Civil Action with Brian & Shant civilaction

Brian and Shant discuss the crisis created by the lack certified court reporters in California. The shortage means that many cases don’t get a court reporter or that lawyers and clients are spending thousands of dollars to hire a private court reporter. 
 
Why has this happened? Two reasons: First, the passage rate for the court reporter certification exam is painfully low, around 20%. Second, the union which represents the court reporters continues to block any effort to use electronic recording or transcriptions as an alternative. They claim the technology isn’t good enough, which is false. The result is impending crisis where many people don't have access to justice.
 
Next Brian and Shant talk about Disney’s lawsuit against Ron DeSantis. DeSantis recently revoked Disney’s rights of governance over their property area called Reedy Creek. Some people say it's a trumped up lawsuit that won’t go anywhere, but Brian and Shant say that the “takings clause” in the 5th Amendment is very strong and that DeSantis’s blatant public comments about retaliating against Disney for disagreeing on his stance on LGBTQ+ rights makes the lawsuit meritorious and could spell trouble for DeSantis.   
 
Brian Kabatek: bsk@kbklawyers.com
 
Shant Karnikian: sk@kbklawyers.com
 
For more information about the firm, Kabateck LLP, visit www.kbklawyers.com 
 

Brian and Shant speak with attorney Gary Partamian, who focuses on cases of childhood sex abuse. They discuss the changes to CCP 340.1 and how to possibly file a case on behalf of a client who is over 40 years old and suffered sexual abuse as a child. Learn about the importance of working with prospective clients in these cases to confirm that they qualify under the strict requirements of CCP 340.1 to bring a case despite their age--including issues that could be fatal to their potential case.  
You'll also hear, more generally, how to work with a client in cases of abuse and trauma and how important empathy, patience, and understanding is when helping clients through these types of cases. 
 
Brian Kabatek: bsk@kbklawyers.com
Shant Karnikian: sk@kbklawyers.com
For more information about the firm, Kabateck LLP, visit www.kbklawyers.com

Today our intake attorney Annie Martin-McDonough brought a fascinating topic to our attention with the “tort of seduction.” In the 1700’s this was a tort that allowed for the father of a daughter to sue a man, who had seduced and impregnated the woman, for loss of services.  
Later in the Victorian era the tort evolved to allow a woman to sue for emotional damages due to a loss of virtue if a man tricked her into a sexual relationship. 
Annie, Shant and Brian discuss how the tort differed from sexual assault and the history of the tort being abolished in many states starting in 1935 due to some reasons that were pro-women’s rights and other reasons that could be seen as sexist towards women. 
The tort still exists in many states today, though it is very rarely brought to court. Annie gives her argument and examples for the positive uses the tort could have today. 
 
Brian Kabatek: bsk@kbklawyers.com
 
Shant Karnikian: sk@kbklawyers.com
For more information about the firm, BK Law, visit www.kbklawyers.com  

Join the conversation this episode with Anastasia Mazzella and Marina Pacheco, partners at Kabateck LLP, about their experiences and thoughts on gender bias in the legal field. They'll identify specific situations they've encountered and share observations on how improvements can be made to minimize the issues going forward.
While 47% of lawyers at the associate level were women, that number drops to 22% at the partner level. Anastasia and Marina discuss with Shant Karnikian, opportunities to keep more women practicing law including more equitable pay, more supportive environments that focus on a better work-life balance, and addressing biases people may not even be aware they have. 
This is a must share episode that goes beyond the topics traditionally discussed on the show.   
 
Anastasia Mazzella: am@kbklawyers.com
Marina Pacheco: mrp@kbklawyers.com
Shant Karnikian: sk@kbklawyers.com
 
For more information about the firm, visit www.kbklawyers.com

Brian and Shant speak with partner Stephanie Charlin on figuring out the policy limits of a party responsible for an injury. 
Currently, the law dictates that insurance companies are not required to release policy information until a case is filed and the information is requested during discovery. This is often a waste of time for plaintiff lawyers, the courts, and the victims, particularly if the policy has minimal coverage. 
They also discuss how to make sure you check to see if a defendant has additional policy coverage, aside from their primary insurance. 
If you have any questions about insurance or how it may impact your catastrophic injury cases, please reach out to us: 
Brian Kabatek: bsk@kbklawyers.com
Shant Karnikian: sk@kbklawyers.com
For more information about Kabateck LLP, visit www.kbklawyers.com
 

Can you pop the lid on a UM/UIM policy? Join hosts Brian Kabateck and Shant Karnikian as they invite attorney Barrett Alexander of Kabateck LLP to talk about the difference between a third-party bad faith claim and a UM/UIM bad faith claim.  What legal remedy and rights does the injured party have in each context?  Hear specific case examples about how this is done and what the future may hold when it comes to bad faith negotiations with the insuring entities.