Trial & Arbitration
California Trial and Arbitration Attorneys
Many individual and corporate clients start managing disputes with attorneys who have a transactional background. However, when a dispute becomes litigious or appears likely to, your legal team should include attorneys with trial experience—a distinct skill set that is crucial for effectively navigating litigation. Working with seasoned trial attorneys can help you either avoid a trial or, if unavoidable, ensure your case is prepared to position you favorably in court.
At Delahunty & Edelman LLP, our trial attorneys, based in San Francisco, are ready to handle cases in federal court and California’s Superior Courts. We have dedicated our careers to preparing for and litigating high-stakes commercial and criminal matters. Whether you need us to join your team at the onset of a dispute or as trial approaches, we’re prepared to support you in achieving a successful outcome.
At Delahunty & Edelman LLP, litigation is our passion. Agile and tenacious in defending our clients’ interests, we bring extensive experience and skill to every phase of litigation. Simply put, we became lawyers to be in the courtroom, advocating before a jury. Located in San Francisco, we serve clients throughout California and in Federal Courts across the United States.
How and when does trial experience matter
The first phase of litigation is the discovery phase. Attorneys often grumble about their disdain for the discovery phase. This attitude does not benefit the client, however. Instead, the attorneys at Delahunty & Edelman LLP approach the discovery phase understanding that is often the phase where the strategies used and decisions made ultimately determine who wins and who loses when the case ultimately gets to trial, or in the case of a negotiated settlement, how favorable that settlement is to each side. Leveraging success during the discovery phase typically comes down to effort and persistence. Put simply, the diligence and tenacity of your attorney can have a huge impact on the likelihood of your success. During discovery, you should expect your attorney to be working harder than his or her opponent.
This does not mean a “scorched earth” approach is the best strategy. Instead, most clients benefit from attorneys who are surgical during discovery. For example, we excel in depositions by focusing on the questions that matter and do not waste resources exploring peripheral issues.
Discovery is as much a game of defense as it is offense. Here again the thoroughness of your attorney is critical. For example, should you, or your employees, be called to sit for deposition, you should be confident that your lawyer has fully prepared the witness and has considered the full range of questions that are likely to be asked. At Delahunty & Edelman LLP, we never want our clients to be surprised during a deposition. The best way to achieve that result is through preparation – not luck.
If discovery concludes without a settlement, a case will likely either settle on the eve of trial or actually proceed to trial. Most attorneys assume that a case will never go to trial, however. In our view, this is a huge mistake. At a minimum, the failure to fully prepare for trial weakens a client’s negotiating power prior to trial. For example, it often becomes evident as trial gets closer that one side is not fully prepared, which emboldens the other side to take more aggressive negotiating positions.
Finally, when cases do go to trial, a few factors have an outsized influence on the outcome. First, which party will navigate the rules of evidence better than the other? Second, which party’s “star witness” will be more credible? Put simply, ensuring that your evidence is admitted and your witness is believed is the best predictor of success. Here again, clients will benefit from experienced trial attorneys. You should be confident that your attorney will earn the court’s trust on evidentiary disputes and effectively persuade the jury with adept direct and cross-examinations of witnesses.
How does arbitration differ from a trial in court?
Some disputes go to arbitration rather than trial. While similar, there are differences. Arbitration is typically shorter than a trial (perhaps as short as one day) and should be less expensive than a trial.
In addition to the benefits of requiring less time and expense, arbitration may be favored for additional reasons. Arbitrators are likely to be more flexible in admitting evidence. For example, evidence that may not be admissible in a court proceeding, like hearsay, might be admitted in evidence in an arbitration. Arbitration also provides the benefit of privacy to the parties. Whereas a judicial proceeding is public, an arbitration is not, and the details of the dispute and underlying facts are therefore generally not known to anyone besides the parties and the arbitrator.
It is important to note that even though arbitration has many advantages, it may not always be preferred over a trial. Plaintiffs and defendants alike may wish, for different reasons, to have a public trial—either in the pursuit of justice, vindication, or public exoneration. Furthermore, limitations on the admission of evidence, as well as closer adherence to judicial precedent, may make a trial preferable over arbitration in some circumstances. This is particularly true where your attorneys are highly skilled at navigating the rules of evidence and pre-trial procedural hurdles.
Often, however, arbitration is initiated pursuant to an arbitration clause that the parties are contractually obligated to follow and, therefore, the parties frequently do not have a choice about whether choose trial instead of arbitration.
Ask if We can Help
If you would like to learn more about our approach to litigation, including trial, please contact us. It is one of our favorite things to discuss—so we are always available for consultation.
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San Francisco, CA, 94111
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