Category: Legal

You are working as a paralegal for the law firm that represents one of the families in the Arkansas Bus Collision Case. Your supervising attorney, Tanya Brown, has sent you the memorandum below asking you to draft a complaint in the Arkansas Bus Collision Case.
For purposes of this simulated assignment, assume that the collision occurred on May 31 [last year] to avoid any statute of limitations issues. Change the facts from the original NTSB report, assuming that the collision occurred on May 31 [last year].
For facts to support the complaint, use the NTSB report. The name of the driver of the tractor-trailer was David Picton. You should include language that Picton was acting within the scope of employment.
Refer to the sample complaints in Chapter 8 in the course text, including Exhibit 8.9 and Exhibit 8.10.
Use the complaint form to draft the complaint. Submit the complaint as your assignment. The document should be ready as if you are submitting the complaint to the court. You do not need to include the summons with the complaint.
Memorandum from Tanya Brown, Attorney
Date: Today’s Date
To: Paralegal
From: Tanya Brown, Attorney
Re: Complaint in Arkansas Bus Collision Case
I need you to draft a complaint in the Arkansas Bus Collision Case. We represent the parents of a child who died in the collision. The child’s name is Marcus Smith (M.S.), and his parents are Brandon Smith and Courtney Smith. The child was sitting in Seat 9A, described in the NTSB report. The parents claim more than $75,000 in damages, and the extent of damages will be determined if the case goes to trial. Use the facts from the NTSB report when you draft the complaint. The parents are residents of Arkansas and reside at 1201 Aspen Lane, Mountainburg, Arkansas.
The complaint should be based on only one cause of action for negligence. Name only one defendant in the complaint, the trucking company Gayle Stuart Trucking, Inc., a privately held company incorporated in the State of Missouri, with its principal place of business being 600 North Main Street, Vandalia, Missouri.
We should file the complaint in federal court in Arkansas for the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas. Jurisdiction in federal court is based on diversity of citizenship. Use the complaint form to assist you in drafting the complaint. You do not need to draft the summons, as the case will be filed in federal court. Use today’s date for the date of the complaint. 

Question 1.)
Denny’s law firm represents several large corporations. As a senior corporate paralegal, Denny always has access to confidential information regarding the price of stock of those corporations, as well as the business deals those corporations are considering. As a result of knowledge gained about an upcoming merger of two of the corporations represented by the firm, Denny buys stock in those corporations. Because of his financial interest in those corporations, Denny spends most of his time doing work for them, while neglecting the others.
Is it ethically permissible for Denny to purchase stock in these corporations?
What actions should the law firm take once they find out Denny purchased stock in two of the corporations?
Should Denny have disclosed his financial interest in the corporations as soon as he purchased the stock?    
What other concerns should the firm have about Denny’s actions? Should Denny be fired? What do you think appropriate sanctions should be?
Question 2.)
Perry has been working as a domestic relations paralegal for three years for the same firm. He interviews clients, prepares uncontested dissolution petitions, , arranges for these petitions to be filed, communicates with the clients, and sees their cases through to the end. As most cases only require one appearance by a lawyer, Perry does ninety percent of the work on each case. Perry has a signature stamp with the attorney’s signature on it, as well.
His supervising lawyer reviews his work but, as of the last year, never has had to make any corrections. When Perry’s supervising lawyer takes a four-month medical leave of absence, Perry continues working. He prepares a new lawyer (unfamiliar with domestic relations cases) at the firm to make the required court appearances. The clients and the firm are happy with Perry’s work so far and are unaware that he has been unsupervised during the four months his supervising lawyer was off for medical leave. https://mediaplayer.pearsoncmg.com/assets/OrlikA8 
Has Perry committed any ethical violations? If so, how? What about the supervising lawyer?
What would you do differently if you were Perry?
How should the law firm have handled Perry’s situation differently?
Has the law firm committed any ethical violations?
Question 3.)
Watch the video
Goldman, T. F. (n.d.) Zealous Representation Issue: Signing Documents. Pearson Always Learning. Pearson. Retrieved November 1, 2023, from https://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/chet/careersresources/goldman_civillit4e/goldman_civillit4e_ch8.html. 
You are working as a paralegal for the law firm that represents one of the plaintiffs in the Arkansas Bus Collision Case. A paralegal signs a pleading for the attorney so that the pleading can be filed before the statute of limitation expires. Discuss the following questions.
May a paralegal ever sign a pleading for an attorney?
What procedures should the paralegal follow before taking any documents to the courthouse for filing?
What are your local court rules for signing pleadings?
What special rules apply to signing pleadings in your state that require electronic filing, or e-filing?
What rules apply to signing pleadings in federal court?
Question 4.)
Electronic discovery, or e-discovery, is now common with discovery. You are working as a paralegal for the law firm that represents one of the families in the Arkansas Bus Collision Case. Your supervising attorney is not happy with the firm’s current e-discovery vendor, and the contract is up for renewal. The supervising attorney has asked you to research different software companies that provide e-discovery solutions and to make a recommendation on which company to use. The firm is a boutique law firm with approximately 30 attorneys with offices in two different states.
Conduct research and compare at least two different software companies that offer e-discovery solutions. What questions would you ask a representative of the software vendor? What features are similar? What features are different? Which company do you recommend? Explain.

You do not need to write out the questions. However, you must write out your responses in complete sentences. Please be very thorough and detailed. This is your opportunity to “show-off” what you learned this week.
Chapter 9:
Question 9-3 
Question 9-7 
Chapter 10:
Question 10-1 
Question 10-4 
Chapter 11:
Question 11-1 
Chapter 12:
Question 12-1 
Question 12-5
Chapter 13: 
Question 13-1 
Question 13-8
Chapter 14:   
Question 14-4
Question 14-8
Chapter 23:  
Question 23-3