Max Is a Lawyer Who Is Representing a Small Business

Max is a lawyer who is representing a small business owner. The business owner and his carpet sales and installation company were sued by a customer who tripped and fell in his retail store. The case is pending in federal court because the retail store is located in Kansas City, Missouri and the customer resides in Kansas. After the suit had been pending for some time and discovery was almost complete, Max recommended that a motion for summary judgment be filed. The business owner, who is very successful, but has only a high school education, calls Max's paralegal. The business owner says to the paralegal, "Jean, I don't understand this summary judgment thing. You mean we can get rid of this whole case by asking the judge to make a ruling? Why didn't we file one a long time ago?" Of the options listed below, what is the paralegal's best approach to answering the business owner's question?

A) "Well, yes, technically a motion for summary judgment can be filed at any time after the answer was filed. But I really don't know why a summary judgment motion was not filed sooner. I think you should take that up with Max."
B) "Yes, under the federal rules, a motion for summary judgment is a way of asking the judge to rule summarily on a party's claim or defense if no facts are in question. But we couldn't file one sooner because Max decided not to file a motion to dismiss just after the complaint was served."
C) "I'm sorry. I can't answer that question because I would be engaging in the unauthorized practice of law. Would you like me to buzz Max and see if he can take your call?"
D) "Yes, in some instances, a summary judgment motion can resolve an entire case. But we can only file it if we think that there are no factual issues in dispute, which allows the judge to rule on the legal issues and resolve the case or at least an issue. We couldn't file earlier because we needed to determine if any factual issues existed."

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