Legal Question in Business Law in California

My company was being sued in a patent infringement case. After 6 months of negotiations we settled outside court. We could not live up to the agreed payment terms and now we are being put back into the suit. After spending all the money on 6 months of legal bills, our company has no money to hire attorneys again. So what do we do? What will an out of state judge do with our company if we cannot afford to hire a lawyer who represents us? I know that a non-lawyer cannot represent a corporate entity... But, what happens when we simply cannot afford to pay for legal representation?

There are two other defendants still being sued by the same trolls...


Asked on 10/25/11, 10:40 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Bryan Whipple Bryan R. R. Whipple, Attorney at Law

If the suit is outside California, I can't be sure, but failure to defend usually results in a default judgment or its local equivalent.

If the original matter was patent infringement, I'd think the suit was filed in a U.S. District Court. Where is the new case for breach of the settlement agreement? Normally, I'd expect that to be in a state court, since a settlement agreement is just a contract, unless the plaintiff invoked diversity jurisdiction.

You could ask the other defendants if you could piggyback on their defense, if it is the same case.......but it probably isn't, unless they were codefendants in the original case.

If the defendant company is fundamentally sound, a Chapter 11 bankruptcy might be worth considering. I don't practice bankruptcy law, but you might want to consult with someone who does in your area.

Read more
Answered on 10/25/11, 11:10 am


Related Questions & Answers

More Business Law questions and answers in California