Lawsuits, Liability and other Legal musings

Legal Human Rights
1

Dear Forum,

Please forgive me for the redundant question I am about to ask, but the link to the archives is not working and I would really like to pose this question to Hartzell, esteemed colleagues, et al…

I got into an accident last night. I was traveling south on Jian Guo at He Ping when somebody attempted to make a right turn from the left turn lane. After cutting off three columns of traffic the car hit me (on my scooter) and I went flying. I hit the ground heavily and dislocated my shoulder, no doubt rupturing the ligments/rotator cuff…fun stuff. I was taken to the hospital. I may have to undergo surgery to replace the shoulder and reconnect the ligaments, and additionally wear a brace for one or two months. :cry: But it could have been worse.

The police were on the scene in no time and reports were made. I answered all their questions. I feel completely victimized, and was given the impression from the police that the other driver will be faulted. Their decsion will be mailed to me within a month.

I like to pride myself on being a reasonable person, and a compassionate person. But I feel compelled to seek compensation for this travesty. I was studying breakdancing, believe it or not, and now that dream has been indefinately postponed…if not crushed. At this moment, I must bend my body into a grotesque Quasimodo shapes just to type this email comfortably. This is only day two. There is going to be pain&suffering beyond the fact…of this I am sure.

Now here’s the question:

In Taiwan, does a foreigner stand a chance in court? If I am forced to resort to a lawsuit to seek my paltry remuneration, will I be wasting time and money? From the few posts that I read here it is apparent that in many respects foreigners do not have equal standing on the books, and I fear some judge is going to look at me and think, “He don’t need no money, he could still teach English without arms.” Am I misled?

I would greatly appreciate any guidance, advice, Do’s or Don’t that can be offered.

Thank you for reading my mail,

Drew Taylor, theOriginalGangsterMonk

2

Foreigners are treated equally by the courts. However, you will need a lawyer and lawyers are $$$ while compensation is usually very low. Your best bet is to settle or to try small claims court.

Good luck.

3

Thanks for your reply. I’d like to ask you to clarify the fairness bit, if I could.

Is your statement that foreigners and Taiwanese are given equal treatment as litigants (is that the word?), or that Taiwanese judges are generally impartial? I hoping you mean both…and, have you had any experience with the courts that you can relate?

I really don’t want much from this guy, but from the way that he kept smiling when he apologized for hitting me…just didn’t leave me too warm at heart for some reason.

Thanks,

theOGmonk

4

That’s par for the course here, just how embarrassing situations are handled. Of course, that doesn’t mean he’s going to do right by you either.

5

Has the necessary legal claim for damages been filed in the civil court at this point?

6

Dear Hartzell and all,

The driver dodged my phonecalls for a while, so we (Lawyer and I) sent him a summons. He showed up (at this “investigative hearing”) and then brusquely began to lie about not seeing the police report before, claiming the report was false, changing his testimony and demanding that the record be changed. Luckily, the judge didn’t heed this nonsense, but merely urged us to do the appropriate thing: arrange a compensation agreement and rid him of one more bothersome case to deal with.

But the negotiations did break down. My lawyer tried to start high…he asked for 60 wan NT. Of course, our objective was much, much lower but no matter how far we lowered the offer he still refuses to pay me no more than 1 wan NT…an insult. So it probably will end up going to court.

My lawyer has really helped me on this and been quite honest, he is actually expending more effort and making less money by carrying through with a lawsuit, so we have mailed one last final offer for settlement to the other party. (12) I doubt he’ll accept it. I feel really wronged but I have no idea how to seek recompense. I fear lengthly legal action in a foreign country, for a diminutive sum. What to do?

Thanks for your time,

Drew

7

The process has started. Hang in there. You are likely to win, and you will get more than NT$10k, even though I am unsure of how much. Your opponent is in the wrong, you are in the right, and when the other side starts blaming the report writing skills of the police and offer you a laughable amount, then he knows he’s in trouble, but try to get out of it. Waiting for a few months to get the guy to pay up is acceptable if you plan to stay.

8

OGmonk: sue the bastard. If he refuses to pay then that’s your only legal option. If you’re right and he’s wrong then you should win. If not, then at least it’ll be an interesting learning experience.

Once a lawyer makes a specific demand for a definite sum of money by a definite date, if the other side ignores it the lawyer should promptly file suit. Many attorneys here are too wimpy and unfamiliar with litigation to understand that, but it’s true. If your attorney makes a specific demand, the other side ignores it, and your attorney doesn’t follow through, then he looks wimpy, his word is not credible, and the guy will feel confident that he can jerk you around further. On the other hand, if the lawyer promptly files suit after his demand is not met, the guy will hopefully think, “shit, these guys are serious,” and will negotiate more realistically. Litigation is like poker. Hang in there and bluff it out and hopefully he’ll fold. If not, well, hopefully you’ll win.

9

[quote=“Mother Theresa”]OGmonk: sue the bastard. If he refuses to pay then that’s your only legal option. If you’re right and he’s wrong then you should win. If not, then at least it’ll be an interesting learning experience.

Once a lawyer makes a specific demand for a definite sum of money by a definite date, if the other side ignores it the lawyer should promptly file suit. Many attorneys here are too wimpy and unfamiliar with litigation to understand that, but it’s true. If your attorney makes a specific demand, the other side ignores it, and your attorney doesn’t follow through, then he looks wimpy, his word is not credible, and the guy will feel confident that he can jerk you around further. On the other hand, if the lawyer promptly files suit after his demand is not met, the guy will hopefully think, “shit, these guys are serious,” and will negotiate more realistically. Litigation is like poker. Hang in there and bluff it out and hopefully he’ll fold. If not, well, hopefully you’ll win.[/quote]

Unfortunately, Mother Theresa is absolutely correct. I don’t mean that its unfortunate that MT is correct, but rather that it is unfortunate that so many people need to be sued before they will take your claim seriously. Once a claim is filed, and it should seek maximum compensation, the defendant will most likely decide that it would be in his better interest to negotiate in good faith, or at least in better faith than he has so far.

Good luck, and keep us informed.

10

Those 2 guys know what they are talking about. I would heed their advice.

If you are persistent in a Taiwanese court and you have a good case, you are likely to win.