Trial Lawyers Have To Love A Book That Opens As Follows ...


"Those of you fortunate enough to have witnessed the fine acting of Paul Muni in Counsellor-at-Law will remember the last scene. One misfortune after another has befallen the lawyer -- hero of the piece. His wife has left him, and he feels himself a hopeless man. Planning self-destruction, in his despair he climbs out onto the window ledge preparatory to a fatal leap. But as he is about to jump, the telephone begins to ring. The ringing interrupts his suicidal purpose. He decides to answer it. And as he answers it, he undergoes a sudden change; his back stiffens, his eyes flash, his voice loses its dull tone. The son of a great industrialist has just been arrested, charged with murder! Disconsolate and without hope a moment back, the lawyer suddenly has become like a spirited fire horse eager to throw his whole weight into the collar. His troubles are forgotten, a new case has arrived!

"In the great law offices, with their innumerable partners, countless law clerks, and unfailing corporate retainers, a new case, I imagine excites no such emotion. But for the lawyer who devotes himself to advocacy and nothing else, a new and interesting case is always an event. Perhaps it may arrive in the turmoil of other preparations or it may be during the trial of some other case or, as is sometimes the case with even the most successful advocates, it may punctuate a long drought. For while there is nothing comparable in interest, so there is nothing similar to the uncertainties of a trial counsel practice."

Name the book. Better yet, read the book.

Comments: (3)

  • John Grisham, Innocence Proven. Ha!
    Oh wait: Anot...
    John Grisham, Innocence Proven. Ha!
    Oh wait: Another Bullshit Night in Suck City, by Nick Flynn, W.W. Norton, 2004. I give up?
    P.S., pretty soon a new Mercedes arrives as well, not to mention the fur coat for the wife and a Carribbean vacation. Ha!
    Posted on September 9, 2010 at 10:48 am by William Doriss
  • Hint. Written in 1954.
    Thanks for the police badg...
    Hint. Written in 1954.
    Thanks for the police badge. I will look at the material you sent over the weekend.
    Posted on September 9, 2010 at 10:49 am by Norm Pattis
  • I give up. What's the book?
    I give up. What's the book?
    Posted on September 12, 2010 at 2:16 pm by Ray Sipsa

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