More Thoughts on How Long Lawsuits Go On For
Five years ago, I wrote about a phenomenon that surprises many people: lawsuits often go on for years. People assume that, at a convenient time, both sides meet with a judge who declares a winner and that ends that. But the truth is that a lawsuit is a very long process, even for disputes that appear simple. That statement is still true today, but I have some additional thoughts on the subject, together with the original blog post below.
Many people get the impression that lawsuits move quickly because some cases involve emergency requests for judges that may actually proceed very quickly. These often make the news because they come up in politically important cases, but those initial proceedings do not foreclose the possibility that the main components of the case - from discovery through trial and appeal of the ultimate decisions - take the standard periods of time.
People’s attitudes about a lawsuit change over time. Companies may have changes of management or priorities. People may need cash more urgently at different times. And the initial sting of a defendant’s wrong may dissipate over time. While many people become dug into their litigation positions as they spend time and money on a lawsuit, the duration may also make people more willing to compromise.
Clients may get frustrated that lawsuits take awhile because they are paying lots of money and not getting the relief they wanted as fast as they wanted it. And, often, it can be unclear what they are paying for since a lot of the work involved in a lawsuit is technical work that is necessary but sometimes not tangible to the client. This puts a burden on lawyers to effectively manage client expectations about the process.
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Some litigants are pretty sure that they are very clearly correct and the other side is very clearly wrong. And so it may come as a surprise to them that they don't immediately get what they want. After all, can't the lawyer just call the judge up, explain that their client is right, and then that's the end of the lawsuit?
It turns out that the wheels of justice move more slowly than many people expect. Lawsuits, even ones where one side is extremely right and the other side is monstrous, often take months or even years.
Why should you read this post about how long lawsuits can take?
It will take less time to read than the duration of a lawsuit.
It may discourage you from suing people, which I guess is good for everyone.
If you are in a lawsuit and it's taking awhile, this may help explain why.
Numerous Factors Can Slow Down or Speed Up a Case
Litigation is often unpredictable (note to self: blog name idea?). There are tons of variables that can affect how quickly your case goes. Here are some reasons why your case may get delayed:
Maybe it was filed just before a viral epidemic that interfered with huge swaths of the justice system.
Maybe opposing counsel had a recent death in the family.
Maybe the judge was assigned to one or more high profile cases that requires the judge's attention for a long time and that pushes your case to later consideration.
Maybe the other side is willing to spend money on a bunch of filings that slow the case down.
Here are some reasons why it may be resolved quickly:
Maybe it got randomly assigned to a judge that notoriously moves her docket quickly.
Maybe the case involves a contract that implicates a legal issue that lets the case be decided on procedural grounds.
Maybe it was filed in a jurisdiction whose rules move cases along quickly.
Maybe the other side does not want to spend a lot on legal fees and is willing to negotiate an early settlement.
These considerations illustrate why it's hard to estimate how long a lawsuit will last.
Some Cases End Before Trial
A large number of cases settle, or involve a plaintiff who just gives up. Those cases end whenever the parties agree to end them.
For cases where both sides insist on litigating, lawsuits may still take a long time to conclude, even if they end before trial or even before the exchange of evidence. Consider the following types of cases:
Cases that were brought in the wrong court or forum;
Cases that were brought after the statute of limitations on the issue expired; or
Cases that were based on a misreading of the text of the law or of a contract.
Even in those situations, the defendant has several weeks (in New York and other jurisdictions) to file her response to the complaint. And then after that, the side that wants to win without exchanging evidence needs to draft a statement (which is called a "brief") that explains why the judge should decide the case in her favor. Then the other side has time to respond (this time varies widely by jurisdiction). Then the original side may have time to make another submission. And then... it depends! The judge may decide it within days. Or the judge may insist on seeing the parties' lawyers in court and then decide it months later. It's impossible to say for sure, though the federal court system publishes lists of matters that have been pending for six months in an attempt to discourage judges for waiting longer to make decisions.
And if the judge does not end the case then, the parties in an American litigation exchange evidence in a process called discovery that may go on for months or years. And then the parties have another opportunity to submit briefs to end the case without a trial, and that process may take several weeks or even months.
I have worked on cases that ended without a trial that have lasted a little as two months and as long as 18 months. Here are some examples:
A case in New York federal court that was filed in July 2013 and then was dismissed by the judge in December 2014.
A case in New York State court that was filed in July 2019 and then the judge granted a judgment to the plaintiff in November 2019.
A case in New Jersey State court that was filed in January 2020 and then was dismissed by the judge in March 2020.
Cases That Go to Trial Last Even Longer
But now let's discuss a subset of cases that cannot be resolved quickly and in which the parties refuse to settle. Those are cases that:
Were brought in the correct court;
Were brought before the statute of limitations on the issue expired; and
Contain allegations that, if they were true, would entitle the plaintiff to money.
I have worked on cases like these that last anywhere between one year to five years or more. Here are some examples:
A case in New York State court that was filed in 2009 and then went to trial before a jury in 2012. It was then was appealed in 2013 and then had a second trial before a jury in 2014 before finally settling.
A case in Massachusetts federal court that was filed in 2013 and then went to trial in 2017. It was appealed in 2018 and there had been a second trial scheduled for the summer of 2020.
A case in Ohio federal court that was filed in spring 2018 and that went to trial in the spring of 2019.
And even after judges issue a decision for a plaintiff, the plaintiff does not automatically get money nor does the case necessarily end. She may need to litigate further about what the judgment says and how the defendant’s assets will be collected. There may also be appeals and litigation about ancillary issues, like the reimbursement for certain costs. Each of these issues may take months or more to resolve.
So in conclusion, lawsuits can take awhile! And it's hard to estimate how long they will last. Parties often settle to avoid the uncertainty and the legal costs associated with hiring lawyers for uncertain lengths of time.