Opinion ID: 2156407
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Pre-Trial Negotiations

Text: On March 18, 2002, appellants' (defendants') counsel wrote a letter to appellee's (plaintiff's) counsel which stated in its opening paragraph: I am writing this letter to confirm that we have agreed upon a guaranteed minimum and maximum verdict for the trial.... Your client will be guaranteed a minimum amount of $20,000 if she prevails on liability. In return, your client will cap her damages at $300,000. As a result, if the jury enters a verdict less than $20,000, your client will receive $20,000. If the jury enters a verdict in excess of $300,000, the judgment will be limited to $300,000.... It is also my understanding that as a result of the hi/low agreement, you are dismissing your case against Mr. Vincent Amatangelo. [Emphasis added.] Plaintiff's counsel responded as follows on March 20: First, I agree to the high/low figure discussed in your letter ($300,000/ $20,000). However, I cannot dismiss Mr. Vincent Amatangelo as a defendant unless that high/low figure is guaranteed for any trials that may result from an appeal of our upcoming trial. If you are willing to guarantee the high/low amount for any and all trials, I will dismiss Mr. Amatangelo from the above-captioned lawsuit. Defendants' counsel replied on April 22, stating, The high/low figure is guaranteed only for the upcoming trial. As a result, it is my understanding that you will not voluntarily dismiss Mr. Vincent Amatangelo as a defendant in this case. Plaintiff's counsel wrote back on May 9: I am writing this letter to accept your latest hi-lo offer of $20,000/$300,000 under the condition that you will stipulate to the authenticity and accuracy of [Ms. Schultz's] time records that I mailed to you on March 27, 2002. In a letter dated May 28, 2002, defendants' counsel wrote to plaintiff's counsel: I am in receipt of your May 9, 2002, correspondence regarding [this case] and once again am perplexed. Your May 9th letter indicates that you have accepted our latest high/low offer of $20,000/$300,000 under the condition that the defendants will stipulate to the authenticity and accuracy of [Ms. Schultz's] time records that were mailed on March 27, 2002. Your letter also requests that I let you know if I object to those conditions. I do object to those conditions for the following reasons. On March 18, 2002, I wrote a letter to you confirming that we agreed to a guaranteed minimum verdict of $20,000 with a guaranteed cap of your client's damages at $300,000, if she prevailed on liability. In your March 20, 2002, letter, you indicated that you agreed to the high/low figure discussed. As a result, it is my understanding that we had an agreement that the damages for the upcoming trial would be capped at $300,000 with a minimum of $20,000. Although your client requested that the high/low agreement exist for any trials that may result from any appeal of this trial in exchange for dismissing my client, Vincent Amatangelo, from this lawsuit, we were unable to agree to those terms. As a result, as of March 20, 2002, there was a high/low agreement for those figures as summarized in my March 18, 2002, letter, which you agreed to in your March 20, 2002, letter. The March 27, 2002, letter to which you referred in your May 9, 2002, letter mentioned nothing whatsoever about being related to the high/low agreement that was already reached. As a result, it is my clients' position that the high/low agreement is already in existence and that there is no condition that the plaintiff's time records which were sent on March 27, 2002 be stipulated to as being authentic and accurate. Unless I hear from you to the contrary, in writing, within seven days of the date of this letter, I will assume that you agree that, for the upcoming ... trial, your client is guaranteed a minimum verdict of $20,000, if she prevails on liability, and she will cap her damages at $300,000. Please contact me immediately if you disagree with any of the terms of the agreement as outlined. [Emphasis in original.] Defendants' counsel followed this May 28 letter with another letter on June 14: As you may recall, I wrote to you on May 28, 2002, asking that you contact me immediately if you disagreed that we have reached a high/low agreement in the above-referenced matter. Since you have not responded in writing, by telephone, or by e-mail, I will assume that you agree with my May 28th letter regarding that issue and that we do indeed have an agreement as outlined in our previous letters. On August 8, 2002, defendants' counsel sent yet another letter to plaintiff's counsel: As outlined in our previous correspondence, we have agreed to enter into a high/low agreement in [this case]. Enclosed please find a Stipulation which outlines the agreement. Unless I hear from you to the contrary within twenty-four (24) hours of this letter, I will assume I have your authority to sign your name to this Stipulation and file it with the Court. Of course, I will provide you with a courtesy court-stamped copy. Thank you for your time and attention to this matter. A few days later, defendants' counsel filed with the court a document entitled Confidential Stipulation. [5] The date of filing is not clear from the record, but the copy of the stipulation that we have in the record on appeal bears a handwritten date of August 14, 2002, at the bottom of the page. The stipulation says: The parties agree that if the Plaintiff prevails on liability, she will be guaranteed a minimum verdict of $20,000 and a maximum verdict of $300,000. As a result, if the jury enters a judgment in favor of the Plaintiff which is less than $20,000, the Plaintiff will be provided $20,000 by the Defendants. If the jury's verdict exceeds $300,000, the maximum amount the Plaintiff will receive to satisfy the judgment will be $300,000. Should the verdict be between $20,000 and $300,000, the verdict will be as returned by the jury.