Ethics and the Paralegal’s Role
Ethics and the Paralegal’s Role
This Discussion examines ethics and the paralegal’s role in the attorney-client relationship.
Based upon the following scenario, have you done anything unethical based upon the National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA) Model Ethical Guidelines?
Hypothetical: Your first day on the job you were allowed to interview your very first “real” client — Justin King! After years of working towards the new job, you are so excited that you call your partner and arrange for a very nice dinner together. During the dinner your partner says, “So tell me what you did today?” You are so proud of your new job that you begin to discuss some general details about the case, like Justin’s name, that he was in an accident, and is very disfigured. Your partner is intrigued and presses you for more information.
Without realizing it, you blurt out that Justin was the finalist in the National Idol competition and is going to sue some big companies and make lots of money. Have you done anything unethical?
Post a short answer on the Discussion Board for this hypothetical using the IRAC (Issue-Rule-Application-Conclusion) method of analysis. Download and review the IRAC Power Point presentation.
PA110 Civil Litigation
Unit 2 Discussion
Discussion topics support this unit’s objective and should be completed after reading all materials. Your responses ought to include original evaluation, synthesis, or analysis of the topic, and contribute to the weekly discussion in a meaningful way. You must complete all discussion topics and reply to your peers’ posts. Refer to the Discussion Board Rubric under Course Resources for additional requirements.
Justin King Initial Interview Follow-Up Questions
At this point in creating your Justin King client case file, you should have quite a few questions to follow-up with from the initial client interview. This unit’s Discussion will focus on developing and asking the questions of two key witnesses in the Justin King case: the police officer who investigated the accident, and the beer truck driver.
Your instructor will divide the class into two different “law firms”: one firm will be assigned to prepare and ask questions of the police officer, the other firm will prepare and ask questions of the truck driver. Separate Discussion topics for each firm have been created so you can collaborate in your witness interviews. The instructor will play the role of both witnesses. Be sure to look in on the other firm’s posting to get ideas for questions and strategy as well as to provide ideas for the other firm too.
View the interview of an eye-witness to a deadly crash at Daytona Bike Week 2007 in Sanford, Florida. A St. Petersburg, Florida couple coming home from bike week crashed and died at I-4 and 17-92 in Sanford, a spot which is called the “Dead Zone”, rumored to be haunted by the people whose graves were paved over to build the highway. NOTE: Pay attention to the “Follow-Up” questions that are being asked by the reporter.
Reference
Best, C. (2007, March 4). Interview 3: Deadly Crash Daytona Bike Week 2007 Sanford, FL [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nJZpUvyCwI
Beer Truck Driver
Collaborate with Your Group
This group will be interviewing the beer truck driver.
Each group will choose a leader or coordinator who will organize the various questions that each of you will post, and who will consult with the rest of the “law firm” on the final question list. These questions will then be answered by the instructor, from whom you will also receive feedback. You will be graded on your participation in the brainstorming process as your group considers which questions should be asked of the truck driver. The sooner you can finalize and post your initial questions, the sooner you can ask follow-up questions of the witness.
Police Officer
Collaborate with Your Group
This group will be interviewing the police officer.
Each group will choose a leader or coordinator who will organize the various questions that each of you will post, and who will consult with the rest of the “law firm” on the final question list. These questions will then be answered by the instructor, from whom you will also receive feedback. You will be graded on your participation in the brainstorming process as your group considers which questions should be asked of the police officer. The sooner you can finalize and post your initial questions, the sooner you can ask follow-up questions of the witness.
PA110 Civil Litigation
Unit 3 Discussion
Discussion topics support this unit’s objective and should be completed after reading all materials. Your responses ought to include original evaluation, synthesis, or analysis of the topic, and contribute to the weekly discussion in a meaningful way. You must complete all discussion topics and reply to your peers’ posts. Refer to the Discussion Board Rubric under Course Resources for additional requirements.
Spinach Recall and E. Coli
In your Discussion this week, you will explore the Spinach Recall and E. Coli article and complaint. Read the story and complaints and post your thoughts on the causes of action and possible defenses to the claims.
Article:
FindLaw, Spinach Recall and E. Coli (2018). Retrieved from
https://injury.findlaw.com/product-liability/spinach-recall-and-e-coli.html
Complaint:
Cardinale v. Freshway Unlimited, Inc., Complaint (Court of Common Please, Franklin County, Ohio)
https://www.marlerblog.com/uploads/file/Cardinale%20complaint%20(final).pdf
PA110 Civil Litigation
Unit 4 Discussion
Discussion topics support this unit’s objective and should be completed after reading all materials. Your responses ought to include original evaluation, synthesis, or analysis of the topic, and contribute to the weekly discussion in a meaningful way. You must complete all discussion topics and reply to your peers’ posts. Refer to the Discussion Board Rubric under Course Resources for additional requirements.
By now you have chosen to include — or exclude — defendants by listing them in the complaint. In this Unit 4 you now work for the law firm representing the defendants charged in the complaint you drafted.
Interview of Defendants
Based on the knowledge gained in this unit, and reading Chapter 5 “Affirmative Defenses,” answer the following questions on the Discussion Board. The instructor will then comment on your answers.
What affirmative defenses do you think are available to your client? (Provide a thorough discussion of each defense and why the defense applies in this case).
What facts would be important to help you prove each affirmative defense in your answer?
Which witnesses would you interview and what questions would you ask them?
Remember, as defense counsel your firm’s objective is to prevent the plaintiff (Mr. King) from proving his cause of action/claim(s).
