso21 t1_j2dsn4l wrote

Right, if they are a legitimate business, they will have the insurance and just pay the claim out.

If they involved in fraud/negligence/reckless/illegal acts, then the LLC doesn’t protect them anyway.

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lucascorso21 t1_j2dsg1g wrote

Because larger LLCs, or those simply operating like a legit business, will carry the appropriate liability insurance in the event that it’s employees screw up or when accidents happen. That’s extremely common, a best practice, and the typical result to settle the claim.

Smaller LLCs, or ones that are badly managed, will be personally involved in operations including any negligent/fraudulent/illegal actions. That involvement negates the standard LLC protections and exposes the ownership to individual liability. You also run into situations where a member claims they weren’t “directly” involved in X matter, but somehow their specific LLCs are constantly being sued for the above issues. A strong argument to make and one that leads to a settlement in order to head off the much larger ramifications.

There’s also a crap ton of legislation coming down at a federal level which is focused on improving the transparency of beneficial ownership, including for LLCs, because such business setups are constantly used for financial crimes.

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throwawaythedo t1_j2d7kj0 wrote

Civil Lit attorneys mostly use a contingency contract. If there is a settlement, the attorney takes what they said they’d charge in the contract, and the client gets the rest. But, the client does not spend a dime to retain, have representation, court fees, etc. The firm puts up all this money with the hopes that they’ll win a profit.

If no settlement is agreed upon and it goes to trial, the attorney could lose quite a bit. I served on a civil jury where the cost for a forensic actuary alone was 10k/day. They were suing for millions and we awarded him nothing (he was a lying mfer). His attorneys were out quite a bit of money. But, shame on them for turning down the settlement, agreeing to trial bc they genuinely thought this guy was going to get sympathy from the jury.

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