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Jeremy W. RichterJeremy W. Richter
Jeremy W. RichterJeremy W. Richter
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Case Management

3 Ways to be a Good Second Chair at Trial

3 Ways to be a Good Second Chair at Trial

Dec 14, 2017

Trials are stressful. They can be made less stressful by having someone at your side who is going to make it easier for you. A good second chair is an invaluable asset. Being second chair at trial is like being a relief pitcher. You’re not going to get credit for the win or the loss, but you can absolutely affect the outcome. Here are some ways that you, in your role as second chair, can best serve your trial partner and ease her burden. Be Supportive Second chair is a support role. You need to anticipate the needs of your...

Showing Up to Court Is Important

Showing Up to Court Is Important

Nov 30, 2017

About a year into practice, I was being sent to my first solo district court trial. For those of you not practicing in Alabama, district court trials are bench trials with damages capped at $10,000.00. There is no discovery permitted. The Rules of Evidence usually get a little loosy-goosy. It’s basically the wild West. Well, I was excited about my first district court trial. It was a small truck wreck case where the Plaintiff alleged that our tractor-trailer backed into his parked vehicle at a truck stop. The driver of the tractor-trailer had a different account of events. He was...

Should Lawyers Use Google for Legal Research?

Should Lawyers Use Google for Legal Research?

Sep 14, 2017

Westlaw, Lexis, FastCase – in many legal circles these are the only acceptable avenues of legal research. Anything else is not only pedestrian but sometimes even villified. There are plenty of good lawyers who (secretly, for risk of being shamed) start many legal research projects with a simple Google search. There are several good reasons for it, too. Google searches are free. It’s usually the most practical place to start for complex topics or subjects with which the attorney has only limited familiarity. You can user broader search terms and still pull up useful information, because the algorithms are smarter...

Knowing When to Stop Arguing Your Point

Knowing When to Stop Arguing Your Point

Aug 23, 2017

We were recently interviewing a pool of candidates for an associate position at our firm. After all the interviews, we discussed the various interviewees. For one of them, one of the first concerns was this: “I’m not sure they’d know when to stop arguing in front of the judge.”((While I do not endorse they use of “they” to refer to a singular person (even though I recognize that it is gaining increasing acceptance), I found it to be the best way to conceal the gender of the individual being referred to.)) And you know what, that can be a real problem!...

When a Potential Juror Says, “Judge, I Have to Pee.”

When a Potential Juror Says, “Judge, I Have to Pee.”

Aug 16, 2017

On Monday mornings at the outset of trial, there are many things that the lawyers and judge need to accomplish outside the hearing of the jury panel. Usually, much of this happens before the panel is seated in the courtroom. But often times, each potential juror is stuck with significant downtime while the lawyers and court handle procedural issues. During one of such session, in which the lawyers for both sides were conferring with the judge in a rural county in central Alabama, a potential juror popped up and began walking toward the back doors of the courtroom. The judge...

So Your Client Accused the Judge of Being a Thief

So Your Client Accused the Judge of Being a Thief

Jul 24, 2017

I wait in the courtroom along with fifty other lawyers for the judge to call my case. I hear him say, “Plaintiff v. Big Box Store,” and make my way to the bench. Plaintiff’s lawyer isn’t here, so I inform the court I represent Big Box Store. Then the wheels came off. Judge: “Mr. Richter, let me tell you [I begin to sweat because his tone and demeanor are not friendly and he clearly intends to make a scene] what happened to me the last time I was in Big Box Store.” JWR: “Yes, sir?” [As if I had any...

How to Improve Your Legal Writing “Bird by Bird”

How to Improve Your Legal Writing “Bird by Bird”

May 22, 2017

I’m not a fiction writer. For about a decade, I was, and in some ways, I still aspire to be. But for now I write on topics related to my industry and sometimes histories. I write what I believe to be truth. But in many ways, so does the fiction writer. And that is the intersection at which Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird applies to me and  to you. Bird by Bird isn’t a book for lawyers or about lawyers, or as far as I can tell, even contemplates lawyers. But I’ll be darned if there aren’t some writing truths...

Managing Clients and Evaluating Cases: A Personal Injury Lawyer’s Perspective

Managing Clients and Evaluating Cases: A Personal Injury Lawyer’s Perspective

May 1, 2017

Over the last two years, David Graves has been one of the most prolific trial lawyers in Alabama. I’ve been involved in two or three trials with David and observed him employ his natural charisma and down-home affect to relate and connect with a jury. I’ve seen him have to wrangle clients and combat difficult situations. So I thought this interview with David about managing clients, evaluating cases, and deciding which matters to take to trial, would be a natural follow-up to last week’s voir dire series. JWR: What do you consider when determining the value of a case? DG: I determine...

How to Voir Dire a Jury: From the Jury Panel (Part 3)

How to Voir Dire a Jury: From the Jury Panel (Part 3)

Apr 27, 2017

For some unknown reason, and much to his chagrin (I imagine), my dad is one of those poor, unfortunate souls who seems to receive a jury summons on a semi-regular basis. And being civic-minded, he responds and goes to the courthouse and sits on a jury panel each time. He has sat through as many voir dire sessions as anyone I can think of. Most recently, he sat through the voir dire of a federal criminal prosecution, but was ultimately struck through the jury. So I thought it appropriate to conclude this series with the perspective of someone on the...

How to Voir Dire a Jury: Mistakes, Methods, & Advice (Part 2)

How to Voir Dire a Jury: Mistakes, Methods, & Advice (Part 2)

Apr 25, 2017

As a reminder of the purpose of this exercise, I have interviewed several lawyers with the same 8 questions about their theories and methods in approaching the most effective ways to voir dire a jury. Part 1 addresses goals, tactics, and effectiveness of a voir dire. This is Part 2, dealing with voir dire mistakes, methods, and advice. Part 3 is a non-lawyer’s perspective from a jury panel. I have agreed to keep the identities of each of these litigators anonymous, but I still want to introduce you to the lawyers by way of their general practice type and jurisdiction: L1 has...

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