Articles

I sat in the gallery next to a law clerk, watching another lawyer’s opening. “There was supposed to be a PowerPoint slide showing vertebrae and disk material but apparently it is not working. So I’m going to draw something…” The lawyer turned to some butcher paper. He bumbled around for 15 minutes, drawing and talking. The clerk leaned over and...

I unlocked the front door. Laying in the mail pile on the floor – an official envelope. A real one, not one of the fake “official business” envelopes. A jury summons. Most people grumble when they receive a summons – trial lawyers included. I’m no different. Taking time from work – significant time – can cause consternation. How long will...

The lawyer read in disbelief. The memo, on defendant’s letterhead, crucified the defense. It was part of defendant’s production responses (and for reasons that will be talked about later, the fact that it was not electronically stored information is significant). The document had also been floating around for years. The defendant gave it to the police during the initial investigation....

The stars aligned. Back to back to back trials for the plaintiff’s lawyer. A good thing. Trial dates resolve cases. The pressure of a courtroom helps. “It changes everything. Pressure. Some people, you squeeze them, they focus. Others fold,” said Al Pacino’s John Milton in The Devil’s Advocate. Devil or not, an apt observation. (If I’m spoiling the movie, too...

The lawyer finished rebuttal and sat down. He looked at his watch. Two hours and fifty-four minutes – for his opening, witnesses, and closing. Only six minutes shy of his three-hour time limit. He knew the expedited jury trial timing would be tight, but wow – that was tight. His estimates paid off. The only thing remaining – the jury’s...

The lawyer looked at the satellite view. The client had circled where the injury occurred – in the midst of a plaza. The injury? Straightforward. Who owned the plaza? A little more complicated. The pondered how to find the culpable defendant. He faced the issue many do in a premises case. You want to locate the responsible parties – name...

The lawyer sat there doing the math. Expert costs, jury fees, and a court reporter for a three or four day trial would eat up most of any recovery. But the settlement offer just wasn’t fair for the client. If only there was a way – a way the insurance company would accept – to efficiently try the case. There...

The lawyer sat with his unhappy client at mediation. The defense’s final offer: generous in light of trial’s risks. But the client was not pleased. “After costs and your attorney’s fees, and that medical lien thing you were talking about, there’s not enough to take care of me. I need more!” The lawyer started explaining the significant risks trial posed...

Something came up for opposing counsel at the last minute. He didn’t show. That left us – the court reporter, videographer, and me – sitting in the conference room with the treating doctor deponent. The one who had been too busy, according to his office (disinterested, I suspected) to meet me face to face. “Doctor, while you’re here,” I began…...

The defense was putting on its case. The lawyer, a trial veteran, was good. But not great with time estimates. Adding to the pressure: a trial judge who made it clear that there must be a ready witness waiting to take the stand – no delays – or there would be dire consequences. An example? The judge’s statement on the...