Trials
Gerry Spence Wins Trials by Embracing & Revealing His Entire Self
Great lawyer Gerry Spence wins trials by embracing and revealing his entire self, warts, fears, vision, astounding ability, oration, and all. For the entire month of August 1995, I was in Wyoming at the then one-year-old Trial Lawyers College, at Gerry's beautiful Wyoming Thunderhead ranch ten...
Obtaining criminal defense victory through conveying persuasive feelings
A key part of criminal defense victory is for the lawyer to be convinced that the client should be acquitted, to feel that in the lawyer's heart, guts and bones, and to persuasively convey those feelings to the judge and jury.
Virginia Criminal Lawyer on the Need to Work the Case for the Client Once Hired
Once I am hired by a criminal defendant, what is left is for me to work the case and fully defend my client. That holds true even if I ultimately realize that more work is involved than is reflected in the fee agreed to with...
You may always decline being sprayed in court with proverbial prune juice and diarrhea
Each day in court is filled with experiences from fragrant flowers to fetid feces. You may always decline being sprayed with proverbial prune juice and diarrhea. Some people absolutely adore prunes, whether dried, stewed, or as juice. (Prunes revolt me. I am so prejudiced against...
Judging goes a long way with good judicial temperament, patience, wisdom, humanity, humility, listening & lack of bias
Being a judge is a privilege with awesome responsibility and power. Once a judge stops seeing judging as a privilege, it is time for the judge to hang up the judicial robes. Judging can be exhausting work. The criminal and civil lawsuits do not stop...
Human potential is extraordinary in Virginia court and beyond
My Virginia criminal defense work is about harmonizing and reversing difficult situations and liberating my clients, from their charges. from their risks, and from their potential and actual incarceration. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I repeatedly experience the great things that can happen from recognizing...
Virginia criminal jury trials- Judge may keep jurors who think the defendant is more likely guilty than not
In Virginia Circuit Court, a criminal trial will be by jury unless both sides agree to waive a jury. The jury selection process is critical, not only to weed out the least fair potential jurors, but to identify such potential jurors in the first place,...
In criminal defense, take nothing for granted & seize the opportunities
Many criminal & DWI defendants at first may feel like they have been thrown to the lions. Beyond the veneer of smiling prosecutors, police and judges in the courthouse, is a criminal justice system ready to eat alive those who go to court alone or...
Criminal defense- Preparing clients for a trial roller coaster ride
Recently in a criminal trial that I won, my client seemed concerned when the judge was overruling some of my objections, while he also sustained a number of my objections in between. It is always important for a criminal defense lawyer to prepare his or...
Criminal defense is war, and never for the faint of heart
Soldiers and street fighters battle without referees nor the expectation of referees' presence. They fight in the law of the jungle. As we approach four years of the buffoon-elect in chief's White House tenure, I have low overall expectations of Trump's upcoming nominees to...