In Game: vs. La Salle
Posted: Mon Feb 12, 2024 8:16 pm
Humorous stories from the bench, continued:
Each summer, I always made it a point to "hire" law students to serve as clerks. I say "hire" in quotes because the state's judicial system had no money to pay them; they received their remuneration from the experience of getting to peek behind the curtain and see what the legal profession actually looked like, away from the distorted lens of law school academia. They got to see the good, the bad, and the ugly of lawyers' performances in court and received new insights into the professional lives of trial attorneys. I was rewarded by getting to interact with bright young minds who rejuvenated me with their enthusiasm and high levels of intelligence.
They also got to work on some interesting civil cases. The experienced trial attorneys who were involved in complex civil cases could make a motion to the state's chief justice and request that a trial judge be assigned to oversee the cases from their inception through trial, and I always had a few of those types of cases in addition to my other responsibilities. My law clerks got to see a top-tier level of advocacy as they observed motions being argued in those cases. Their job was to assist me in arriving at a decision, helping to make sure my legal underpinnings were sound.
During one summer, my clerks were from the same law school and happened to be good friends. We got along well because they both possessed keen senses of humor to go along with their law school smarts. The attorneys had scheduled summary judgment motions in of of the complex cases, where they were seeking an early resolution of the case before going to trial. Each side briefed the legal issues extensively in advance of the hearing and my clerks and I read these briefs thoroughly. It was shaping up to be an interesting day of oral arguments.
The first lawyer stood before me and made his arguments. As I expected, he was very convincing in his presentation and I could tell my students were impressed. We were all wondering how the other side would counter his assertions. After he sat down, the opposing counsel stood up and argued that the legal landscape presented by his opponent was not as as it seemed. As he made his rebuttal, he had a habit of repeatedly making a gesture with one hand, palm down, while waving his fingers rhythmically, almost hypnotically. One of my clerks hastily scribbled a note and handed it to the bailiff, who walked over and passed it up to me. The note read:
"Obi-Wan Kenobi says: 'You can go about your business. These aren't the droids you are looking for. Move along.'"
I could barely manage to maintain my impassive judicial countenance after that.
GO CATS!
Each summer, I always made it a point to "hire" law students to serve as clerks. I say "hire" in quotes because the state's judicial system had no money to pay them; they received their remuneration from the experience of getting to peek behind the curtain and see what the legal profession actually looked like, away from the distorted lens of law school academia. They got to see the good, the bad, and the ugly of lawyers' performances in court and received new insights into the professional lives of trial attorneys. I was rewarded by getting to interact with bright young minds who rejuvenated me with their enthusiasm and high levels of intelligence.
They also got to work on some interesting civil cases. The experienced trial attorneys who were involved in complex civil cases could make a motion to the state's chief justice and request that a trial judge be assigned to oversee the cases from their inception through trial, and I always had a few of those types of cases in addition to my other responsibilities. My law clerks got to see a top-tier level of advocacy as they observed motions being argued in those cases. Their job was to assist me in arriving at a decision, helping to make sure my legal underpinnings were sound.
During one summer, my clerks were from the same law school and happened to be good friends. We got along well because they both possessed keen senses of humor to go along with their law school smarts. The attorneys had scheduled summary judgment motions in of of the complex cases, where they were seeking an early resolution of the case before going to trial. Each side briefed the legal issues extensively in advance of the hearing and my clerks and I read these briefs thoroughly. It was shaping up to be an interesting day of oral arguments.
The first lawyer stood before me and made his arguments. As I expected, he was very convincing in his presentation and I could tell my students were impressed. We were all wondering how the other side would counter his assertions. After he sat down, the opposing counsel stood up and argued that the legal landscape presented by his opponent was not as as it seemed. As he made his rebuttal, he had a habit of repeatedly making a gesture with one hand, palm down, while waving his fingers rhythmically, almost hypnotically. One of my clerks hastily scribbled a note and handed it to the bailiff, who walked over and passed it up to me. The note read:
"Obi-Wan Kenobi says: 'You can go about your business. These aren't the droids you are looking for. Move along.'"
I could barely manage to maintain my impassive judicial countenance after that.
GO CATS!