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Civil Litigation -
Contacting Opposing Counsel
Northern California Civil Litigation Information
If you are represented by an attorney, you should not contact the
other party's counsel directly. (See "Note on Confidentiality" above.) But, if
you have not yet hired an attorney and you have been served with a summons and
complaint, and your deadline to respond to the Complaint is on the verge of
running, you may want to contact opposing counsel for the sole purpose of
requesting additional time to file a responsive pleading to the complaint.
Plaintiff's counsel should (but is not required to) give you additional time to
file a responsive pleading. Many local court rules do not allow a plaintiff to
unilaterally extend the deadline for a responsive pleading any more than
fifteen days, but it is not uncommon for attorneys to cooperate in managing the
deadline for the defendant's response.
In any event, if you talk to plaintiff's counsel and get an
extension to respond to the complaint, be sure to do at least two things: (1)
Immediately write a letter to the opposing attorney confirming his agreement to
extend the deadline and indicate the new deadline, and (2) Confirm that the
deadline is to file a "responsive pleading," i.e., any responsive
pleading. Sometimes a plaintiff's attorney will allow additional time to
respond to the complaint, but only if it is an "Answer" to the Complaint. This
may not be a good deal if you have grounds to challenge the Complaint by way of
a Demurrer, Motion to Strike, or Anti-SLAPP motion, for example. If you are
forced to file only an Answer in response to the Complaint, you may lose an
opportunity to challenge the plaintiff's lawsuit at the outset. This is another
reason why you should consult an attorney as soon as possible.
Also, if you talk with opposing counsel, be sure not to discuss
any aspect of the case. Just limit your discussion to getting an extension to
file any responsive pleading.
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If you wish to hire an attorney to assist
you with a civil litigation issue in Northern California , please call (530)
889-1912 to discuss your case and set up a FREE initial consultation.
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Mackenroth & Laird LLP
134 Almond
Street
Auburn, California 95603
(530) 889-1912
Fax: (530)
889-1962
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