I graduated from TLC on Oct. 3rd., 2010. I was brought in on a case by another TLC graduate on December 8, 2010.
At that time there were 2 cases for divorce/ custody were pending, one in TN and one in Ocala, FL.
I was supposed to sponsor the attorney to practice pro hac vice in FL, easy enough ok.
On Dec. 10th - one of the worst days of my client's life, her child is picked up by the police because her husband and his attorney didn't tell the court in FL that she left for a hearing in TN. They made it seem she abscounded with the child. They got an ex parte order. The child is picked up in their driveway in Ocala. This is a nasty divorce case.
Dec. 10th is a Friday night. My co-counsel calls me and asks to drive to client's home for hand holding - ps I am driving from Tampa to Live Oak for a wedding weekend. The call comes in at 5:30 pm on a Friday night. I get off the inter-State hwy and go to the courthouse - no luck -- no one there. I miss the rehearsal dinner and go to the client's house.
I go meet my client for the 1st time, reversing roles and remembering that this is her nightmare day. She is rude, angry, mean, crying, yelling blaming me, my co-counsel and generally upset, insulting etc. She is absolutely gorgeous, looks like a model.
I quietly listen, try to take her to get an injunction, we can't get it; so I just listen and be very patient and understanding. I spend 3 hrs with her. I leave and come back Sunday and work all night, never sleeping in order to get ahead in the case filed in Fl. We file the pleadings Monday and sit at the courthouse all day waiting to get an emergency hearing.
I stayed at her house quite a bit that first week because I got the emergency hearing etc. Worked to get to discover her story.
At one point toward the end of the month, she met an Ocala attorney who basically trashed me and my co-counsel and tried to get the client to fire us. She refused, flat out. She said, "you don't understand, she is my friend. She comes to my house, she stands behind me. When I met her I was rude angry and insulting, and she still stayed and worked with me. Stop trying to control me (it was a man attorney) and take away the people around me who care. That is what my husband did."
Pretty neat. I stayed at her house off and on for the next 3 weeks as we had a hearing a week. Ocala is 1 1/2 hours from Tampa.
At one point, My husband said, "I know Gerry Spence said to get to know your client and their story, but aren't you taking this too far?"
I laughed. Then, I thought about it, and my gut said no; my co-counsel who agreed, it was necessary for me to be there.
The best part of the story:
Yesterday, I did my very first, 'first person' closing on a hearing for a domestic violence injunction. Only my co-counsel knew I was going to do it.
I stepped away from the podium, looked down for a second, paused, waited, just a second, and said, "I am Michele _____"
Judge: "What?" "Who?" "you are who?" his eyes as big as saucers!
Opposing Counsel: stood up, sighed loudly and got ready to object and thoroughly disgusted with me.
Judge Again: Who are you?
Me: I am Michele ______ ; It then dawned on him that I was making my closing and did not need a straight jacket or the bailiff to take me away
The Judge waived the other counsel to sit down. I continued.
After the hearing, my client, said, " It was like you became me, your whole demeanor" But, " you forgot to stick your boobs out like me" and we laughed.
It was a wonderful experience, still scared though and stilll not confident doing it. I thought it was effective. I lost the permanent DV Injunction. My client did not care. She is still talking about me becoming her yesterday and how it surprised her because she did not know I was going to do it. She said, "you had the room mesmerized and I looked down to see if I was still me because you were me!"
Isn't that a great story?
I am going to Closing Argument Seminar in a few weeks. Can't wait!