Have you ever been sued?

Please share your experience

[directwheels]

A competitor is threatening to sue me right now. It was originally a pretty ridiculous claim that my lawyer told me I didn't have much to worry about. But my lawyer did some research and discovered something new, which turns this into a pretty serious matter.

I can't really go into the details, but I feel like I have been wrongly accused. However, laws and legal stuff can be complicated and funny, so now, I am in a big mess and my business's future is unclear.

The stress is tremendous as I wait for more information from my competitor and their lawyer. Knowing that I could be spending all the profits I earn in a year on this legal battle really sucks.

From now on, I will be extremely careful with everything and get my lawyer's advice on a lot of stuff.

Has anyone been in similar situations before? Any experience you can share?

[tangor]

First, we can't give legal advice. Second, each case will be different, ie. what happened to "A" will not be the same for "B". Third, if there is a possible pending litigation, you don't want to talk about it in PUBLIC, even with a nom de plume such as used here at WW.

Meanwhile: Good luck!

[LifeinAsia]

IANAL, but the following are based on firsthand and secondhand experiences in the U.S., including discussions with lawyers involved in the issues.

First, there is a big difference between threatening to sue and actually suing. Especially in the States, the phrase "I'll sue you!" seems to enter into most escalated disputes. Even a letter on an attorney's letterhead saying you're going to be sued means nothing unless/until you are actually sued. Sending letters is cheap.

Second, (this applies more in the cases where there are a number of named defendants in a lawsuit) being named in a filed lawsuit is not the same as actually being served. Many times, someone will file a lawsuit and name numerous defendants, then contact the defendants individually and offer a settlement. Filing a paperwork with the court to sue someone is relatively cheap (compared to actually going to trial).

Third, actually being server in regards to a lawsuit still doesn't mean that you are going to have to go to court, or even that you'll have to pay thousands of dollars for a lawyer. Taking someone to court is a very costly move, so the plaintiff is often motivated to offer a settlement to avoid going to trial. You should certainly review any settlement with a lawyer before agreeing to it, otherwise it may come back to bite you.

That said, if there IS an issue that you need to worry about, you should take steps to correct it. For example, if you are using copyrighted material, take it down immediately. If you are eventually found guilty, then you would most likely only be liable for damages up to the time when you removed the material. (Some lawyers may argue against taking it down because it would imply admission that you knew you were doing something wrong.)