Facebooking

Up til now, I’ve considered Facebook one of those distractions that keep me from doing otherwise necessary work, like marketing, or filing.  But the time has come to try to expand my digital presence, and I’ve created a Facebook page for CKA Mediation and Arbitration Services.

If you are the Facebook type, I invite you to become a fan of my page, or in the new Facebook parlance, “like” my page.

Some more horn tooting.

I know my post count has reached an all time low, but I have been busy with the more practical aspects of my practice.  On Monday, I settled a unique personal injury matter after a full day of deliberations, discussions and a certain amount of cajoling.  One of the attorneys involved was very appreciative of my hard work and was kind enough to express that in writing:

I found Chris Annunziata to be an extremely gifted mediator. His main strength in my opinion is his ability to accurately and quickly identify the critical issues in the case and then generate discussion on those issues. He is the kind of guy that people on both sides of the table will quickly trust and he is a very good listener. I recommend him unequivocally.

I’ve also re-posted that here.

At Least the Lead Role isn’t Brad Pitt or Orlando Bloom

or some other guy that women find “dreamy” or “hunky.”

Sarah Shahi lands role as divorced lawyer who becomes a mediator.

Thank you Strategic Mediator

Once again, I am honored and humbled by the recognition of my colleagues in the ADR blogging community. Please take some time to visit Sandra Upchurch and her excellent blog at http://uwwm.blogspot.com/.

And once again, it reminds me that I need to get back to writing. I have a story in the can, and I think enough time has passed to post it this week (even though I think I thoroughly obfuscated it for confidentiality).

C

This Oughta Be Fun.

I need a new car.  Not because I want one.  Not because I want to give up a perfectly reliable, good looking, completely paid off car, but because someone T-boned us on Peachtree Street last Saturday.  My neck, shoulders and upper back have been sore all week, and Melissa has a bruised knee and seat belt bruises but right now, I don’t think we’ll be filing a personal injury claim. It was a hard impact, but the Panzer we were driving kept us pretty safe.

It was wholly the idiot’s other driver’s fault.  Damn suburbanite didn’t know where he was and decided that because he had a green light (but no green arrow), he could just turn left across one of the busiest intersections in Midtown Atlanta without looking.  He hit me.  Yes, me.  The nose of his car crushed in the driver side door and front wheel well.

The only person more daft was the officer, who didn’t cite the man for several infractions, including failure to yield to oncoming traffic and no proof of insurance.  I think the cop took pity on the other driver, who walked with 2 canes and looked like he had MS or MD or something.

Thankfully, the idiot guy had insurance, just not current proof.  So, I’ll be sure to have some stories in the next week or so as I engage in two of the most hated transactions: dealing with a claims adjuster for the at-fault party to value my car, which he decided was a total loss; and dealing with used car salesmen and/or private party car sellers who all think their car is a creampuff and the best example of that model out there.  Two sides of the same coin.  It should be fun. And by fun I mean annoying as hell.

We Shall Never Forget.

On this 8th Anniversary of the tragedy of September 11th, I offer only a short post.

Remember the fallen.

-Thomas E. Franklin / The Record – (Bergen County NJ)

Fr. Mychal Judge, O.F.M. – He was simply Fr. Mike to those of us at St. Joe’s, in tiny West Milford, NJ.

Roy Pearson: the Definition of Insanity?

It’s getting to be quite absurd with our old friend Roy Pearson.  Despite the fact that he is apparently the only “judge” who will take his claims seriously, he has appealed his latest benchslap to the D.C. Circuit.  Oh goody.  More traffic for me.

Thanks to Walter Olson at Overlawyered.

Some Good Natured Ribbing

Reading Overlawyered today, I chuckled at Walter’s description of this story over at LegalBlogWatch about lawyers being fooled by fake Twitters.  Then I read the story.

Turns out that one of the mediation blogging community’s very own, Vickie Pynchon was one of those fooled.  Really, Vickie?  The name Beatrice Bitcher didn’t sound just a little unusual to you? Her posts claiming to demand an associate act as her personal slave all weekend didn’t sound fishy? C’mon.

I guess you can count yourself in good company as Star Jones was sucked into a Twitter conversation with Bitcher’s fictional law partner Prickman.

And, if it makes you feel better, Vickie, falling for the Bitcher posts is not as bad as the law professors over at Volokh Conspiracy (among others) who fell for the fake Twitter account the guys at Popehat created, claiming to be the official North Korean news agency.

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.