PA110 Civil Litigation
Unit 5 Discussion
Discussion topics support this unit’s objective and should be completed after reading all materials. Your responses ought to include original evaluation, synthesis, or analysis of the topic, and contribute to the weekly discussion in a meaningful way. You must complete all discussion topics and reply to your peers’ posts. Refer to the Discussion Board Rubric under Course Resources for additional requirements.
This Discussion examines counterclaims in the answer.
Compulsory or Permissive Counterclaims
Under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, a counterclaim arising out of the same transaction or occurrence as the claim in the complaint is compulsory and the defendant must raise the counterclaim in the answer. A compulsory counterclaim “arises out of the transaction or occurrence that is the subject matter of the opposing party’s claim.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 13(a). Failure to assert a compulsory counterclaim in the answer precludes a later assertion of that claim in a subsequent or independent action, but failure to assert a permissive counterclaim does not preclude its assertion in a subsequent action. See 46 Am. Jur. 2d Judgments § 504.
In New York state courts, the rule is that all counterclaims are permissive. Urbanski v. Urbanski, 107 Misc. 2d 215, 215, 433 N.Y.S.2d 718, 719 (Sup. Ct. 1980). In New York, failure to state a counterclaim in the answer does not preclude the defendant from subsequently bringing an independent action against the plaintiff.
Discuss which approach you think is better: the federal rule requiring a compulsory counter-claim involving the same transaction or occurrence or the New York state rule where all counterclaims are permissive.
In addition, what do you think the phrase “transaction or occurrence” means under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure? Conduct research and summarize one federal case that discusses “transaction or occurrence” in the context of compulsory or permissive counterclaims to share with your classmates. Make sure to provide the Bluebook citation for the case you select.
PA110 Civil Litigation
Unit 6 Discussion
Discussion topics support this unit’s objective and should be completed after reading all materials. Your responses ought to include original evaluation, synthesis, or analysis of the topic, and contribute to the weekly discussion in a meaningful way. You must complete all discussion topics and reply to your peers’ posts. Refer to the Discussion Board Rubric under Course Resources for additional requirements.Choosing an Expert Witness
Using the Internet, locate three potential expert witnesses in different fields that could be used in the Justin King case. The experts can be for the plaintiff or the defense. Post your findings to the Discussion Board, along with an explanation of why this expert witness is needed and your reasons for choosing this expert. Provide feedback to your classmates’ postings as well.
Visit the ALM Experts website to get started with your research. Then, draft a checklist of items, evidence, and interviews you would include in your plan if your firm was representing Justin King or one of the defendants in the case. Keep your checklist for future reference.
ALM Experts . Retrieved from http://www.almexperts.com/
PA110 Civil Litigation
Unit 7 Discussion
Discussion topics support this unit’s objective and should be completed after reading all materials. Your responses ought to include original evaluation, synthesis, or analysis of the topic, and contribute to the weekly discussion in a meaningful way. You must complete all discussion topics and reply to your peers’ posts. Refer to the Discussion Board Rubric under Course Resources for additional requirements.
IMEs
Suppose an IME is properly requested by a defendant in the Justin King case. What would be the consequences of Justin King refusing to submit to such an exam?
PA110 Civil Litigation
Unit 8 Discussion
Discussion topics support this unit’s objective and should be completed after reading all materials. Your responses ought to include original evaluation, synthesis, or analysis of the topic, and contribute to the weekly discussion in a meaningful way. You must complete all discussion topics and reply to your peers’ posts. Refer to the Discussion Board Rubric under Course Resources for additional requirements.
Alternative Dispute Resolution
What are the advantages and disadvantages of alternative dispute resolution? Why might a defendant want to settle a case even though the defendant does not think that they are liable?
PA110 Civil Litigation
Unit 9 Discussion
Discussion topics support this unit’s objective and should be completed after reading all materials. Your responses ought to include original evaluation, synthesis, or analysis of the topic, and contribute to the weekly discussion in a meaningful way. You must complete all discussion topics and reply to your peers’ posts. Refer to the Discussion Board Rubric under Course Resources for additional requirements.
Preparing Voir Dire Questions
Jury voir dire is the selection of a certain number of jurors from a jury panel. The number of jurors required in a case will depend on the court. Voir dire is the way lawyers find out about the prospective jurors. The lawyers (or the judge in certain instances) will ask questions of the jurors to identify qualifications, experiences and interests, knowledge about the case, relationship or familiarity with parties, witnesses, and lawyers involved in the case, and bias or any other reason why a juror should or should not be selected to serve on a jury.
Most often, jury voir dire is conducted through verbal questioning of potential jurors, though in some cases written juror questionnaires may be used to facilitate the selection process.
Questions are asked in order to determine whether a juror should be removed from the panel because the juror cannot fairly hear and decide the case.
Based on the Seminar and your readings in this Unit, create two voir dire questions to use to help your supervising attorney pick the best jurors for the Justin King case. Your questions should relate to the subject matter of the case and focus on issues that could help your supervising attorney to determine if a juror might be biased in any way.
PA110 Civil Litigation
Unit 10 Discussion
Course Reflection
Now that you have completed this course, reflect on your personal goals for the course. This is the time for you to determine what areas of Civil Litigation interest you and why. This is not intended to be a mere recap of the course. The emphasis here is what you have personally learned and how it will affect your professional goals. Discussing what you have learned during the term will not only help you better process the information, but will help you enhance each other’s learning experience. Please reflect on the previous units and post a response that addresses the following questions:
What were the most important new ideas you encountered and how did they change your understanding of the legal profession?
What have you learned from your discussions and collaborations with your fellow students?
In what specific ways can you use the knowledge you have gained in this course in your chosen profession?
What areas of the subject would you like to continue to explore and why?
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