Post
Topic
Board Service Discussion
Re: GAW / Josh Garza discussion. Paycoin XPY CoinStand Mineral. ALWAYS MAKE MONEY :)
by
eightcylinders
on 21/04/2015, 15:29:55 UTC
So in your opinion how much due diligence lawyers should do before sending out letters on behalf of their clients?

For example Garza claims he owns hardware, trolls doubt it, Garza wants to send out C&Ds. Is the lawyer supposed to just take Garza's word for it?

How about merchants and partnerships? If Garza is claiming he has partnerships with merchants and Coin Fire should stop writing about it, is that all that's needed for a C&D?

http://www.scribd.com/doc/248372603/Coinfire-Cease-and-Desist#scribd


There are two different issues here.

1) How much due diligence should a lawyer do, as a matter of best practices, before sending out a C&D?  My answer to that is a lot more than BM did here.  If they had insisted on seeing all communications and contracts supporting GAW's claims they probably would not have sent the letter.  I would not send a C&D without conducting the same level of diligence that would be required before filing a lawsuit (which is to say, I need to be convinced myself that there is a good case). 

2) How much due diligence is required, as an ethical matter, is a different question and, unfortunately, there is not a lot of diligence required.  As far as I have ever seen in ethics opinions, a lawyer sending a C&D is generally entitled to rely on his client's affirmations without further investigation.    Actually filing a lawsuit is a different matter, as the lawyer is obligated by both federal and state law to conduct an independent investigation.