Q: Can additional legal fees be alleged as a prejudice in opposition to motion to amend complaint?
Defendant states they will be prejudiced by incurring additional legal fees if Court grants filing of second amended complaint. I have not previously attached a copy of the contract to the complaint not expecting Defendant to vacillate between either denying the existence of one or denying the obligations I allege it placed upon her clients; therefore, I have requested leave to file a second amended complaint.
A: Alleging prejudice due to additional legal fees is a common argument in legal proceedings. In the context of opposing a motion to amend a complaint, if the defendant claims that allowing the amendment would result in incurring extra legal fees, the court may consider this as a factor. The court will typically weigh the potential prejudice against the reasons for the amendment. If the requested changes are essential to clarify the claims or parties' positions and were not reasonably foreseeable, the court may grant the motion. However, if the court finds that the amendment is unnecessary, unduly burdensome for the defendant, or could have been included earlier, it may deny the motion.
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