Assume that Carmela had not actually been so passive in this situation, but rather, she was in fact guiding her father on how to proceed with the lawsuit. Do you think that the court would have been so lenient with her?

No, the court would not have been so lenient with her.

Explanation:

Whether or not Carmela was passive in the situation or she was only guiding her father on how to go about the lawsuit, the court has every right and would have included her in the lawsuit with her father. This is so because her father and she would have been included in the lawsuit in default. Hence, it is not a matter of decency or not, but a matter of what is supposed to be.