Legal experts: Big Ben may pay even if innocent

[snarky]

Re: Legal experts: Big Ben may pay even if innocent

If I'm Ben, I threaten a counter-suit against Harrah's for lost endorsement fees. They placed an employee f'd up enough to pull something like this as the concierge. Casino's depend on high-roller/celebrity types and Harrah's won't want to come out of this looking bad either. Let them pay her off.

[Ghost]

Re: Legal experts: Big Ben may pay even if innocent

I don't think Ben hired his lawyer to work out a settlement. I'd be shocked if he settles this to make it go away. If that was the case he could have grabbed anyone in Pittsburgh. Instead he purposely sought out a heavy hitter from Atlanta. Here's a brief exerpt on the guy

"Ben Roethlisberger, the highest-profile defendant in a Nevada woman's sex assault lawsuit, retained a legal superstar in the sports world, William David Cornwell Sr., to defend him.

Mr. Cornwell, of DNK Cornwell LLC in Atlanta, has represented many sports stars and was among those considered recently to head the National Football League Players Association.

Mr. Cornwell's nicknames include "The Wolf" and the "Go to Guy," and his firm's Web site is filled with comments that praise him for being a "brilliant legal mind" and "the best lawyer in the nation" on sports issues.

Mr. Cornwell's practice ranges from reviewing players' endorsement deals to handling cases of substance abuse to serving as an expert witness. He is also a talking head on TV, having analyzed, among other things, the Kobe Bryant sexual assault case."

[phillyesq]

Re: Legal experts: Big Ben may pay even if innocent

I don't think Ben hired his lawyer to work out a settlement. I'd be shocked if he settles this to make it go away. If that was the case he could have grabbed anyone in Pittsburgh. Instead he purposely sought out a heavy hitter from Atlanta. Here's a brief exerpt on the guy

"Ben Roethlisberger, the highest-profile defendant in a Nevada woman's sex assault lawsuit, retained a legal superstar in the sports world, William David Cornwell Sr., to defend him.

Mr. Cornwell, of DNK Cornwell LLC in Atlanta, has represented many sports stars and was among those considered recently to head the National Football League Players Association.

Mr. Cornwell's nicknames include "The Wolf" and the "Go to Guy," and his firm's Web site is filled with comments that praise him for being a "brilliant legal mind" and "the best lawyer in the nation" on sports issues.

Mr. Cornwell's practice ranges from reviewing players' endorsement deals to handling cases of substance abuse to serving as an expert witness. He is also a talking head on TV, having analyzed, among other things, the Kobe Bryant sexual assault case."

Hiring a heavy hitter doesn't necessarily mean that Ben is looking to fight this out for a trial. It could easily mean that Ben and his lawyer want to wage an aggressive defense to effectuate a favorable settlement.

If you have a mediocre lawyer, the Plaintiff has no real incentive to settle a case. On the other hand, if you have a heavy hitter, the settlement value is driven down, because the Plaintiff has a lower probability of succeeding at trial. Instead of having to pay a big multi-million dollar settlement, you may be able to settle the case for "nuisance value," which, believe it or not, could easily be a few hundred grand.

[RuthlessBurgher]

Re: Legal experts: Big Ben may pay even if innocent

Hey, phillyesq...I've got a question for our resident legal expert. I have no idea if it is within your realm of expertise, but here goes:

It seems like she wants money in part to cover her substantial medical bills from 5 hospitalizations over the past year due to post-traumatic stress disorder. If this goes to trial, will those medical records be admissible evidence, or will HIPAA laws prevent psychiatric evaluations prevent them from being used in court? Basically, will the jury have access to records which would show whether she told her doctors and therapists that she was traumatized by the "death" of her beloved pretend soldier in Iraq, or if it was alleged sexual misconduct which resulted in her PTSD symptoms?

[phillyesq]

Re: Legal experts: Big Ben may pay even if innocent

Hey, phillyesq...I've got a question for our resident legal expert. I have no idea if it is within your realm of expertise, but here goes:

It seems like she wants money in part to cover her substantial medical bills from 5 hospitalizations over the past year due to post-traumatic stress disorder. If this goes to trial, will those medical records be admissible evidence, or will HIPAA laws prevent psychiatric evaluations prevent them from being used in court? Basically, will the jury have access to records which would show whether she told her doctors and therapists that she was traumatized by the "death" of her beloved pretend soldier in Iraq, or if it was alleged sexual misconduct which resulted in her PTSD symptoms?

Ruthless, I'm not quite sure that I qualify as an expert, but here is my take.

The Plaintiff listed her medical bills as damages incurred in the complaint. She has to prove that those medical bills were incurred as a result of the alleged assault, and on the other side, the defendants are entitled to cast doubt as to whether those medical bills were incurred as a result of the alleged assault. HIPAA privacy laws are designed to prevent the disclosure of your medical records to outside parties. In this case, because the Plaintiff put her medical records at issue, the defendants should be entitled to examine those records. The records will almost certainly have to be produced in discovery, and would most likely be introduced into evidence at trial.

[RuthlessBurgher]

Re: Legal experts: Big Ben may pay even if innocent

Hey, phillyesq...I've got a question for our resident legal expert. I have no idea if it is within your realm of expertise, but here goes:

It seems like she wants money in part to cover her substantial medical bills from 5 hospitalizations over the past year due to post-traumatic stress disorder. If this goes to trial, will those medical records be admissible evidence, or will HIPAA laws prevent psychiatric evaluations prevent them from being used in court? Basically, will the jury have access to records which would show whether she told her doctors and therapists that she was traumatized by the "death" of her beloved pretend soldier in Iraq, or if it was alleged sexual misconduct which resulted in her PTSD symptoms?

