A Sandbox Logistics lawsuit is a lawsuit that has no set venue. It is filed by one party who wishes to sue another party for breach of contract, whether it is a manufacturer or retailer, for breach of warranty, etc. In other words, it is a lawsuit that doesn’t have an established venue and is therefore filed across the nation or even overseas, using whichever laws and court systems are available. This type of lawsuit is also known as a non-custodial disposition, as the parties involved do not meet in a court room to discuss a contract or purchase agreement, but instead meet behind closed doors with attorneys and a judge to determine who will pay, who will be punished, and so on.
The parties involved usually meet in a hotel room for a day or two, during which they discuss the details of the case, what will be done if and when settlement will be reached, and so on. Afterwards, a contract, called a “amicus” is drawn up, containing the details of the case, including the names of all parties, the commencement of the case, and the stipulations and conditions of the case. After these details have been reviewed by the attorneys and the judge, the case is filed with the appropriate county clerk, who then makes sure the case file is maintained. Usually, the attorneys take care of maintaining the case file until the case settles. If settlement is reached and the case is settled outside of court, the parties must submit their case filings to the clerk for review.
In California, for example, the manufacturer must submit a sandbox application to the state court, and the recipient must submit a sandbox application to the court.
Both of these applications are used to determine if there is a real possibility that either party can settle the case outside of court. The filing process is often tedious and extremely time-consuming. There is also little opportunity to explore potential settlements outside of the initial meeting between the parties. All of this means that, on average, a sand box dispute is less than 1 percent successful.
One reason for the low success rate is that the case may simply be too complicated for a traditional litigation lawyer to help.
For example, a truck driver may have personal injuries, while the opposing truck driver may also have health problems, and may have a long-standing medical condition. If the trucking company tried their chances in court, they would probably have a tough time getting their way. It just doesn’t make much sense for a logistics expert to try and win a case from such a situation. Even if the logistics expert could have an insider’s knowledge of the case, it may also be very difficult for them to find out what that insider knows, since so much of the case may already have been decided.
The logistics expert will also have a difficult time proving their case before the judge.
The judge may order discovery, allowing the parties to each document a specific amount of information. Additionally, the judge may instruct the lawyers to speak only to each other, or to keep all discussions with the parties within the courtroom. If the lawyers do talk outside of the courtroom, then they will have to take those conversations to another part of the court, which will cost more and could also conflict with other court proceedings. Again, this means additional time spent in court, and an increase in legal fees for both sides.
There are other challenges to filing a logistics lawsuit outside of having a specialized lawyer on your team.
For example, it can take months to get the documents required for litigation before the courts, and many times, it will be necessary to have the case relocated to another jurisdiction. Not only will the logistics expert have to factor in travel time, but there may also be severing ties with past clients, and deciding how to continue the case once it has been moved. All of this adds up to the time and money wasted, and often these types of lawsuits fail because of the difficulty they entail.
A specialized logistics attorney should be involved in any logistics lawsuit.
This is because the logistics expert will understand exactly how to present the case to the judge, how to argue in court, and what documents must be produced. These experts may also know about special insurance policies that are designed to protect trucking companies. They may also know about filing motions to dismiss, which are motions that the trucking company can make to the court that says their grounds are not relevant or not facts enough to support a lawsuit. The trucking company will need to have a professional on its team that understands the legal issues involved, and will work actively on all aspects of the case.
If you think you have a case involving a logistics lawsuit, the first step is hiring a professional logistics expert. Then, you will need to investigate your case thoroughly, including collecting all documents and data you have in a safe place, so you have a record of everything you need. You should also meet with the logistics expert before and during your case and keep them updated on proceedings as they happen. The logistics expert will be the person who knows how to fight your corner in the courtroom and win.