Have taken hundreds of defendant driver depositions. Used to have a checklist to make sure I didn’t forget the basics. Lost that checklist at a few decades ago. Now as a mentor for young attorneys, have reconstructed one which am
Continue Reading Deposition of the Defendant Driver – basic checklist
Am trying to show empathy to our new associate who has been working long hours. Encourage him to make sure to take a day off. During firm meeting raise the issue of not working too much . Then Stritmatter crashes
Continue Reading Saturday is a work day and other trial lawyer facts
Trial day 7Part of a trial lawyer’s worry – is the concern that without a clear cut case, pounding on damages may be too much. Perhaps jurors will be pushed over the edge into voting against liability. But while looking
Continue Reading Trial Day 7: showing not just telling medical damages
If the defense was to bring their jury consultant back, there would be major problems. First, no room for that person to sit. Second, the jurors’ faces are covered by masks. You can see no expression. Every so often you
Continue Reading Trial Day 6: the empath.
Trial day 4October 15, 2020 Did I tell you that Steve F. got in trouble yesterday. Almost enough to satisfy me. But not quite.In the middle of damages opening. Tell the jury that the defense expert doctor is going to say
Continue Reading Trial Day 4: Anticipating the Defense – and a judge's smackdown (not of me)
Head over the bridge to Bellevue. Enter the parking garage. The gates are up. A sign is taped over the ticket machine. Free parking. Slide into a spot. Walk a few feet to the entrance. It is all so clean
Continue Reading Zoom Voir Dire – a covid trial diary excerpt
By far the biggest challenge in our covid trial is the mask situation. Never mind that we are in a convention center conference room. Or that the jury is spread out across the ballroom floor. This is from my trial
Continue Reading Mask etiquette and challenges in a covid trial
Two months ago we file a dozen tort claims with the city and state. For peaceful protesters who were hurt by the police or in Summer Taylor’s case – killed – while protesting for BLM. We then need to wait
Continue Reading Civil rights matter: Seattle peaceful protester complaint gets filed.
Don’t trust insurance companies. One of the first things they will do in a case where there may be exposure – is to take the statements of witnesses. Eye witnesses to be precise. While it is good to take a
Continue Reading Interviewing Eyewitnesses and a checklist
In the early 1990s, Tom Chambers sent me on a motion mission. Go to court. Argue that Dr. X was used so often by the insurance industry to testify against plaintiffs no matter what that they should be disqualified as
Continue Reading The best defense medical expert (for the plaintiff) is the worst most biased one