Ruthless, I'm not quite sure that I qualify as an expert, but here is my take.

The Plaintiff listed her medical bills as damages incurred in the complaint. She has to prove that those medical bills were incurred as a result of the alleged assault, and on the other side, the defendants are entitled to cast doubt as to whether those medical bills were incurred as a result of the alleged assault. HIPAA privacy laws are designed to prevent the disclosure of your medical records to outside parties. In this case, because the Plaintiff put her medical records at issue, the defendants should be entitled to examine those records. The records will almost certainly have to be produced in discovery, and would most likely be introduced into evidence at trial.

Danke Schoen.

[phillyesq]

Re: Legal experts: Big Ben may pay even if innocent

Danke Schoen.

Bravo, good sir.

Fantastic reference!

[Ghost]

Re: Legal experts: Big Ben may pay even if innocent

I don't think Ben hired his lawyer to work out a settlement. I'd be shocked if he settles this to make it go away. If that was the case he could have grabbed anyone in Pittsburgh. Instead he purposely sought out a heavy hitter from Atlanta. Here's a brief exerpt on the guy

"Ben Roethlisberger, the highest-profile defendant in a Nevada woman's sex assault lawsuit, retained a legal superstar in the sports world, William David Cornwell Sr., to defend him.

Mr. Cornwell, of DNK Cornwell LLC in Atlanta, has represented many sports stars and was among those considered recently to head the National Football League Players Association.

Mr. Cornwell's nicknames include "The Wolf" and the "Go to Guy," and his firm's Web site is filled with comments that praise him for being a "brilliant legal mind" and "the best lawyer in the nation" on sports issues.

Mr. Cornwell's practice ranges from reviewing players' endorsement deals to handling cases of substance abuse to serving as an expert witness. He is also a talking head on TV, having analyzed, among other things, the Kobe Bryant sexual assault case."

Hiring a heavy hitter doesn't necessarily mean that Ben is looking to fight this out for a trial. It could easily mean that Ben and his lawyer want to wage an aggressive defense to effectuate a favorable settlement.

If you have a mediocre lawyer, the Plaintiff has no real incentive to settle a case. On the other hand, if you have a heavy hitter, the settlement value is driven down, because the Plaintiff has a lower probability of succeeding at trial. Instead of having to pay a big multi-million dollar settlement, you may be able to settle the case for "nuisance value," which, believe it or not, could easily be a few hundred grand.

Valid points but couldn't he have found a good (if not great) lawyer in Pittsburgh? There are a bunch of major firms right in town. Why go all the way down to Atlanta to secure a guy who is a sports specialist. She's not asking for millions anyway. Maybe it's just me, but if I'm Ben (and I'm innocent...) I'm telling her lawyer to pound salt - not one dime is coming her way. The vast bulk of his cash is from the contract, not endorsements so it's not as if he's losing tons of cash if it drags on fro a bit of time. Better to have the name totally cleared I'd think. There's a good chance the judge could throw this out for lack of evidence before a trial even started.

I thought I read (I'll have to look for it) that b/c she is sighting the medical records as part of the evidence; she's the one who let the 'cat out of the bag' and now it can all come in to be used and discussed if it goes to trail. This just reeks of a shady lawyer expecting a payout to make it all go away.

[fordfixer]

Re: Legal experts: Big Ben may pay even if innocent

I don't think Ben hired his lawyer to work out a settlement. I'd be shocked if he settles this to make it go away. If that was the case he could have grabbed anyone in Pittsburgh. Instead he purposely sought out a heavy hitter from Atlanta. Here's a brief exerpt on the guy

"Ben Roethlisberger, the highest-profile defendant in a Nevada woman's sex assault lawsuit, retained a legal superstar in the sports world, William David Cornwell Sr., to defend him.

Mr. Cornwell, of DNK Cornwell LLC in Atlanta, has represented many sports stars and was among those considered recently to head the National Football League Players Association.

Mr. Cornwell's nicknames include "The Wolf" and the "Go to Guy," and his firm's Web site is filled with comments that praise him for being a "brilliant legal mind" and "the best lawyer in the nation" on sports issues.

Mr. Cornwell's practice ranges from reviewing players' endorsement deals to handling cases of substance abuse to serving as an expert witness. He is also a talking head on TV, having analyzed, among other things, the Kobe Bryant sexual assault case."

Hiring a heavy hitter doesn't necessarily mean that Ben is looking to fight this out for a trial. It could easily mean that Ben and his lawyer want to wage an aggressive defense to effectuate a favorable settlement.

If you have a mediocre lawyer, the Plaintiff has no real incentive to settle a case. On the other hand, if you have a heavy hitter, the settlement value is driven down, because the Plaintiff has a lower probability of succeeding at trial. Instead of having to pay a big multi-million dollar settlement, you may be able to settle the case for "nuisance value," which, believe it or not, could easily be a few hundred grand.

Valid points but couldn't he have found a good (if not great) lawyer in Pittsburgh? There are a bunch of major firms right in town. Why go all the way down to Atlanta to secure a guy who is a sports specialist. She's not asking for millions anyway. Maybe it's just me, but if I'm Ben (and I'm innocent...) I'm telling her lawyer to pound salt - not one dime is coming her way. The vast bulk of his cash is from the contract, not endorsements so it's not as if he's losing tons of cash if it drags on fro a bit of time. Better to have the name totally cleared I'd think. There's a good chance the judge could throw this out for lack of evidence before a trial even started.

I thought I read (I'll have to look for it) that b/c she is sighting the medical records as part of the evidence; she's the one who let the 'cat out of the bag' and now it can all come in to be used and discussed if it goes to trail. This just reeks of a shady lawyer expecting a payout to make it all go away.

I remember reading that as well