Procedural Skullduggery

Where there is procedure, there is a way to manipulate that procedure in order to achieve a favorable outcome. Read the following articles that illustrate some ways that parties have attempted to bend the rules of civil procedure:

• Facebook Movie Defamation
• NoYouCantWriteABriefLikeThisToGetAroundTheWordLimit
• People Who Sued Themselves

What are your thoughts on bending the rules of civil procedure? Do you think it is simply good lawyering? Unethical? Should lawyers be sanctioned for it? If you were a client, would you feel good about a lawyer bending the rules to win your case?

Be sure to support your discussion points with examples and authoritative sources.

References Kennerly, M. (2010, July 6). Why Mark Zuckerberg Won't Sue for Defamation Over the Facebook Movie. http://www.litigationandtrial.com/2010/07/articles/the-law/for-non-lawyers/why-mark-zuckerberg-wont-sue-for-defamation-over-the-facebook-movie/

Underhill, K. (2015, April 23). NoYouCantWriteABriefLikeThisToGetAroundTheWordLimit. Lowering the Bar. http://www.loweringthebar.net/2015/04/wordlimit.html

Underhill, K.(2011, April 26). The People Who Sued Themselves. Lowering the Bar. http://www.loweringthebar.net/2011/04/the-people-who-sued-themselves.html