Last Day of This Acquaintance

It's looking like this will be the last day of the summer job. It doesn't absolutely have to be, but it's probably best if it is since clinic orientation begins next week and it's always good to have a bit of time between things and I'm sort of between projects at work and... there are probably other reasons. It just makes sense. Plus, if all goes well, I'll go out on a high note. I'm handling a simple misdemeanor case today that shows every sign of being a slam dunk in our client's favor—the prosecutor may even just nol pros the case which would be great for our client. Of course, that will mean I don't get to practice introducing evidence and making the prosecutor look silly, but, well, we can't have everything, can we?

Besides, I have another matter today that is more likely to be a short trial—my very first! I'll share details if they seem worth sharing. One thing I've learned this summer (and I learned it last summer, too, but this summer the lessons have been even more personal and clear) is that this kind of job often requires you to do a lot of work and preparation you never use. In fact, sometimes the more work you put into a case, the more likely you won't actually have to take the case to trial. That makes sense—if you do a lot of research and write some killer pre-trial motions or gather some excellent evidence, the prosecution is more likely to fold. In that sense your work absolutely pays off—getting the best outcome for your client is the whole point. What you don't use is all that time spent in front of the mirror practicing all that awesome stuff you're going to say in court to win the judge or jury over, or to scare the prosecutor witless. It's actually better if your case goes away before you have to use that stuff, but sometimes using that stuff is fun.

But what do I know? I've still only really handled one case. After I've handled dozens of cases I bet I'll agree the less I have to say in court the better.

Posted 06:26 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack | 2L summer