Just Another Day In Court.....
By the Court Clerk: Please repeat after me, "I swear by Almighty God ..."
By the Witness: I swear by Almighty God.
Clerk: That the evidence that I give ...
Witness: That's right.
Clerk: Repeat it.
Witness: Repeat it.
Clerk: No! Repeat what I said.
Witness: What you said when?
Clerk: That the evidence that I give ...
Witness: That the evidence that I give.
Clerk: Shall be the truth and ...
Witness: It will, and nothing but the truth!
Clerk: Please. Just repeat after me, "Shall be the truth and ..."
Witness: I'm not a scholar, you know.
Clerk: We can appreciate that. Just repeat after me, "Shall be the truth and ..."
Witness: Shall be the truth and.
Clerk: Say, "Nothing ..."
Witness: Okay. [Witness remains silent]
Clerk: No! Don't say nothing. Say, "Nothing but the truth ..."
Witness: Yes.
Clerk: Can't you say, "Nothing but the truth ...?"
Witness: Yes.
Clerk: Well? ... Do so.
Witness: You're confusing me.
Clerk: Just say, "Nothing but the truth ..."
Witness: Is that all?
Clerk: Yes.
Witness: Okay. I understand.
Clerk: Then say it.
Witness: What?
Clerk: "Nothing but the truth ..."
Witness: But I do! That's just it.
Clerk: You must say, "Nothing but the truth ..."
Witness: I will say nothing but the truth!
Clerk: Please, just repeat these four words "Nothing," "But," "The" "Truth."
Witness: What? You mean, like, now?
Clerk: Yes! Now. Please. Just say those four words.
Witness: "Nothing. But. The. Truth"
Clerk: Thank you.
Witness: I'm not a scholar, you know.
The Rental Inspection Report
Okay guys, here's a quasi-legal story that's so funny I just have to post it. A renter is surprised with an unexpected rental inspection (say that five times fast) and mayhem ensues. Click "Read more" at the bottom of the first page of the blog to get the whole story.....
Dear Peter, Thank you for the surprise inspection and invitation to participate in the next. I appreciate you underlining the text at the bottom of the page which I would otherwise have surely mistaken for part of the natural pattern in the paper. I was going to clean the apartment but had so many things on my ‘to do’ list that I decided to treat them all equally and draw pictures of sharks instead. I have attached one for your honest appraisal. Regards, David.
From: David Thorne
Date: Wednesday 30 September 2009 6.04pm
To: Peter Williams
Subject: Inspection Report
Top Ten Things Not To Say To The Police
Okay, for all of you who come in and tell us your traffic citation/DUI horror stories, here are my Top Ten Thing Not To Say To The Police:
10. Officer, I can't reach my license unless you hold my beer for a sec.
9. Hey, is that a 9mm? That's nothing compared to this .44 magnum.
8. Wow, you must have been doing 125 to keep up with me. Those cop cars are really fast, huh?
7. Sorry officer, I didn't realize my radar detector wasn't plugged in.
6. You know, I was going to be a cop, but I decided to finish high school instead.
5. What do you mean have I been drinking? You are the trained specialist.
4. You really ARE a cop?? Here I thought I was pulled over by one of the Village People.
3. I was trying to keep up with traffic. Yes, I know there is no other car around, that's how far they are ahead of me.
2. I'm not as thunk as you drink I am.
1. Well, officer, when I reached down to pick up my bag of crack, I spilled my beer and my gun fell off of my lap and got lodged between the brake and the gas pedal, forcing me to speed out of control. Sorry.
Seriously, people - when you're on the road, as Randy Newman says: "Keep your business clean."
Ten Worst Insurance Companies In America
Here's an interesting article I ran into put out by the American Association of Justice. Based on criteria such as insurance rates, claim denials, refusing insurance to those who need it most and general level of concern for policyholders, they have rated the ten worst insurance companies in America. To read the article, click here. Whether or not you agree with the list, the important thing to remember is that all insurance companies are not created equal.
In negotiating with insurance companies on behalf of our clients, we have learned that different insurance companies can take vastly different approaches in settling a claim. I remember a negotiation I had with an adjuster whose preferred form of communication was to shriek out denials and hang up on me, no matter how benign the reason for the call. Sometimes, insurance companies will simply try to wait out a claimant, thinking that the claimant will settle on the cheap rather than hanging in through a trial. We've been forced to file a lawsuit and spend months hacking our way through the litigation jungle right up until a few days before trial, only to have the insurance company offer a settlement in the amount for which we originally asked months earlier. The moral: check out your insurance company before you buy. It's not all about rates, either - make sure you pick an insurance company that will be there when you really need them.
Trip to Bulgaria and Macedonia
I just got back from a three-week trip to Bulgaria and Macedonia with my family. My wife is originally from Bulgaria, so this is a trip we make every three years or so. This time, my two-year-old daughter Noelle met some of her Bulgarian relatives for the first time. With two small children, it literally took the entire first week to adapt to the ten-hour time change. The kids were falling asleep around 6pm every evening and waking up, ready for the day, at 2am. We took turns entertaining them from 2am-8am each morning, which also made it impossible to get ourselves on a normal schedule, too.
Top Ten Legal Movies
Okay, here are my picks for the top ten legal movies of all time. Or, at least, my ten favorite:
1. A Civil Action - A story of sneaky legal manuevers, colossal egos, uncaring corporations, and how a big time personal injury case wrecks a small law firm. Excellent.
2. Witness For The Prosecution - Charles Laughton is unforgettable as the crusty yet brilliant english jurist. A great surprise ending.
3. To Kill A Mockingbird - Atticus Finch. What more can I say?
4. My Cousin Vinny - Allright, it ain't Shakespeare. But this is my list.
5. And Justice For All - If you think the legal system is about justice, watch this movie. Yikes.
6. Anatomy Of A Murder - James Stewart is brilliant - as usual - as defense counsel in a murder case. Clients like this will make you want to go back to working at the quarry.
7. Twelve Angry Men - A jury deliberates the fate of a young Puerto Rican. A compelling examination of prejudices, preconceptions, and peer pressure. And that's a lot of p's.
8. Judgement at Nuremberg - An all-star cast portrayal of the Nazi war crimes trial that still leaves us wondering, "How could this have happened?"
9. The Verdict - Paul Newman as the down-and-out attorney with one last shot at redemption. His best role. Except maybe Butch Cassidy, Cool Hand Luke, Henry Gondorf.....
10. Kramer v. Kramer - Divorce case nightmare with a somewhat dated legal outcome - or at least I hope so.
