Roy Pearson Loses Again.

It’s Friday, and what would it be without a good laugh.  Thankfully, my favorite laughingstock, Roy Pearson, is back in the news.  If you don’t recall, Pearson was a ALJ who sued a dry cleaners for $50 million over a pair of pants.  He got his ass handed to him by the Court for that one.  I even think that the king of moronic lawsuits, Jonathan Lee Riches, found Pearson’s first suit laughable.

Not content to turn the other cheek after the first benchslap, Pearson also sued his employer, the District of Columbia, for wrongful termination after his contract as ALJ was not renewed.  Last week, Judge Huvelle of the DCDC benchslapped Pearson yet again, dismissing his lawsuit for failing to plead “enough facts to
state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.”

Hat tip to Lowering the Bar.

Negotiating Tips from a Country Lawyer

Very good tips from Patrick at Popehat.  While he may have meant many of these tongue-in-cheek, or as a criticism of a specific person, the underlying truths remain the same.  For example:

In general, never tell anyone that you are well-versed in the law, even if you are an attorney.  But most especially, do not do this when you are not an attorney.

or

Assume that the party with whom you are negotiating is himself knowledgeable, or act as though you do.

Talk to Your People, They May Surprise You.

In this uncertain economic climate, with competing camps claiming the economy is exhibiting “green shoots,” “stagflation” or is still miles from “rock bottom”, many employers are cutting costs by terminating workers.  Sure, sometimes it is a convenient reason to eliminate dead weight (and we all know most companies have that), but sometimes hard decisions need to be made about good employees.

Management often makes these decisions in a vacuum, without consulting the rank and file.   But this story out of Scotland illustrates that when you discuss difficult matters with your staff and give them a choice, they will probably act rationally.  When given the choice between layoffs and an across the board 10% pay cut (with added vacation days), the employees voted overwhelmingly to keep their jobs and take less pay.

You Catch More Flies With Honey.

That’s what my wife always says.  Apparently Nancy Hudgins agrees.  Seems like common sense to me.  Who wants to deal with an abrasive jerk?