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Ok, stop snickering. We’re not talking X-rated content here. We’re just asking local attorneys to share memories of their first solo case, major project or courtroom trial: the nerves and jitters, the planning and preparing, the right moves they made and even the wrong ones. This week, Kimberly Sugawa-Fujinaga, an associate with Greene & Markley, tells all.

鈥淢y first big case became a landmark case awarding one of the largest punitive damages awards in Oregon history, MAN Aktiengesellschaft v. Daimler Chrysler, et al. I was a clerk for Multnomah County Circuit Court Judge Kathleen Dailey, and little did I know that my first civil case as a new attorney would be a civil procedure nightmare.

鈥淕erman truck manufacturer Man AG filed suit against Daimler Chrysler and Freightliner to collect on a judgment that had been obtained in the UK and transferred for collection in Portland. Man鈥檚 claims included fraudulent transfer and civil conspiracy. Basically, various entities of Daimler Chrysler and Freightliner had been 鈥榬eorganized鈥� and the entity to be collected against did not have assets to pay the judgment. Man eventually won an $850 million jury verdict.

鈥淭here were originally nine defendants; however, five had been dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. Plaintiffs were trying to show that there was actually jurisdiction over the dismissed defendants to bring them back into the main case. Over a year, Judge Dailey and I sifted through tens of thousands of documents addressing motions to dismiss, motions to consolidate, evidentiary motions and discovery motions that I had only read about in my civil procedure class and briefly touched on as a law clerk. Eventually, some of the dismissed defendants were brought back into the main action. It was an amazing experience that shaped my interest in debtor/creditor law and my current work as a bankruptcy and commercial litigator.

鈥淐onsidering I had not even passed the bar when I started working on the case, I was proud that I was able to apply the knowledge that I had learned from school and translate it into real-life application. During the litigation, I had no real grasp of document and discovery control. Knowing what I know now, I am certain that I could have controlled the amount of paper going to the judge, as well as better handled the discovery issues that came before us. Other than that, I think we did the best we could on a state budget.

鈥淥n a personal level, I have great respect for the attorneys involved in the case. By osmosis, I gleaned valuable practice techniques and learned about Oregon fraudulent transfer law. Also, each attorney had their own style and strengths. Those experiences helped shape my practice and formed my passion for debtor/creditor rights and bankruptcy law.鈥