I need legal advice

[kotori]

Well, that's not true. More like "lawyer-ly support." Next week I have to give testimony in an arbitration; one of my former employers is sueing another former employer for sexual harrassment and breach of contract. I'm nervous. I'm going to walk out of that room with one less good recommendation for any future jobs I might apply for.

 

[Monazwx]

How did you get in such a pickle?

I'm not a lawyer, but I say:
Be honest and professional. (In that order)
Remember, one out of two ain't bad.

 

[Lancecastor]

Well, at least you'll get to hear some juicy "grabass" stories.

And when you tesify you can always say that you didn't really think about much of what you saw beyond the regular comings and goings of the others, because you tend to just do your work at work.

I was vp at a place where my boss, the exec vp, was fucking the corporate counsel...they were both married. (she was hawt!)

Everyone knew, but I always played dumb.

She was the Chairman's god-daughter. Apparently, he heard something, because...

One day I came to work and they were scraping his name off the door and all his stuff was gone.

She left shortly afterwards on a "leave of absence".

But everyone knew.

Icky stuff, dipping one's pen in company ink.

Lance

 

[charlien]

Made the mistake once...

...of becoming involved with someone who worked for me. That was early in my career and I learned my lesson. Have become involved after they left, but that's different.

Truth is your absolution, remember you're under oath so you really have little choice. good luck.

charlie

 

[Cytra]

Being professional is the best you can probably do.. It's not that you want to take sides, but you must answer the questions answered. If your former employers can't understand that you're only doing the duty that you were called to do, then there was nothing you could possibly do to prevent that.

Wish you good luck!!!

Cytra

 

[Don K Dyck]

A Few Suggestions . . .

Be open, honest and frank . . .

do NOT give any speculative opinions about anything . . .

say as little as possible . . .

monosyllables are good . . .

you are under oath, there is probably little else you can do . . .

look the prosecutor directly in the face at all times . . .

he will buckle eventually . . .

count three before replying to any question . . .

refuse to be rushed into answering a question . . .

set the pace of answering and hold it . . .

Good Luck!!

 

[Guest]

 

[kotori]

where are you?

chances are itwont be bad...and you wont have much of a chance to be nervous

they will ask you precise questions, and most of them will be closed, leaving you little room to flounder

youll be under oath

and if you feel discriminated against thereafter....take action, you're perfectly entitled to, and the courts will be very sympathetic to this

dont worry

now stop being so weak, for fucks sake, itll over and done with in no time.

I think out of everyone involved in a messy court case, YOU have the LEAST to worry about

You're quite right, I have nothing to worry about at all. And I'm not really all that worried about the reference--I have plenty of others, and if I were to get a bad reference, it would be easy to explain away. I just get flustered when talking to a group sometimes, and this is going to be a straight q & a. I like the idea of taking a breath before answering.

The fact is, I did not have any first hand knowledge of what was going on, but there was an "atmosphere" or "corporate culture" that makes it seem plausible. I'm really just there to be a character witness, to describe the atmospherics. And I am a witness for the plaintiff, not the defendant. So there really isn't a prosecutor. And I doubt I'll hear any good "grab ass" stories; I'm just going in to give my testimony and get out--it's a hearing before an arbitor, not a trial.