Should the case be settled?

Should the case be settled?

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#27
#27
It's way too early to talk settlement.
1) lawyers haven't completed discovery (sharing evidence) yet. This places facts from fiction in the case
2) depositions haven't been done yet. This is the questioning, under oath, of what happened from each individual in the suit, each employee with Title IX responsibility at UT, each witness. This will be critical in determining how strong plaintiffs case is. During this and discovery evidence may appear that reduces the number of plaintiffs which can reduce any settlement amount.
3) plaintiff attorneys don't have enough billable hours built up yet for them to make their $. Nothing will be settled until those billable hours increase significantly.
4) UT has outside counsel that specializes in civil trials. They will make it real hard on these plaintiffs.

UT at some point has to take the gloves off. And I'm sure they will. Once the real legal battling starts I expect a lot less will be in the media. I can't see media reports on what's said in depositions or what's provided in discovery.
 
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#29
#29
Daddy Gee said:
Yes. Not settling means Tennessee's name will show up for the next year on ESPN, SI, Twitter, Facebook, etc. Tennessee's reputation will be tried in the court of media and social media. It will be a bad look for us.
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Like?...now? :unsure:
 
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#30
#30
butchna said:
Plaintiffs already overplayed their hand. We've already been convicted by ESPN and the court of public opinion. There's no advantage in settling...damage has been done.
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jp1 said:
To me the "settle" time has passed. Damage has been done. I feel like at this point you go all in and prove you aren't guilty and put this thing to bed. Not a smart business decision for the time being,but may end up being one over the long haul.
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Agree. If there was a time to settle, it would have been before all the allegations were made public. Tennessee decided then not to roll over. Now it's just time to fight. The story will dwindle. Their case is shaky already. Now the pressure can be put back on them as holes can be punched in their claims. When 1 or 2 of their cases implode, it will start to all look like a farce.
 
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#32
#32
I am sure the case will settle. But when/if it does Vol fans need to understand that settling does not equal guilt or an admission of guilt. Each side has probably already done a value analysis of the worth of the case. UT (or UT's insurance company) may decide there are less costs associated with settling than going to trial. Also remember that juries do funny things and if it goes to trial how much would a maximum award be to the Plaintiff's if they prevailed. There are many factors involved in deciding to settle and the funny part is "guilt" isn't high on the list most times.

One thing I was thinking about last night is, now that CBJ has had his personal integrity attacked in such a public way how will that effect the settlement negotiations. He doesn't seem like a person that would want a confidential settlement without some statement released that absolved him from those statements.
 
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#33
#33
lawgator1 said:
First, understand that although over the years I needle you about our rivalry, and look forward to doing so for another decade once we get past this little blip when you surely beat us this year, this is a very serious matter. I do not take lightly that I am posting this as a rival fan, and am just speaking personally.

I do think you should settle and this is what I said in another thread about my own experience with lawsuits:

I'm very familiar with the circle the wagons mentality. I've been dealing with it for 20 years. In my experience, it feels great for the first 1/3rd of the time you are dealing with it, "its us against the world!"; lousy the second 1/3rd, "how could you do this to us?"!; and then pretty empty the last 1/3rd, "should have nipped this in the bud when we had the chance."
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You are exactly right gatorlaw, this must be settled. It is not good, won't get any better until these folks go away, so pay them, and move on! There is enough merit tot heir claims to ensure UT won't get off scott free. It's going to fester until it is dealt with.
 
#34
#34
Fight it like your reputational-life depended on it - b/c it does. "Settle" in the minds of many equals "guilty".

We don't need that smell in the air around campus nor in the minds of future recruits when considering UT.
 
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#35
#35
Anybody who thinks this all goes away if they settle is just living in lulu land. UT settles this thing out of court and the flood gates open. ESPN and all the other hacks will do stories for months about how UT is guilty of everything that was accused. They will be on campus everyday trying to dig up dirt. More girls will come out of the woodwork to collect their big checks. And this won't just happen at UT. It will be at every major college in the country. They better take this to court and they better win.
 
