Recent Blog Posts

A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

By Robert I. Feinberg | Published April 13, 2012 | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

When I recently changed my auto insurance, I received a packet from the new insurer. Front and center was their advice not to admit responsibility for an accident. Well, their lawyers advised them correctly because any statement – whether inculpatory, exculpatory, or indeed any remark – is admissible at a trial if made by a Read More

No Contingent Fee for Experts

By Robert I. Feinberg | Published April 13, 2012 | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

It is a well-established practice that a lawyer cannot employ an expert witness on a contingency fee. It is common for personal injury lawyers to use a contingency fee agreement, whereby they are only paid if the plaintiff receives a settlement or award, but this practice is strictly forbidden for experts. Rule 3.4 of the Read More

If the Shoe Fits

By Robert I. Feinberg | Published April 13, 2012 | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Ask a law student what case stands for the proposition that a defendant needs minimum contacts with the forum state to be sued in that state, and the answer (hopefully) will be International Shoe Co. v. State of Washington, 326 U.S. 310 (1945). Thousands of lawyers, actually hundreds of thousands of lawyers, have been trained Read More

When Tortious Leads to Tortuous

By Robert I. Feinberg | Published April 13, 2012 | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

If you use spell check and you type the word “tortious” you will find that it is thought that you meant to write “tortuous”. So what is “tortious” and what is “tortuous”? Tortious conduct is conduct or acts that create liability, such as for negligence, though not necessarily just negligence. Indeed, much of the litigation Read More

When Here Comes the Sun, Be Prepared

By Robert I. Feinberg | Published April 13, 2012 | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

I have blogged about defendants in automobile accident cases who will attribute a collision to weather conditions that they claim made the accident unavoidable. Of course, my rejoinder is that a driver acting reasonably must take into account the prevailing weather or road conditions. Inclement weather is one such defense that comes up. Seriously, though, Read More

Ethics and Tactics

By Robert I. Feinberg | Published April 13, 2012 | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Advocating for clients requires honesty. Not surprisingly, the rules of professional conduct speak to this. Those rules, as promulgated by the Supreme Judicial Court in Rule 3.4(A) and (B) of 3:07, the Massachusetts Rules of Professional Conduct, prohibit a lawyer from counseling or assisting a witness to testify falsely. The rationale is that the adversary Read More

Registrar of Motor Vehicles is Agent

By Robert I. Feinberg | Published April 13, 2012 | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Recent blogs of mine have dealt with jurisdictional issues. Some have focused on how it is that a defendant comes under the personal jurisdiction of a Massachusetts court and others have dealt with the method or mode of service of process on that tort defendant. Probably the most famous case in the country involving personal Read More

When the Postman Rings Twice

By Robert I. Feinberg | Published April 13, 2012 | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Having considered the kind of behavior that creates personal jurisdiction in Massachusetts, how does one go about serving such a person/entity with the complaint? What is the method of service outside of the Commonwealth? By far the easiest and probably most often used method is by relying upon (3) of Massachusetts General Laws 223A S.6: Read More

The Horse's Tort

By Robert I. Feinberg | Published April 13, 2012 | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

A local racetrack has been advertising quite a bit on the Boston stations. When I hear their ad I am reminded of a case I had against them more than 20 years ago when a horse kicked a client and fractured the client’s patella. We sued the racetrack and naturally the owner of the horse. Read More

In Personal Injury the Fed Looks to the State

By Robert I. Feinberg | Published April 13, 2012 | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

In a recent blog, I wrote of the inability to use the federal courts to gain jurisdiction over a defendant who does not have sufficient minimum contacts with the forum state. That blog was in response to the misperception of many that all a litigant needs to do is to sue in federal court to Read More

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