Top Civil Litigation Risks Every Miami Business Owner Should Know

If a business dispute cannot be resolved amicably through mediation or negotiation, you may have no option but to initiate civil litigation proceedings. Civil litigation involves resolving a non-criminal dispute through legal argument and the presentation of relevant evidence in court or before an arbitration panel. Although civil litigation is an inevitable part of doing business, instituting civil proceedings is a serious decision that should only be taken after careful analysis of your legal options and a comprehensive appraisal of the risks involved. In this article, we answer your frequently asked questions about the most common civil litigation risks and pitfalls.

Five Frequently Asked Questions About The Risks Of Civil Litigation

The hallmark of an excellent civil litigation attorney isn’t just winning cases – it’s ensuring clients are fully aware of the risks involved in legal proceedings, and helping them to choose a legal course of action that ultimately favors their long-term interests.

Let’s take a look at the top questions our clients have about the risks of civil litigation.

1. How Long Do Civil Litigation Proceedings Run For?

Asking how long civil litigation proceedings are likely to run for is like asking how long a piece of string is. Litigation can be over in a few weeks (in the unlikely case of early settlement), or it can run for years and years – in rare circumstances, cases can take over a decade to be resolved if multiple appeals are pursued. The duration of proceedings is influenced by many factors, such as the nature and complexity of the dispute, the approach of the opposing party and their appetite for incurring fees, the volume of evidence involved, the court’s case load, and whether appeals are filed. Ultimately, the length of proceedings is highly unpredictable, and this presents one of the key risks of civil litigation.

2. How Much Does Civil Litigation Cost?

As is the case with the length of proceedings, the cost of civil litigation is impossible to predict. Although your attorney will generally charge you fees at a fixed hourly rate, it is very difficult to predict upfront how many hours of work will be involved in preparing for and arguing a case. Everything from drafting pleadings and conducting thorough legal research to gathering evidence and sifting through the opposing party’s discovery can take months and months of work – not mention the trial itself, which is a very expensive stage in litigation proceedings. Although your attorney can provide you with a fee estimate, there is no guarantee that this estimate won’t be exceeded if unexpected complications arise during proceedings, making costliness another civil litigation risk factor.

3. Will My Sensitive Business Information Be Protected?

Unless your dispute is settled by way of confidential arbitration, all the legal filings in your case will become part of a publicly accessible record. Although your attorney will be able to take steps to protect certain information from becoming part of this record, ultimately, all relevant evidence must be disclosed (unless it qualifies as privileged). This means that your business’s sensitive intellectual property – which could include client and supplier lists, trade secrets, and valuable technological information – is at risk of becoming available to the public, and crucially, to your competitors. This is an eventuality that your legal team can take steps to help mitigate, but it remains one of the biggest risks associated with civil litigation for businesses.

4. How Does Civil Litigation Impact Business Operations?

A further risk that business owners must take into account when initiating litigation is the likely impact on business operations. Commercial litigation can be incredibly complex, and may require senior management to devote significant portions of their time to consulting with attorneys to provide factual background and commercial context to the proceedings. It is important to consider how this will impact day-today operations and the capacity of the management team, and whether the business’s bottom line is likely to suffer as a result. Key employees may also need to be available for lengthy trial proceedings, which can hamper their productivity.

5. Are There Reputational Risks Involved?

Unfortunately, it can be difficult to gauge how litigation will play out in the public eye. Although many cases are argued each year without receiving significant media attention, this could be a relevant risk factor depending on your business profile and your opponent’s strategy. Some companies choose to engage public relations firms to carefully manage the public narrative surrounding a case, and if your company is not prepared for this possibility, it may be left with lasting reputational damage. Again, although your attorney will assess your reputational risk, this is not something that can be definitively predicted – especially in the era of social media and viral campaigns. Reputational risk is a good reason to consider initiating arbitration proceedings instead of court proceedings where possible.

Is Civil Litigation Worth The Risk?

While civil litigation presents several risks, it is not without its rewards. Provided you consult with an experienced civil litigation attorney about the merits of your legal claim and your prospects of success, you will be well positioned to make an informed decision about whether to institute proceedings. With excellent legal representation, you will be able to navigate the pitfalls of litigation while achieving a favorable case outcome, whether through strategic pretrial settlement negotiations or through a trial hearing. Meticulous case preparation, careful legal research, strategic use of discovery, and persuasive argumentative skills are a winning formula: as long as your legal team is capable of providing all this and more, you are likely to reap the rewards of enforcing your rights through litigation.