Building Community Among Experienced Practitioners

Lawsuits are not always about dollars. As senior counsel, we have seen a lot. Once we practice law for a while, we see that some lawsuits are about hurt feelings, long-term family disputes, and even unfounded suspicions that lead people to hire lawyers. Empathy and taking the time to understand the emotions on both sides can lead to creativity and fashioning remedies that satisfy everyone. In one case, a person died in a crash while in Hawaii. Liability was clear and insurance was available, and his mother and his widow, both living on the mainland, had potential claims under the Hawaii wrongful death statute. The insurer interpleaded the money to the Court in Hawaii to let the Court decide who gets what. The mother on the mainland had hired a lawyer, and so the widow on the mainland had hired a lawyer. A hearing date was set where the Court would hear testimony from the widow and the mother and others family member witnesses about the relationships each had with the deceased, and then the Court would decide who gets what portion of the insurance money. The mainland counsel for the mother and for the widow both needed and arranged for Hawaii counsel to handle the Hawaii court hearing. The morning of the hearing the mother, the widow, their Hawaii counsel, and the brothers of the deceased all showed up at court. In talking to their respective clients in the courtroom, the Hawaii attorneys realized that neither “side” of the family had talked to the other since the funeral. Both the mother and the widow had found themselves thrust into a court proceeding by the insurer’s interpleader. Legal creativity mixed with empathy and knowledge of family relationships kicked in, and the Hawaii attorneys discussed an idea with each other that could offer a chance to avoid the hearing and a Court-imposed division of the insurance proceeds. The Hawaii attorneys asked to speak with the Court before the hearing started. In chambers the lawyers made a suggestion to the Court – they told the Court that the mother and the widow had not spoken since the funeral more than a year prior, because their mainland lawyers had both told each of them not to do so. What if the mother and widow of the deceased both consented to be put in the jury room to talk, no lawyers, no Judge, just them. Both Hawaii lawyers said if the Court would agree to the suggestion, each would strongly recommend the process to their client. Realizing the proposed process would delay the start of what was expected to be an all-day evidentiary hearing, the Court still said “okay, let’s try it.” Each Hawaii attorney talked to their client and the mother and widow both agreed. The Judge showed the mother and the widow into the jury room, and the Judge and the attorneys waited in chambers in case needed. It was quiet for a while, and then loud crying was heard through the jury room door. It was then quiet again for a while, and then laughter was heard. Less than 30 minutes after going in, the mother and the widow asked for the Judge to come into the jury room, no lawyers. A short while later the lawyers were called in. The mother and widow had everything arranged and worked out. It turned out the problem had been that both had been talked to right after the funeral by “friends” who had said to each “you better get a lawyer or ‘she’ will take everything.” All communications between the grieving mother-in-law and grieving daughter-in-law were then cut off by their mainland lawyers, and suspicions about what the other was doing went crazy. What was needed in this instance was not lawyers fighting in a day-long hearing to get a bigger share of the money for their client in court, nor a judicially-imposed result that could create permanent emotional divisions and anger. Instead, the relationship between the mother and widow, which had been great prior to the funeral, needed to be fixed – by themselves. They just needed to be told it was okay to talk to each other. In this instance, the Hawaii lawyers saw that it was better for them to get out of the way, and the Court’s willingness to provide the time and space needed made it all work. The mother-in-law, daughter in law, and the brothers of the deceased all left the courthouse together, smiling and happy. And the two Hawaii attorneys were justifiably proud of their work that day.