Sunday, October 25, 2009

Co-worker's Lawsuit

During one of the depositions of the Workmen’s Comp lawsuit, another lawyer showed up and demanded to be present. The lawyers left the room for a chat.

My lawyer returned and asked, “Do you know anything about another employee filing a lawsuit?” I said yes. I had heard that a former receptionist was claiming stress because of my illness and that she had hired a very famous lawyer to represent her.

When I first found out, I was furious and stopped all contact with her. Her claims were bogus. She had been fired and was looking for a way to get back at the school. I felt her claim diminished my suit and that I was being used. The timing could not have been worse.

I told my lawyer that we wanted nothing to do with her. Also, I wanted him to make a statement on the record at the end of the deposition stating that we were not in collusion; I have had no contact with her and did not support her lawsuit.

Months later, I ran into her. They had settled her suit but she couldn’t tell me the amount of the award. She did say that she was going to take the entire family on a trip. I was thinking Paris, London, Hawaii! “Where?” I asked. “Tahoe,” she replied. I guess she got a lot less than I had anticipated.

Next: Grateful for the Bad Diagnosis

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