谈判英语一日通02-01

Chapter 7 Asking the Right Questions 恰当提问

Dialog 1

Brenda was being very hopeful in the above dialog. In the next one, she is a lot more practical and asking the right quesitions. Much of dialog remains¹ the same but, by pinning the attorney² down with precise language,she gets a very different result. By asking the right questions,they find out what their chances really are.

Brenda:That's what happened. Do you think we have a case?

Lawyer:Okay, let me see if I've got this straight.

You want to install a large air conditioning unit in your home and put the main motor on the roof , and run conduit across the outside of the building. Is that it?

Brenda:Yes,and the board of directors say it's not allowe. We think they're just picking on us.

I mean, it's twenty-five floors up. Hardly anyone will see it. And it makes too much noise for us to put it in our living room.

I ask you,does that seem fair?

Lawyer:It sounds like a reasonable request to me.

Brenda:Well,we know it seems reasonable,to us at least .But what about in court, what is a judge likely to do?

Lawyer:Anything can happen in court. It's possible we could win.It could go either way.

Brenda:We already know that in this country anybody can sue³ anyone for anything.在这个国家,每个人都有控告权,这点我们早就知道了.

I want to know if this is a winnable case,or is ita loser.What's the case law on this?

Lawyer:Well,to be honest, the case law is not in our favor.Lots of owners have sought relief in the courts for similar requests. Not many of them have won.老实说,过去的案例法则对我们不利,类似诉求的业主很多,但很少人能胜诉.

Brenda:How many have won?

Lawyer:I'm not really sure of the exact number. I'd have to do some research.

Brenda:Okay,but offhand⁴ how many do you know of?好,但是就你现在所知道的,有多少人赢过?

Lawyer:Actually, I don't know of any but that doesn't mean we couldn't win.

Brenda:Fine,I understand that. I want to know what our chances really are.

Lawyer:To know that, I'd have to do some research.

Brenda:Have you ever been a party to a similar lawsuit⁵, representing either side? I assume you have. You're supposed to be experieced in this field of law.

Lawyer: Yes I am,and I've been involved in several cases like this one.But,I was usually on the other side.

Brenda:And in how many of those cases did the unit owner win?

Lawyer: Well,actually,none.But that dosen't mean we couldn't be the first.

1 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

2 attorney   

n.（业务或法律事务上的）代理人，辩护律师

参考例句：

• He acted as attorney for me.他充当我的律师。
• The attorney for the union accused the Mayor of playing politics.工会的律师谴责市长在这次罢工中耍阴谋。

3 sue   

vt.控告，起诉；vi.请求，追求，起诉

参考例句：

• If you don't pay me the money,I'll sue you.如果你不付给我钱，我就告你。
• The war criminals sue for peace.战犯求和。

4 offhand   

adj.临时，无准备的；随便，马虎的

参考例句：

• I can't answer your request offhand.我不能随便答复你的要求。
• I wouldn't want to say what I thought about it offhand.我不愿意随便说我关于这事的想法。

5 lawsuit   

n.诉讼，控诉

参考例句：

• They threatened him with a lawsuit.他们以诉讼威逼他。
• He was perpetually involving himself in this long lawsuit.他使自己无休止地卷入这场长时间的诉讼。