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4.6

The Settlement

A settlement means that all parties have mutually agreed
upon terms to resolve the matter at hand without the need for
a trial. Once a case settles and all the terms are carried out
under the settlement, the case is over. It then releases all par-
ties from future liabilities surrounding the case.
Immediately after Johnnie Cochran Jr. joined forces with
Mr. Weitzman as associate counsel on December 13, 1993, it
was stated that the talks of settlement began to surface. Some
of the issues that more than likely factored into the decision to
settle may have included the following:

Michael Jackson's defense had been unsuccessful in delay-
ing the civil lawsuit and Discovery.
Michael Jackson's defense had lost their attempt to block
Feldman's request for a speedy trial in this case and trial was
scheduled to take place in March of 1994.
Mr. Cochran's request for a protective order to prevent all
parties in action from disclosing informal and formal discov-
ery material to the District Attorney's office to protect Michael
Jackson's Fifth Amendment rights in the case of the criminal
proceeding was denied.
The motion for a protective order brought a lot of legal
controversy from the media, newspaper and District Attorneys
office. All of whom seemed more interested portraying
Michael Jackson in a negative way than getting at the truth.

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