Generating avenues for trial evidence from an opposing party’s discovery
Posted Tuesday, September 10th, 2024 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Discovery, Litigation Strategy, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys
While most discovery requests are routine or boilerplate, some discovery requests can offer insight into the opposing party’s thinking. Such discovery requests provide fodder for
Consider seeking judicial notice of what occurs in court
Posted Thursday, February 22nd, 2024 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Litigation Strategy, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys
If more family law attorneys handled appeals they would likely consider using judicial notice during their trials. Judicial notice can be used to draw the
Allegations and records determine outcomes
Posted Sunday, November 12th, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Litigation Strategy, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys
I suspect the concurrence new Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson authored in the case of Twitter, Inc. v. Taamneh, 143 S. Ct. 1206 (2023)
The danger of sandbagging witness lists and trial exhibits in discovery responses
Posted Saturday, November 11th, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Litigation Strategy, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys
The four standard interrogatories that are relevant to family court are basically questions about witnesses, expert witnesses, and trial exhibits. Any initial request for production
Using the opposing party’s deposition in court
Posted Friday, November 10th, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Litigation Strategy, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys
There are a number of reasons to take an opposing party’s deposition prior to trial. Such depositions can limit what the other party can credibly
The hierarchy of witnesses for custody trials
Posted Thursday, October 26th, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Child Custody, Litigation Strategy, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys
Attempting to give guidance to various clients indicated a need for me to explain the hierarchy of witnesses for custody trials. As I have noted
Visitation cases mandate a narrower focus than custody cases
Posted Friday, October 6th, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Litigation Strategy, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys, Visitation
Not all litigation over time with a child is actually a battle over physical custody of that child. A subset of “custody” litigation involves only
Deposition goals differ from trial testimony goals
Posted Wednesday, September 27th, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Litigation Strategy, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys
Because deposition goals differ from trial testimony goals, deposition preparation should look different than trial testimony preparation.[i] Whereas trial testimony is intended to elicit predetermined
Subpoena friendly witnesses to trial
Posted Friday, July 14th, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Litigation Strategy, Not South Carolina Specific, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys
There’s a misconception that only witnesses who are reluctant to testify for one’s client should be subpoenaed to trial. Actually, I’m surprised attorneys issue trial
Don’t forget the “why” questions
Posted Tuesday, March 21st, 2023 by Gregory Forman
Filed under Litigation Strategy, Of Interest to Family Court Litigants, Of Interest to Family Law Attorneys
I’ve recently been preparing for a number of custody trials while also working on a number of appeals I’ve inherited from trial counsel. These experiences
