Persuading judges and opponents – Fairfax criminal lawyer’s perspective

Fairfax criminal lawyer on erasing negative expectations of others in the process of persuading judges & prosecutors

Persuading judges, opponents and others is a skill that requires experience and a number approaches, some of which I address here. As a Fairfax, Virginia, criminal lawyer, I know how essential it is to skillfully engage everyone we aim to persuade. Today, I re-visit the importance of seeing even the otherwise most unpleasant-seeming person as a potential ally, whether they are knowingly or unwittingly helping me get closer to victory for my client.

Virginia criminal / DUI lawyer recognizes negative views of judges, prosecutors and others as inviting a snowballing of negative mental obstacles

Recently, I needed to get some case information from a Virginia police officer in a misdemeanor case, where discovery was not yet due. The police officer at first seemed to be disinterested in telling me too much, but I stayed with him in the way that good taijiquan/ t’ai chi ch’uan practitioners stick to their opponents in a way that makes the opponent unable to gain an upper hand. For me to have thought of this cop as an ass would have invited a downward snowballing spiral of other negative thoughts about him, all of which are a barrier to my arriving at and creating new avenues to obtain winning possibilities with this police officer.

Fairfax criminal lawyer on getting to the point of being just folks with opponents

I finally got just about all the information that I wanted from this police officer, and got to the point where we were simply engaging in conversation about the case, rather than having this be a teeth-pulling questioning session.

A colleague who was witnessing my discussion with the police officer emailed me in moral support that this police officer is an “ass”. I suppose that I might have drawn the same conclusion had I witnessed such an interchange before I became a lawyer. Instead, now, just as I see an opportunity for victory every time I engage a taijiquan opponent, I see an opportunity every time I speak with a prosecutor or police officer. Even if they are expressing irritation or disdain towards me, their words, tone of voice, mannerisms, what they say, and what they do not say can provide me important intelligence for defending my clients.

We are all connected, and get far by being slow to get angry at others

We all are connected. All of us have at least a little something in common with others. When we erase expectations of pathetic words and pathetic actions by others, then we have removed one more barrier to effectively engaging and persuading judges, prosecutors and others.

Fairfax, Virginia, criminal lawyer Jonathan L. Katz incorporates effective persuasion into the defense of each of his clients. To talk with Jon by confidential appointment, please call his staff at 703-383-1100.