A central principle that governs pre-trial investigation or discovery in civil litigation is that much of it can be done informally through private interviews rather than through the formal discovery practices outlined in Article 31 of New York’s Civil Practice Law and Rules. In fact, the New York Court of Appeals, in a case called Nieseg v. Team I, 76 NY2d 363 (1990), expressed the public policy preference that such informal discovery be available to all litigants: 

Costly formal depositions that may deter litigants with limited resources, or even somewhat less formal and costly interviews attended by adversary counsel, are no substitute for such off-the-record private efforts to learn and assemble, rather than perpetuate, information. More…

Section 3420 of the New York Insurance Law, which sets forth requirements for liability insurance policies issued in New York State, was amended recently in two important ways that will help injury victims. Liability insurance policies, including automobile and homeowner’s insurance policies, typically require that the negligent party inform his or her insurance company of any possible claims within a particular period of time. These notice provisions are designed to ensure that the company has an opportunity to investigate claims right away, while witnesses can still be located and evidence has not been lost or destroyed. More…

The United Way of Greater Rochester presented the Award of Excellence to Faraci Lange, LLP and its employees for their significant investments in the 2008 United Way campaign. The amount they raised during the 2008 campaign constituted a 10% increase over the prior year. Faraci Lange’s investment in the Greater Rochester area community will be used to help enrich the lives of those in need. Programs and agencies ranging from youth related programs to senior support will aid thousands of individuals throughout the year thanks to their generosity.

John A. Falk has been listed in the Best Lawyers in America Directory for 2009. He joins, Angelo G. Faraci, Paul K. Lange, Stephen G. Schwarz, Brian M. Zorn, Matthew F. Belanger and Joseph A. Regan of Faraci Lange in this prestigious directory, which is the oldest and most respected peer-reviewed publication in the legal profession. Angelo Faraci has been listed for the past 25 years and Brian Zorn and Stephen Schwarz have been listed for more than ten years each. More…

On September 27, 2008 Faraci Lange partner Brian M. Zorn was inducted into the American College of Trial Lawyers at the organization’s annual meeting in Toronto, Ontario. Brian joins his partners Angelo G. Faraci and Stephen G. Schwarz as Fellows in the College. Also at the College’s annual meeting was United States Supreme Court Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr., who was inducted as an Honorary Fellow of the College, joining all of the other justices of the United States Supreme Court and judges of Canada’s highest court. In addition, at the meeting Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals, Judith S. Kaye, already a Fellow in the College, received the Samuel E. Gates Award for her outstanding contributions to the profession during her long and distinguished judicial career. More…