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#36
#36
I think the plaintiffs have bombed us in front of the AJ/ Williams trial. They dug up the Peyton crap to get national attention. They have the court of public opinion on their side. This would be the way to get a quick settlement. If UT is not scared of anything else coming out, that they feel the worst has passed, then fight it to the bitter end. If there are things that are still out there that we aren't privy to, settle it now. At this point, unless there are more firebombs from the plaintiff side to come, you are past the point of settlement. It would make UT look guilty right now
 
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#38
#38
lawgator1 said:
I don't practice in that area of the law, but my suspicion is that there is an attorneys fee provision in the federal statute at issue (there usually is) that the plaintiffs' attorneys, if they prevail, are also awarded their fees and costs on top of any verdict for the plaintiffs.
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Can someone get sued for an Avatar, causing a sexual assault to someones eyes, and say the person is an old man and has a heart attack????
 
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#39
#39
I feel like if they settle they would also have to relieve Dave heart and butch jones of their respective duties in order to completely expunge this.

With that said I think the university will explore the option of taking this to trial. So far the evidence seems to justify the actions CBJ and Dave heart have done to preserve the university's image.

This is a really bad situation and ultimately Tennessee loses either way. Their is a TON of negative PR and it's been in the front page of ESPN and cnn. If the university goes to court I think our chances of winning are 50/50
 
#40
#40
I'm mixed on settling. I want it to go away but I think these 8 women are mad at the world, want attention, mad at UT & want a bunch of money. The slick-talking Nashville lawyer got hold of them & convinced them they'd get rich quick...and he probably will get 50% of what they get! I'd say other schools will be right behind us & be in the same situation. Suing UT doesn't make much sense...if you get assaulted in a city, you don't sue the city...sue the person you say did it.
 
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#41
#41
NashLawVol said:
I am sure the case will settle. But when/if it does Vol fans need to understand that settling does not equal guilt or an admission of guilt. Each side has probably already done a value analysis of the worth of the case. UT (or UT's insurance company) may decide there are less costs associated with settling than going to trial. Also remember that juries do funny things and if it goes to trial how much would a maximum award be to the Plaintiff's if they prevailed. There are many factors involved in deciding to settle and the funny part is "guilt" isn't high on the list most times.

One thing I was thinking about last night is, now that CBJ has had his personal integrity attacked in such a public way how will that effect the settlement negotiations. He doesn't seem like a person that would want a confidential settlement without some statement released that absolved him from those statements.
Click to expand...

I would hope so. Hopefully it calls for Drae Bowels to move to Alabama too.
 
#42
#42
cheftrapgod said:
I feel like if they settle they would also have to relieve Dave heart and butch jones of their respective duties in order to completely expunge this.

With that said I think the university will explore the option of taking this to trial. So far the evidence seems to justify the actions CBJ and Dave heart have done to preserve the university's image.

This is a really bad situation and ultimately Tennessee loses either way. Their is a TON of negative PR and it's been in the front page of ESPN and cnn. If the university goes to court I think our chances of winning are 50/50
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And if we settle, we lose 100%.
 
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#43
#43
If UT is not guilty of any wrongdoing then they don't need to pay a dime. It just encourages this down the road with other schools.

If UT is guilty then it is in their best interest to settle.
 
#44
#44
triad280 said:
I think the plaintiffs have bombed us in front of the AJ/ Williams trial. They dug up the Peyton crap to get national attention. They have the court of public opinion on their side. This would be the way to get a quick settlement. If UT is not scared of anything else coming out, that they feel the worst has passed, then fight it to the bitter end. If there are things that are still out there that we aren't privy to, settle it now. At this point, unless there are more firebombs from the plaintiff side to come, you are past the point of settlement. It would make UT look guilty right now
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I doubt that there are any more firebombs. That grabbed the Peyton story out of desperation. When that was being pushed back on because the accuser is a nutcase, they came with Drae Bowels. I doubt they've gotten anything else. When you want a quick settlement, you throw your big bombs first. Unless they have CBJ, Hart, and Cheek on video having gay sex with Drae.
 
