Is You Is or Is You Ain’t My Client?
At times, litigators may be uncertain about whether someone is a client; for instance, when the lawyer and a prospective client have not yet formally agreed to the representation.
Litigation Journal | Fall 2024 | Clients
Volume 51, Issue 1
Features
Speak Now
A corporate representative provides an opportunity for an otherwise voiceless entity to speak. The decision to offer one at trial depends on various practical considerations.
The Care and Feeding of Clients
Clients want lawyers who will figure out the best way to deal with their issue. They would like to win, and they want fair billing and a lawyer who cares about them.
Representing Clients in Difficult Cases
Among the various challenges of tough cases is telling your client things the client does not want to hear. Outright acquittal may be impossible; however, victory is still attainable.
Conflicts of Interest Are Like the Weather
Conflicts are unavoidable but they can be managed in a way that reduces the firm’s risk of disqualification, malpractice claims, and ethics complaints.
When Your Client Is a Tech Company
Just as tech companies are disruptive in the product space, tech litigation is disruptive in the legal arena.
The Trial Lawyer’s Tension
As happy as we are to try a case, clients are not likely to share that enthusiasm. Always remember this tension.
Dealing with a Difficult Judge
Contending with a difficult judge is no different than dealing with a difficult personality in anyone--except your reputation, your job, and your client’s money, reputation, or life may be on the lin…
What Makes an Amicus Brief Matter
For an amicus brief to be effective, it must add something to the case and be tailored to the stage of the case at which the brief is being submitted.
The Joy of the Fight
Martial artists spend a lot of time considering their strengths and weaknesses; and so must litigators.
The Table of Contents: Your Brief’s First Impression
The table of contents offers a special opportunity to give the judge an overview of the dispute at precisely the point in the brief—the first page—at which an overview offers its greatest value.
Columns
The Dichotomy of Clients
There are the clients that lawyers want to represent, and there are clients that lawyers avoid or ignore.
A Few Thoughts on How to Practice Law
It’s best to avoid taking actions that make things more difficult for the court; before every interaction with the court, ask yourself what will be helpful to it.
Presidential Immunity: Adventures Through the Looking Glass
Our responsibility, as litigators, is to be the guardians of the rule of law. SCOTUS gave the president a broad license in a wide zone of activity to commit crimes.
Painting by Numbers
Trying to impress an audience with your verbal skill is not the same as trying to persuade a court to free your client.
Advice for First-Generation Lawyers and Second- and...
Some superstar lawyers make $10 million and more. You can, too, but you’re on the phone at weddings, bar mitzvahs, birthdays.