Before I explain what an Offer of Judgment ("OOJ") is, I want to explain why the rule exists. The purpose of the Rule is to encourage reasonable settlements of lawsuits. The OOJ forces the parties to a lawsuit to evaluate the strength and value of their case instead of blindly moving closer to trial. The OOJ is basically a stick used to motivate parties to settle when a reasonable offer is made. Failing to properly value and evaluate one's case can have an adverse impact. The

Through my Understanding the Law podcast and video series I attempt to answer general questions about legal and business matters for subscribers. One of the most frequent questions I receive is, "Why won't an attorney take my case on a contingency basis?" People often say, "I see it on the TV or Internet all the time that an attorney will accept a contingency fee, but why won't an attorney accept my case?" In this post, I am going to explain why an attorney may refuse to acce

Let's face it, not too many New Jersey small business owners get excited about having to hire an attorney. The first thought popping into most people's heads when facing the prospect of having to deal with a lawsuit is, "maybe this is something that I can handle myself." But can you? Should you? Here is what you need to know. Pro Se When a party or individual represents itself in a legal matter, it is called "pro se" representation. Pro se is Latin for "for oneself" or "on