By Destiny Caldwell
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You received requests for admission, what should you do now
If your lawyer recently sent you a bunch of documents that were labeled: Requests for Admissions, this post will help guide you on the current status of your dispute or a dispute that has been brought against you, walk you through how to properly fill out the form, and why it is very important for you to take the time out of your busy schedule to complete it.
So how did we get here in the first place?
First, let’s discuss how you got here in the first place. You are either the side that brought the lawsuit against someone that has harmed you, the plaintiff, or the side that a lawsuit has been filed against, the defendant. If you are the plaintiff, you are already aware of why we are going to court, to pursue justice for your claims, and to receive compensation. If you are the latter, you may know why the plaintiff has brought a claim against you, or this might be completely new information to you or your company. After both parties have been made aware of how we got here, to this current dispute, we are able to move on to the next stage of the dispute process. Once the party that has brought this dispute to court has provided the reasoning behind their claim, the defendant is required to respond to the statements the plaintiff has made against them. The defendant has multiple options: deny the plaintiff’s claims that there is no truth to them, provide an alternative reason why the plaintiff should not be able to receive compensation based on law, and bring their own claim against the plaintiff. If the defendant has made their own claim against the plaintiff, a counterclaim, the plaintiff now can respond to how true the opposing party’s claims are. They can state that the claim is not true, lacks merit, or that the plaintiff has a valid reason that the claim should not proceed or a law prevents the defendant from receiving compensation for that issue. After all claims and responses have been submitted to the court and made available to both parties, the parties must attempt to resolve their issues without getting the court’s involvement. They must have a scheduled meeting with each other where they discuss if a settlement can be reached. If not, they will discuss what issues they are able to agree on and what issues are still in dispute. Here, they also discuss any information that must be provided to the opposing party upfront, such as insurance policies, documents or statements that will support their own claim, and more. Once this process has been completed, both lawyers will have a meeting with the court to discuss the deadlines of the case and how the next process will be completed. Disputes filed with the court go through many phases before it reaches trial and even after the case is over. As we have discussed, the first phase of this process is to make all parties aware of the dispute that has arisen and give them reasonable time to respond to the claims made against them and allow them to provide any claims against the initiating party. The second phase, which is where we are now, is called discovery. This phase is where both lawyers gather information that will help them present their case and receive the best outcome possible for their clients. This is the longest phase, the most important, of a dispute resolution process, it can range from several months to several years to complete the discovery process. After the discovery process has ended and the parties have not been able to resolve the pending disputes a trial date is set and both counsels will proceed to present their arguments in court. Once the trial has concluded, a decision is made on which side has won. If the losing party feels they should have won, or the case was held in an improper manner, or unfairly settled, they have the ability to request the case to be heard by a higher court. Currently, we are still in the early stages of your dispute. If you have received requests for admission, it typically indicates that you are in the initial phase of the discovery process.
What is a request for admissions and why is it Important?
If you have received requests for admission, this means neither side has been able to resolve the disputed issues at this moment; therefore, they are requesting additional information from the opposing counsel and investigating to accurately support their client’s position. For a lawyer to successfully argue a case, they need to learn all the information they can obtain about their case, and this occurs in the discovery phase. During this phase, a lawyer has several options available to receive this information. They are able to request statements either party has stated to anyone, other than their attorney, pertaining to the issues of the case. Another option is to request productions such as video, audio, pictures, and more. An additional option, which we will be discussing further here, is requests for admissions; they ask you to admit (the statement is true) or deny (the statement is false) the statements included in the request. While the lawyer does not always use the information you provide in court, it helps lawyers gain a better understanding of the case needed to prepare a plan and improve your chances of winning.
How to properly answer the requests and avoid common mistakes
When your lawyer sends you a Request for Admissions form, there are four responses that are available for you to use in responding to each request. If you believe that the statement in the request is true per your understanding, you will respond “admit.” If the statement is false or not completely true based on your personal knowledge, your response to the request will be “deny.” If you truly do not know if the statement is true or not, you will respond “I do not know” and provide a brief explanation on why you at this moment you are unable to give a clear answer. If you do not know an answer and you have made reasonable attempts to find a direct answer to the statement but have not been able to, you will respond, “I tried to find the answer but couldn’t”. Once the answer becomes known or is revealed to you, you must request the court to update your responses, so they provide the most recent and accurate information. If you have sent your answers and you find later that you need to change some of your responses, it is no longer true, or you need to add information, you are able to update them. You must show the court that you did not knowingly give false answers, changing your answers will not hurt the other side, and if you are able to fix your answers, it will help everyone understand the facts of the case better.
Why your responses are so important to your case
It is very important to respond to the request within 30 days of the date provided on the requests form, otherwise the court will treat all statements as if they were true even if you know they are false or there is evidence to support the statements are false. If your responses to the requests are late or you don’t file a response at all, the opposing party will likely request the judge to get rid of your case, you will not be able to tell your side of the story, and you will not receive any money for the claim even if you deserve it. When you respond honestly and on time, your lawyer has a better ability to build a stronger case and fight to get the best result. By doing your part of the job, your lawyer is in a better position to work harder for you.
Unsure about your response, talk with your lawyer first
Before you answer any form that you receive, always speak to your lawyer first. They can help you understand what requests you need to answer and what you are not required to. It is preferred that you ask as many questions as possible before submitting your final form to your attorney. After filling out the form, sign it and send it to your lawyer. Your lawyer will sign as well and send it to the other side’s lawyer. Once your attorney has sent the forms to the opposing attorney it is much harder to be able to change or update the responses you have provided. It’s very important to make sure your answers are true to your best understanding, because your lawyer is not required to check if your answers are true. If the other side finds a problem, your lawyer will tell you and help fix it or explain why the problem they found isn’t true.
