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You might
decide to become a trial lawyer. There are many different areas
of trial law. The greatest split is between civil law and criminal
law. Criminal lawyers either become prosecutors who work for
a government such as a city, state, or country and prosecute
cases against persons or companies who have been accused of
a crime, which is a breach of some law, or they become lawyers
who represent the persons accused of a crime. Under our Constitution
all persons are innocent until they either confess or are found
guilty by a court or jury. All accused persons are entitled
to be informed of the charges against them, to be represented
by a lawyer, to confront their accuser, to have a right to appeal
to a higher court, and many other rights. It is these rights
which set our country apart from most of the rest of the countries
of the world. These rights are what make us the freest people
in the world.
Sometimes,
like now after the September 11 attack, some people talk about
giving up some of these rights. To do so would be a terrible
mistake. If these rights can be taken away from some people
there would be a movement to take them away from other groups.
We have fought hard to earn these rights and should do everything
in our power to keep them.
Civil trial
lawyers, which I am, present the positions on both sides of
civil disputes and appear in court to resolve the disputes.
They represent individuals, corporations, and governments when
no crime is involved. They present personal injury, wrongful
death, environmental, contractual, family, and many other types
of cases to a court or jury. They may also represent parties
to either side of criminal cases, but most do not. This is an
age of specialization and most lawyers do well if they know
all of the law in one area. Besides the law they must understand
the facts in particular cases. For example, to properly present
either side of a medial case it is necessary to have a good
grasp of the medical facts involved. This is also true in presenting
a personal injury case. For example I have observed many operations
and autopsies, read a lot of medical books and talked to numerous
experts about my cases. Likewise, if you are presenting an automobile,
or any other case involving machinery you must understand how
the machinery works, what can go wrong with it, and what did
go wrong with it in your case. You must study the laws and regulations
which apply to each case as well as the physics of the occurrence
which led to the case.
You should
have a good understanding of people, how they think, what differing
backgrounds will probably affect their view of the law and the
facts of your case. You must learn about body language so you
can tell what effect you and the evidence have on the individual.
In this regard any out of court or school experience is valuable.
In picking a jury, for example, you must be aware of which groups
of people would probably favor your side of the case over that
of your opponent and which are more likely to favor your opponent.
In questioning witnesses, in or out of court, you should be
able to evaluate the witness, decide whether the testimony is
truthful or not, and be prepared to cross examine each witness
in a search for the truth, which is what a trial is all about.
The study of philosophy and psychology in college will help
in these regards. You must also be able to evaluate your own
clients so that you do not present untruths to the court or
jury.
Probably
the trait most important to being a good trial lawyer is imagination.
A good imagination will allow you to think about all aspects
of your case as well as to evaluate potential cases. It allows
you to develop persuasive arguments for your side of the case
and the means to best present them to a judge or jury. It allows
you to look for any weaknesses in your case and to prepare to
overcome them.
Probably
the best thing about being a trial lawyer is that you continue
to learn during the entire duration of your practice because
you are continually confronted by new problems in new cases
in new areas of the law. This also prevents boredom from interfering
with your enjoyment of your job.
All in all
I can think of no other profession which can offer so varied
a choice or provide as much satisfaction as being a trial lawyer.
If you are a prosecutor you have the satisfaction of putting
bad people in jail and making the society safer for its citizens.
If you are a criminal lawyer you have the satisfaction of protecting
the rights of the accused and preventing the conviction of innocent
people. If you are a plaintiffs trial lawyer you can assist
widows, orphans, and injured people by providing them with a
better chance of living a good life. If you are a company lawyer
you can help to keep the company out of trouble.
I could
write much more about the law in general and my practice. Let’s
talk about it sometime. I hope this provides some of what you
need for your paper. If you need anything else please let me
know.
Love,
Grandpa
This
letter by the late Richard F. Gerry, AAJ President in 1981-82,
was made available through the generosity of Mrs. Richard F.
Gerry.
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