Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
If you settle your case in open court why does the judge want to know whether you are
doing this of your own free will? Would you like to learn the answer? Come join me as
I share with you this great information. Hi. I'm Gerry Oginski. I'm a New York medical
malpractice and personal injury trial lawyer practicing law here in the state of New York.
Now when you settle a case in court -- they call it in open court, meaning anybody can
come and go -- and now you're putting your settlement on the record, which means that
I and the judge are going to be asking you some questions about your actual settlement.
And one of the questions the judge or I will be asking you is, "Mrs. Jones, are you settling
this case on your own free will? In other words, is anybody coercing you or forcing
you or compelling you to settle this case? Are you under duress for any reason whatsoever?"
Because the judge wants to know and wants to make sure that nobody is forcing her or
pressuring her to settle this case and she's doing it freely, voluntarily and that's a
critical component of agreeing to settle a case in open court. The judge wants the injured
victim to realize that this is it. It's over. Once the case is settled, it's done. They
can never come back to court. So why do I share this great information with you? I share
it with you to give you an insight and an understanding into what goes on in the litigation
process, especially when you're at trial and now you agree to a settlement in open court.
You know, I realize you have questions or concerns about your own particular matter.
Well if your matter happened here in New York and you do have legal questions, what I encourage
you to do is pick up the phone and call me. I can answer your legal questions. This is
something that I do every single day and I'd love to talk to you. You can reach me at 516-487-8207
or by email at Gerry@Oginski-law.com. That's it for today's quick video. I'm Gerry Oginski,
have a wonderful day!