Civil Litigation Archives | Jeremy W. Richter

What Judges Wish You Knew

Jul 18, 2019

I'm attending the Alabama State Bar's annual conference this week. One of the sessions yesterday was with a panel of judges sharing with lawyers what they wish we knew and did differently. Most of them are pretty straightforward, but the first one caught me off guard. What judges wish you knew and did differently Don’t wear flip-flops to court - this was not gender specific, and I was embarrassed for the entire profession that this needed to be addressed. Don’t use lengthy string cites in briefs without explanatory parentheticals. Judges aren't putting great weight on cases that we don't bother...

[Appearance] Interview on the Happy Lawyer Project

Mar 16, 2019

Okeoma Moronu recently had me on her podcast "The Happy Lawyer Project" to discuss time management and productivity, making yourself indispensable within your law firm, influential books that I've read in the past year, and of course, my new book, Stop Putting Out Fires. You can listen to the interview wherever you normally listen to podcasts or at Okeoma's website.

[Appearance] Interview with Your ABA

Sep 27, 2018

I did an interview with the ABA about how daily, intentional learning can help you improve your practice. In the interview feature, they've also included some excepts from my book, Building a Better Law Practice: How to be a better lawyer in just a few minutes a day.

[Appearance] Interview on the Legal Toolkit Podcast

Sep 5, 2018

Jared Correia and I talk about why I'd rather be Lex Luthor than either Clark Kent or Peter Parker, how to get comfortable as a lawyer, be cognizant of your knowledge limitations, and methods of improving your craft in this month's Legal Toolkit Podcast.

[Appearance] Podcast Interview on the Modern Law Library

Aug 22, 2018

This week I was interviewed by Lee Rawles of the ABA Journal's Modern Law Library podcast. Among other things, we get into the inside baseball of how my book Building a Better Law Practice is structured like a devotional for lawyers and why I made that choice. You can find the interview on the Legal Talk Network website, iTunes, and Google Play.

[Appearance] On the Law School Toolkit Podcast

Jul 9, 2018

I went on the Law School Toolkit Podcast for my first interview about Building a Better Law Practice: Become a Better Lawyer in 5 Minutes a Day. Alison Monahan and I had a good conversation about the book and the practical ways in which it can help lawyers improve their craft. You can access the interview either from Google Play, iTunes, or the Law School Toolkit website. For more about the book, go to www.betterlawpractice.com. And don't forget, you can get a 20% discount code to apply at ShopABA.org by subscribing to my blog.

Voir Dire Is Hard (A Recent Trial Experience)

Mar 15, 2018

[Setting: A rural, conservative gem of a county in middle Alabama. Plaintiff's counsel is with one of the more well known personal injury firms in Alabama. The plaintiff himself is a dullard of a fellow, who poses me no danger of charming the jury. The judge is a charismatic guy who is wisely using this opportunity to allow his captive constituents to get to know him and the other elected civic officials in the county. The judge delivers his opening remarks and allows the jurors who believe they should excused from service to present themselves and their excuses (which are...

[Appearance] Problems with DOT Medical Exams and Reports

Mar 9, 2018

My article "The Trouble with DOT Medical Examinations and Reports" has appeared in DRI's In Transit newsletter. In it I discuss how a commercial driver gets medically and physically qualified to drive a commercial vehicle, and some of the systematic problems that have arisen within the existing framework.

Merry Christmas!

Dec 25, 2017

No new post today. I hope you and yours have a wonderful holiday season.

Some Thoughts on Why Settling Cases Is So Difficult

Dec 7, 2017

In some ways, the possibility (or even likelihood) that two experienced attorneys can arrive at widely disparate valuations of the same personal injury case is almost inexplicable. But it happens ... all the time. Part of it can be explained as each lawyer having self-serving motives. The defense lawyer is trying to save his client some money, and the plaintiff’s lawyer is trying to make some for his client and himself. Nevertheless, if both parties are privy to the same facts and have a working knowledge of the venue and law, there should seemingly always be an overlap between the...