Lawyers frequently see laypeople (non-lawyers) make mistakes that could easily be avoided. Sometimes these mistakes lead to expensive and heartbreaking results. This is the first in a series of articles that I will do over the next few months about mistakes that laypeople make in the legal arena. I hope that you can benefit from these.
Perhaps the biggest mistake that non-lawyers make is to ignore legal notices. You may receive a summons that you have been sued. It is not unusual for you to have only a few days until the first hearing in that matter. If you were to go and get an attorney to represent you immediately then you would have up to two weeks to find documents and prepare them to make them admissible in court, find and discuss the case with witnesses that will help your case, and generally prepare for your argument in court. If you wait until a day or two before the hearing, it is possible that none of that can happen on time. When that happens, you will go to court with no ammunition while your opponent may have been preparing his case for months.
Another way that laypeople make the mistake of ignoring what is going on about them, has to do with ignoring correspondence. As an attorney, I have often sent certified and regular mail to opposing parties who were not represented by attorneys. It is not unusual that the opposing party refuses to pick up the mail. If there is a hearing or trial setting, and if I can show that I sent the letter to the correct address and that the other party did not respond to it, then it might be possible for the other party to get a default judgment in that case. Basically, a default judgment means that I get to write the order any way that I want to. Losing in court is bad, but losing 100 percent of a case is rarely the result if you show up.
Another area where laypeople put their heads in the sands like an ostrich and refuse to participate is in cooperating with their attorneys. An attorney may send the client a questionnaire, discovery answers to reply to, documents to read, or requests for information about witnesses. It is not unusual for the client to wait until the last possible minute to respond to the attorney, if they do it at all. That could be incredibly dangerous for the client since, again, the attorney will not be able to adequately represent them.
Being on top of your legal situation, responding to all correspondence, and timely responding to your attorney, will protect you from the disaster that could otherwise await you. Pay attention to your case and you will be far, far better off.
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