In departing from prior law and from the practice in every other state, the 1998 Rule allows for the following:  unapportioned offers of judgment may be served to multiple parties under limited circumstances; any unrelated parties may serve an unapportioned offer to any party; a party may draft an offer for a lump sum or for an amount that includes any combination of costs, attorneys' fees and interest; a party may draft an offer that apportions the offered amounts by claim; a party (or multiple parties) may serve an apportioned offer to multiple parties that includes a condition that it be accepted by all parties; and a party may proceed to trial but shield itself from offer of judgment penalties by "accepting" an apportioned offer of judgment that is conditioned by the acceptance of all parties where all parties do not accept.
In departing from previous laws and practices in all other states, the 1998 Rule permits the following: unapportioned offers of judgment can be sent to multiple parties under certain conditions; unrelated parties can send an unapportioned offer to any party; a party can draft an offer for a lump sum or a combination of costs, attorneys' fees, and interest; a party (or multiple parties) can send an apportioned offer to multiple parties with a condition that it be accepted by all; and a party can go to trial while protecting itself from offer-of-judgment penalties by accepting an apportioned offer conditioned on acceptance by all parties if not all accept.