RESOLUTION DISPUTE By Glenn Kauth
Does planning out alternative dispute mechanisms really mitigate the cost of going to court?
a lawyer from Houston, Texas, argued her testimony was crucial, especially since the woman was unwilling either to travel to the arbitration hearing or submit her evidence in writing. Counsel for the other company vehemently opposed
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Smith's suggestion. Calling discovery "nothing more than a fishing expedition," Paris lawyer Raed Fathallah said the process was largely an exercise in counsel trying to trip up witnesses who could otherwise give their testimony in an affi- davit. "We are before an international arbitration tribunal, not before Texas courts," he told the three-member panel.
lawyer representing a company in a contract dispute, Jennifer Smith wanted an international arbitration panel to allow a deposition from one of her client's former employ- ees. The worker was involved in her company's decision to terminate a construction contract, so Smith,
PHOTO BY D.W. DORKEN