Side Story 2

Side Story 2
Hi guys! That was the end of Roxanne and Paul's story; now we'll be moving on to Levi and Linda's story. Enjoy!

Levi and Linda

Levi

I walk down the hall of my office at work, on my way to drop some documents off to my sister. My name is Levi Payne, I'm 32 years old, and an alpha.
I'm also a lawyer, and I work with my two younger siblings, Roxanne and Tim. We own our own practice, and we have a few big clients that keep us busy.

Today, though, we're going to my youngest brother, Liam's, housewarming party. I love my little brother; he's the baby of the family, and the only beta, so we dote on him.
I head into the conference room to get this mediation started. We're trying to settle out of court for this company we're representing.

I'm unsure how well the mediation will go since I believe the individual suing my client knows he could potentially receive more if we do take this to court.
I walk into the conference room and close the door behind me. I'm trying to get this guy to settle for what the client is offering. I don't know that I'll be successful, but I have to try.

I shut the door gently behind me, turn around, and look around the room. There are two gentlemen seated to one side of the long table. One is Mr. Ramirez, the one who's suing my client; the other is his lawyer, Mr. Moore. I slide into a seat close to them, but not too close; I don't want to seem threatening.

"Good morning, gentleman. How are you doing today?" I ask courteously.
"Good morning, Mr. Payne. We would like to skip formalities and jump right into it." Mr. Moore speaks with conviction.

I nod, "Okay, that will be absolutely fine. So tell me, gentleman, since you have rejected every offer put on the table, what number exactly are you looking for?"
Mr. Moore looks over at Mr. Ramirez, then looks back at me and says, "Mr. Ramirez is prepared to settle for no less than 1.5 million. If we get those numbers on the table, we're prepared to leave this out of court."

I nod again, "Okay, give me a few moments to convene with my client, and I will get back to you guys with a response."
I walk out of the conference room and down to my office, stepping inside, I shut the door behind me.

I take a seat at my desk and dial my client's number. It rings a few times before I hear, "Hello?"
"Hi, Jeffrey?" I say, "This is Levi, I'm speaking with Mr. Ramirez today, about what would be the lowest he accepts. His lawyer states that the only way to keep this out of court is to settle for paying Mr. Ramirez 1.5 million."

I take a breath after speaking and wait for a response. This hasn't been easy negotiating. The client wants to pay less money, while the plaintiff wants more; we've been at an impasse for the last few months now.

Jeffrey says, "What do you think, Levi? Is it smarter to pay now or later?"
I clear my throat, "From a legal standpoint, I would say it's smarter to pay now. If we take this to court, I fear that the judge will rule in favor of Mr. Ramirez for a much higher sum."
Jeffrey lets out a big sigh, then says, "Okay, fine. Accept that offer, we'll pay that and not a penny more!"

"Alright, Jeffrey. I'll get Mr. Ramirez's bank information and forward it to you. You'll have 30 days to pay, or they are within their rights to take you to court anyway. I suggest you pay as quickly as possible, because they can file for a court date before the 30 days are up, so if you end up paying him last minute, you'll have paid him and still end up in court."

Jeffrey lets out another loud sigh, "Okay, fine. Send me that bank info and I'll get it paid within a few days. Let Mr. Ramirez know that, so they don't make any moves."

"Alright, Jeffrey. I'll call you back when I have that info." I hang up the phone and let out a sigh. This is all Jeffrey's company's fault. They were cutting corners, and Mr. Ramirez was injured as a result. He'll never be able to work again, so his settling for 1.5 million is a blessing in itself.

I get up from my desk and walk out of my office back to the conference room. I walk inside and shut the door behind me.
"Okay, gentlemen, it looks like my client is willing to accept that number, so what I'll need from you, Mr. Ramirez, is for you to sign a statement attesting to the fact that you are accepting 1.5 million in damages, and will not take any further legal actions against my client. After that, I'll just need your bank info, my client said you can expect the payment within a few days."

Mr. Ramirez looks at his lawyer, who nods and passes him a pen. I slide the pre-written document over to him, and watch as he signs his John Hancock on the bottom.
He passes the paper back to me, after which I pass him a blank sheet of paper, saying, "I'll need your account and routing number, as well as your bank name."

He nods and begins scribbling on the paper. I look to see a bunch of chicken scratch that could be numbers. I clear my throat, "It is in your best interest to write slowly and legibly so there are no errors in sending you your money, don't you think?"
Mr. Moore looks at me and grabs the paper from Mr. Ramirez, murmuring to him before he starts writing the numbers that Mr. Ramirez is whispering to him. I don't know why he's whispering, I'm going to see the information anyway. I think as I roll my eyes internally.

Mr. Moore slides the sheet back to me, I look at it, and repeat the numbers, looking to Mr. Ramirez for confirmation. He nods, and I stand up. "Okay, gentleman. It's been a pleasure doing business with you. If you have any other questions or concerns, you can feel free to reach out, and I'll assist you as best as I can."

I shake their hands before making my exit. I walk back to my office and sink into my seat. I'm so tired! But there's still Liam's housewarming on the schedule for today. I really just want to go home and sleep for like a week. But I think tonight is a good night to celebrate the end of mediations for this client of mine. Plus, I haven't seen Liam in a few days, so it'll be good to catch up.

I emailed the bank account information to Jeffrey, adding a note to make sure he pays soon to avoid any repercussions. I look at the clock when I'm done, 5:10 pm, we'll need to leave soon if we don't want to be late. We usually would've been there so we could converse before the party started, but we've all been hella busy lately, so we've been cutting corners to make time to do things.

I get up and walk out of my office and down the hall to Roxanne's. I open the door and peek my head inside, "You ready?"
She looks at her watch, and her eyes widen, "Give me a few minutes to put these away."

I nod and pull my head back, closing the door behind me. I walk to Tim's office and open the door, peeking my head inside, I say, "We're leaving soon."