Opinion. My Suggestions for Increasing the KBA’s Client Security Fund
Here is a note from the most recent Board of Governor’s Meeting:”President Ballantine...
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Category: Attorney Sidebar
Old Lawyer Saying. Today, I throw you a bone. Gnaw on it a bit, and know the value of saying no.
“You make more money on the cases you decline, not the cases you take.” Looks like...
Read MoreTRIAL – The Story You Tell
Every picture tells a story, or so I am told. But every trial also tells a story, and this I know. But unlike those stories told at reunions and other get-togethers, a story at trial is one of advocacy and persuasion with a goal...
Read MoreTHE ADVOCATE – SOME RECENT ARTICLES MAY/JUNE 2019
“To Read, or not to Read, That is the Question”, Vanessa Cantley p. 4″2019 General Assembly Wrap Up”, Maresa Taylor Fawns p. 6″Product Liability Claims in Kentucky: Navigating the Future”,...
Read MoreEDWARD H. JOHNSTONE — “I learned how to practice law by depending on older lawyers.”
” I learned how to practice law by depending on older lawyers. The first thing I did when I went to town was call on other lawyers and that I told them that I wanted to practice law. I didn’t want any of their...
Read MoreJoseph L. Lenihan – On being a lawyer
I’ve enjoyed being a lawyer. I’m sorry that there are so many bad jokes about lawyers that are current these days. I don’t think we deserve that. If we have some bad apples in the barrel, we ought to get them...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: “I have just three things to teach; simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.”
There is magic in threes. There is power in threes. There is impact in threes. And today, I teach you the simplicity of three. Patience and compassion are left for another teacher, another time, another day. Never...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: If every trial tells a story, then every facet of the trial should advance that story.
I have heard it often said that a trial is the search for the truth and that every trial tells a story. But what seems to be neglected is what is the “story” and the need to advance that story in its telling to the...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: Appellate Judging and Philosophy of Law
To me, this is how an appellate judge should approach a case. Jurisprudence is a deeper thing than just a matter of logic and rules. The law is not about a bag of tricks, but a lot of lawyers think it is. They think...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: “Wrong labels can keep you from your destiny.”
“Inspiring storytellers are not always born; they’re made. And they make themselves great by reframing the story they tell themselves.” Carmine Gallo, “The Storyteller’s Secret”, Secret at...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: “Tell me a fact and I’ll learn. Tell me a truth and I’ll believe. But tell me a story and it will live in my heart forever.” ~Native American Proverb
We have come along way on the power of storytelling since those early days when Trog told the clan of the chase and the kill of the lion; but the tradition persists today. Although it’s in our DNA and is in the...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: Opening Statement and Discussing Dollar Amounts With the Jurors
It’s my opinion that when you do have the choice [to discuss dollar amounts in your opening], sometimes you should discuss the dollar amount sought and sometimes you shouldn’t. If the case has merit and damages are...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: On the Importance of Getting What You Need in Discovery in Big Truck Cases
Trucking cases are different beasts. Tractor-trailers are colossal machines. They serve a very important role in commerce, but they also pose a risk when things go wrong. . . . In closing, big trucks can cause big crashes. Big...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: On Specialization
Specialization leaves some people high and dry. If their specialty dries up, then what are they going to do? Tax laws change; litigation changes. They’ve gone now to a lot of mediation and arbitration, and there are not...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: Ten Essentials Important in Your Practice of Law
There are ten essentials that I think are very important in your practice of law. First, keep current with your expertise. If you’re an expert tax lawyer, be sure that you understand the most recent tax law. Second, watch...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: Using on-line medical videos to learn about injuries. Here are some tips and uses.
Here is a sample illustration of a lumbar (L5-S1) video that shows the steps. Might be for learning purposes for patient and lawyer, but there may be sources out there that can prepare specific videos for demonstrative evidence....
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: Churchill with a kiss…. a kiss that Keeps It Super Simple
All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honor, duty, mercy, hope. and Broadly speaking, the short words are the best, and the old words best of all. ~ Sir Winston Churchill...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: On the Value of Primacy in Your Opening Statement
The psychological principle of primacy teaches us that people tend to believe the first explanation or impression they get on a topic. Accordingly, in a trial, jurors are most likely to believe the story they hear first (if they...
Read MoreAttorney Sidebar: The Dangers of Making Rulings Based on Political Means and not Constitutional Rule of Law
Political reasons have not the requisite certainty to afford rules of juridical [60 U.S. 393, 621] interpretation. They are different in different men. They are different in the same men at different times. And when a strict...
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