What Thanksgiving Turkey Carving Can Teach Us About Depecage and the Law
by Jeffrey J. Kroll
One of the most classic moments of the holiday season is the carving of the Thanksgiving Turkey. Some give the honor of carving the turkey to the host, others to a special guest, while some families do not care who carves the turkey at all.
Regardless of who is carving the turkey, “how” it is cut matters. Let’s face it, the turkey is made up of several different “turkey” parts: light meat, wings, dark meat, and thighs. Preferences for family members develop over certain parts of the turkey. Thus, cutting will inevitably require the turkey cutter to separate the meat and parts so that the takers can take them accordingly.
While the specifics of turkey cutting may appear, at first, to have no connection to a personal injury or wrongful death matter, they do serve a purpose in a ubiquitous, often overlooked legal theory known as Depecage.
Depecage is a choice of law principle under which different issues within a single case may be governed by the laws of different jurisdictions. Therefore, instead of a single law applying to the entire case, a court could apply a separate choice of law analysis for each relevant issue. This may lead to different state laws applying to different parts of the case.
This principle is common in complex cases where a tort involves parties from multiple states and an injury occurring in a potentially separate state. Depecage is a conflict-of-laws conundrum in which different issues within a single case may be governed by the laws of different states. It is important to note, just because a case is filed in one state does not necessarily mean that the law of the state in which the court sits will be the only law applied.
In the legal world, Depecage is like the holiday turkey. In other words, a client’s case is similar to the turkey. But within each case, just like with the turkey, there are different, equally important parts. Each state’s laws will vary, as well as other elements, remedies, and recourse. The applicable state law can potentially matter for the outcome of your case.
As the holidays approach, just as one cuts and divides a turkey, so too must a complex, multi-state case be divided into its own discrete issues and analyzed under the applicable choice of law principles. The trial attorneys at Kaveny and Kroll are committed to analyzing your case, no matter how complex, to ensure compliance with the applicable laws. Trust the offices of Kaveny and Kroll to successfully analyze your case to carve up any potential choice of law issues. Call today for a free, no-obligation consultation.
