Taking the Mystery Out of Letters Rogatory

“Letters Rogatory – what the heck is that?” people often ask. Dictionaries describe it as (ro·ga·to·ry) adj. Law - requesting information. A Letter Rogatory or Letter of Request is a formal request from a court to a foreign court for some type of judicial assistance. The most common remedies sought by Letters Rogatory are service of process and taking of evidence. It comes from Latin meaning “to ask.”  Simple enough - But, why is it such a mystery?

Letters Rogatory are typically used when there is no treaty in effect between the two countries and enforcement of a judgment will be required.

The definition makes perfect sense – it’s the practical application that is the challenge.  Almost every country has different wording requirements, formatting rules, and idiosyncrasies that make you want to scream when filling out the forms.  No need for frustration – there are international service experts who can handle the task in a flash.

To begin, a case must have already been filed with the court of proper jurisdiction.  The next step is to prepare the Letters Rogatory (or Request for Judicial Assistance) in a civil case and Letter of Request in a criminal case.  It takes a thorough knowledge of the rules of the court of destination to prepare the document properly. Otherwise, the service will be rejected and returned un-served.

The Letters are then submitted to the court of jurisdiction for signatures of both the Clerk of the Court and the Judge.  Many Judges are reluctant to sign the formal request if they have not previously had the honor of such experience.  There are clauses that deal with reciprocity for costs (Judges do not like to obligate their court to unknown costs), manner of service, and mutuality of services.  Judges often hand write changes on the documents to meet their own wishes – no, no, Your Honor!  He/she just invalidated the request in most countries.

So, how do you convince a Judge that they must do it “your way?”  Cite the law and foreign requirements like you would do with anything you do before a Judge.  There are wording techniques in the preparation of the Letters that prevent Judges from making inappropriate changes.  An experienced expert will know the “tricks of the trade.”

After the Letters are signed by both the Clerk of the Court and the Judge, they are returned to the requesting attorney for processing.  Originals must always be used when submitting to the foreign court along with the proper number of service copies.  In addition, a cover letter must accompany the request which contains specific wording.  Oh, did I mention that all documents must be translated into the official language of the country of destination?

The properly prepared packet is forwarded to the U.S. Department of State for processing.  There is an Embassy fee of $2275.00, in addition to the service of process fees.  The State Department plays with it for a couple of months and the documents are eventually sent through diplomatic channels to the proper court in the foreign nation where the documents are to be served.

The service is assigned to a local court which does who-knows-what and then they assign it to a law enforcement official who serves the papers.

After service, the process goes back through the system, in reverse, until the proof of service ends up in the court file where the case originated. Neither the foreign court nor the State Department notifies the requesting attorney that it has been served. Strange, huh?

It is commonly stated that the Letters Rogatory process takes over one year to complete.  Au contraire! It normally takes only 7-10 months.  Feel better?  There are cases, however, that take up to two years due to the bureaucracy and protectionism of assets in some countries.

So, what is the solution to the Letters Rogatory dilemma?  Simple:  Hire an international service of process professional who understands the challenges an attorney may face and who has the resources to get the job done right.

Nelson Tucker is the CEO of Process Service Network, LLC, in the Los Angeles area.  His firm specializes in international and hard-to-serve cases and has completed over 16,000 Letters Rogatory services in the past 33 years.  You may contact him at via email at processnet@sbcglobal.net or at www.processnet1.com for a free consultation.

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Not One Legal Secretary Surveyed Preferred Working with Women Partners; Prof Offers Reasons Why

[Editor's note: This is the first time that I have posted someone else’s work, but here it is (Reprinted from ABAJournal)

By Debra Cassens Weiss

Clarification: When Chicago-Kent law professor Felice Batlan surveyed 142 legal secretaries at larger law firms in 2009, not one expressed a preference for working with a female partner.

Asked whether they preferred to work for male or female partners or associates, 35 percent preferred working for male partners, 15 percent preferred working for male associates, 3 percent preferred working for female associates, none preferred working for female partners, and 47 percent had no opinion.

Ninety-five percent of the legal secretaries who responded to the online survey were women. Most were middle aged and had considerable experience. They came from firms of more than 100 lawyers. Batlan wrote about the results in an article (purchase req.) published by Emerald Insight. Forbes' She Negotiates blog also reported on the survey findings.

Some secretaries elaborated on why they preferred to work for males, with these survey comments:

• “Females are harder on their female assistants, more detail oriented, and they have to try harder to prove themselves, so they put that on you. And they are passive aggressive where a guy will just tell you the task and not get emotionally involved and make it personal.”
• “I just feel that men are a little more flexible and less emotional than women. This could be because the female partners feel more pressure to perform.”
• “Female attorneys have a tendency to downgrade a legal secretary.”
• “I am a female legal secretary, but I avoid working for women because [they are] such a pain in the ass! They are too emotional and demeaning.”
• “Female attorneys are either mean because they're trying to be like their male counterparts or too nice/too emotional because they can't handle the stress. Either way, their attitude/lack of maturity somehow involves you being a punching bag.”
• Women lawyers have “an air about them.”

Some legal secretaries said they didn’t like working for women because they were too independent, Batlan writes. One woman wrote of her male boss: “My partner in particular tends to forget the little things. I often find myself tailing him as he's walking out the door to a meeting going down a list of things he may need. Oddly, I don't feel like my female attorneys need that kind of attention.”

A sizable minority—45 percent of the respondents—said they did personal tasks for lawyers. Still, most respondents indicated that the concept of legal secretary as “second wife” is old school, particularly since secretaries typically work for more than one lawyer.

Batlan wondered if legal secretaries’ attitudes toward women lawyers is influenced by societal expectations. “For a woman to serve a man is an arrangement that conforms to and reproduces dominant and traditional, although contested and changing, gender arrangements,” she writes. “Gender structures tell men that they are entitled to women's help and that women are supposed to freely give it.”

Other possible reasons: Men still have the power in law firms, and legal secretaries want to work for those in power. Or women lawyers may be more abrupt because of tensions created by conflicts between work and family. Or female lawyers may perceive that the secretaries are willing to do more work for male than women bosses, creating frictions.

Batlan suggests that women lawyers may be “in a double-bind situation.” If they don’t behave like males, they are perceived as too emotional, and if they do act like men, they are perceived as putting on airs.

Other survey findings:

• Nearly 71 percent of the surveyed secretaries said the recession had affected their jobs, and nearly 81 percent said their firms had laid off secretaries. Some now worked for more lawyers, some reported decreased benefits, and some reported no or little pay increases. Eighteen percent had been recently laid off.

• Asked about the traits that make a good legal secretary, many indicated that it was important to control their emotions. One secretary listed the traits this way: “Gets to work on time, does the assigned work, hasn't murdered a lawyer by the end of her day.”

• The legal secretaries were generally satisfied with their work schedules. Seventy-five percent worked 30 to 40 hours a week.

• Asked if attorneys respected them, 67 percent of the secretaries said they were respected, and 29 percent said “it depends.”

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I did not write this – just reporting the findings.  Have any thoughts?  I welcome them at nelson@processnet1.com

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