#46
#46
One thing to consider is the number of plaintiffs; that makes potential awards so much more substantial.

It also tends to make these claims of money-grabbing less likely. 1 girl being immoral and bold enough to take on a major state university and its legal team by running a long con like this, complete with dates and times that can't be disproved? Okay, maybe.

3 or 4 girls with similar stories, also with the nerve to do it, and also with dates and times that align with their version of events? Getting in more rarefied air here; it only takes 1 instance of a plaintiff's story being impossible because there's a record of the accused being elsewhere when she claims the incident took place to disqualify her as a client or witness. And you can bet their legal teams' investigators are checking out every minute detail of their stories, because no attorney likes surprises.

6 to 8 girls willing to go through all this; all of them vetted and the veracity of their stories scrutinized by the lawyers and their investigators? Doesn't seem likely that they could all be hustling and have unimpeachable accounts.

Perhaps that's why there's been no settlement talk yet; the school is probably doing their own investigation to try and determine how strong each plaintiff's case is, and which, if any, can be disproved before even discussing settlements or trials.
 
#47
#47
Hell no ! Now that objective journalists are delving deeper the plaintiffs case appears to be full of holes. Some folks need to get sued for slander .
 
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#48
#48
This whole talk of settlements pisses me off. Settlements make sense when the issue at hand is a business conflict, or an auto accident where the plaintiff has medical bills, lost time at work, etc. In my opinion, anyone who takes a settlement after screaming rape is full of crap. Not that I think UT is perfect and above all reproach, but my opinion is that this is purely a convenient money grab.

If I was a woman and I was raped, I would want JUSTICE, not money. I would want all those involved, or looked the other way to BURN, not get off by cutting a check that is peanuts relative to the amount of $ they have.

Complete BS
 
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#49
#49
1. If what Clay Travis said is true, there has already been at least one chance at mediation and it didn't take.

2. I can't remember a time a head coach of a major D1 program has been deposed and had to testify in court. I can't imagine anything good would come from that though.

3. Arrogance, hard headedness is why we are here.

4. FSU fought it all the way and paid nearly 1 Million at the end of the day to one alleged victim, how many plaintiffs in this one...6,7,8?

In my heart, I don't know how UT wins this, in some ways we've already lost. Get it over with and move on.
 
#50
#50
G8R8U2 said:
One thing to consider is the number of plaintiffs; that makes potential awards so much more substantial.

It also tends to make these claims of money-grabbing less likely. 1 girl being immoral and bold enough to take on a major state university and its legal team by running a long con like this, complete with dates and times that can't be disproved? Okay, maybe.

3 or 4 girls with similar stories, also with the nerve to do it, and also with dates and times that align with their version of events? Getting in more rarefied air here; it only takes 1 instance of a plaintiff's story being impossible because there's a record of the accused being elsewhere when she claims the incident took place to disqualify her as a client or witness. And you can bet their legal teams' investigators are checking out every minute detail of their stories, because no attorney likes surprises.

6 to 8 girls willing to go through all this; all of them vetted and the veracity of their stories scrutinized by the lawyers and their investigators? Doesn't seem likely that they could all be hustling and have unimpeachable accounts.

Perhaps that's why there's been no settlement talk yet; the school is probably doing their own investigation to try and determine how strong each plaintiff's case is, and which, if any, can be disproved before even discussing settlements or trials.
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Actually, it's the opposite. It makes it more likely. They can heap stories upon stories. The intent is for it not to go to court. Embarrass the school into settling, to stop the stories. Lawyers say it's a money grab. A judge has said it's a money grab. Legally, with the way Title IX is set up, there is nothing that can be done about it.
 
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