Litigation Department of the Year, Small Firm, Special Litigation: Caplan Cobb
"The key factor to reaching a settlement is aligning the parties' perceptions of the risks and rewards of continuing litigation and the cost savings achieved by resolution."
June 19, 2019 at 02:00 PM
4 minute read
Among its successes in 2018, Caplan Cobb represented The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and WSB-TV in their disputes with the city of Atlanta over Georgia Open Records Act requests. The matter grew dramatic when reporters uncovered a string of text messages in which Mayor Kasim Reed's press secretary instructed watershed officials to “be as unhelpful as possible” and to “drag this out as long as possible” when fulfilling an ORA request submitted by WSB-TV.
The discovery of the text messages prompted Caplan Cobb to file a 13-page complaint with the attorney general of Georgia, who initiated an investigation that led to criminal charges against the press secretary.
Caplan Cobb and lawyers for the city negotiated a settlement, mediated by the AG's office, by which the city agreed to develop training for city personnel on the ORA and create a position of the city transparency officer, who now oversees the city's ORA compliance, among other concessions. Cox Media Group donated $80,000 in legal fees the city of Atlanta paid as part of the settlement to the Georgia First Amendment Foundation.
Among its other cases, the firm joined a case two weeks before trial and successfully represented a client accused of fraud. It also negotiated a settlement for a class of retirees suing Athens-Clarke County for breach of its contractual duty to provide the retirees with no-cost health-insurance benefits. In November. the county agreed to pay retrospective damages of $3 million to the class members and to prospectively pay the class members $228 per month in health reimbursements, with guaranteed increases tied to inflation.
The firm provided these answers to the Daily Report's questions:
What was the most rewarding part of the open records matter?
It was a privilege to work alongside an exceptional team of journalists at AJC and WSB in a joint effort to improve governmental transparency. The reforms achieved by our settlement with the city would not have been possible without their first-rate journalism, especially in uncovering the critical evidence that exposed Open Records Act violations under the city's prior administration. AJC and WSB's news reporting ultimately showed the need for serious reform, and the city responded by agreeing to a series of improvements that, if successfully implemented, will help place the city on the forefront of open government.
One of your 2018 successes included taking over a case two weeks before trial. How do you assess whether to take on a representation so late in the process without setting you and your client up for failure because you don't have time to prepare?
The most important question we ask is whether we are able to devote the time and resources to master the record, meet with relevant witnesses and fully prepare for trial. It also helps to have the complete support of your client and co-counsel. In the Cisco matter, we were fortunate to have the cooperation of Tim Roberts and Bill Hunter of Oliver Maner, who were defense counsel in a related case. Without their assistance, we would not have been in a position to secure victory for our client.
What is a key to reaching a settlement? Is it just a matter of finding a number in between the parties' respective positions, or are other factors involved?
In our view, the key factor to reaching a settlement is aligning the parties' perceptions of the risks and rewards of continuing litigation and the cost savings achieved by resolution. Noneconomic forces, such as emotion and ego, may also play a role. But it is our job to facilitate favorable settlement opportunities and to give our clients the candid and objective advice necessary to make an informed decision about the benefits of settlement versus litigating a matter fully through trial.
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