I'm arguing in front of the State Supreme Court, again.

I’m a third year law student at the University of Wyoming. In this state, if you are a third year student, you can practice law if you do it in association with a practicing attorney. I’m currently in a program that works in association with the Public Defenders office, and on Monday, I will argue before the State Supreme Court.

I argued before the Court last October. In Wyoming, the Supreme Court likes to go on a “traveling docket” once a year. They go to various schools around the state so that the students can see how the Supreme Court works. My argument was in a Junior High in a small Wyoming Town. My client would break into women’s houses and steal their underwear. He would later break into their houses again and replace the underwear. He got caught because he put the wrong underwear in the wrong house.

The argument was a nightmare. One of the Justices, knowing full well the modus operandi of my client, had to ask what my client would steal in front of an auditorium filled with 12 and 13 year olds. After that, it was pure bedlam. Frankly, they really tore into me. The Clerk of Court took me aside after it was over and told me that I was a “brave, brave man.” (The case revolved around whether an officer properly searched my client’s affects and his wallet. When the police searched his wallet, he was handcuffed on the floor. I argued that they should’ve gotten a warrant, since there were no exigent circumstances. We’ve yet to hear the Supreme Court’s opinion.)

And I have the opportunity to argue again this Monday. While I relish the opportunity to try to get my client a fair shake, I’m nonetheless a bit anxious. This time, I’m representing a guy who tried to file a motion for sentence reduction, but was denied when the district court thought that the deadline for filing such a motion had passed. We have a fairly strong case, but I’m still scared shitless after my last experience.

I’m hoping my fellow Dopers can send me some good mojo, pray for me, fill the universe with good vibrations, whatever, to help me with my argument. I argue two days after I graduate (this Saturday), so I have to hold off on my week-long drunk until then.

Any words of encouragement would be appreciated.

In most states a law student wouldn’t be allowed past the visitor’s gallery - you’re getting experience that some would sell their mother for.

And remember, that which does not kill you, makes you stronger.

MOE, the court wouldn’t have oral argument if the case did not present a legitimate legal issue. And you would not be handling it if your supervisor didn’t feel you were capable of doing so. Try to keep those two points in mind. The audience is irrelevant – 12 year olds, 90 year olds, a flock of sheep – concetrate on the job you are there to do and how best to do it.

In my experience (having both observed countless arguments as a clerk to a state supreme court justice, and having argued before the same court myself), the worst thing that can happen is to be “pantsed” (metaphorical trousers around one’s ankles) by a justice who asks a question you are unprepared for. Know the law backwards and forwards. Know every detail of every case that helps you – and every detail of every case that hurts you. Be prepared to encourage reliance on the former and distinguish the the latter. Remember – you are not a law student, you are a capable and effective advocate! So kick butt! And remember how great the experience is going to look on your resume. :slight_smile:

What he said. Remember, you wrote the brief, you know the case, the facts as well as the law. Your audience is the Court, not the feather merchants sitting in the peanut gallery. Your job is to persuade the Court, no one else. Yours is an honorable and noble calling, go do your job.

He? HE??? Boy, if you weren’t gelded already . . . :wink:

Actually, with the “noble profession” comment, all is forgiven. :slight_smile:

Hey Moebius, that’s great! Oral advocacy is one of the most fun things going!

The best advice I can give is to be forthright and frank. If there’s a case that goes against you, deal with it head-on. If you avoid it, the judges will realise that it’s a case that really hurts your argument, and you may well draw attention to it. Remember, by the time judges are on an appellate court, they’ve got a very good talent for sniffing out the weak points.

So, in your prep, focus on the cases that may go against you, and think about how you’ll deal with them if the court asks about them.

Same thing on the facts. If your client has some unsavoury aspects, be frank about them and explain them, if they’re relevant to the case, or explain why in your opinion they aren’t relevant. Don’t pretend they don’t exist.

In the long run, your rep as an advocate depends on whether the judges trust you. Start early at showing the judges that you don’t play games, that you aren’t blindly partisan, and that you acknowledge both the strengths and the weakenesses of your case. (Every case has weaknesses. You wouldn’t be in the state supreme court if your case was iron-clad and the other side completely without arguments.)

Same approach with opposing counsel. Lots of junior lawyers confuse being a firm advocate for their client with being a jerk. Not so. Treat opposing counsel with respect. Don’t play games. In my experience, the counsel that have the most respect from the bench and the bar (and the ones that I have to work hardest against when we’re on opposite sides of the file) are the ones who focus on the case and not on the personalities.

So, good luck. Like Jodi said, ignore the peanut gallery. When you’re up, you have a very small audience: the 3 or 5 judges sitting in front of you. That’s it. There’s no-one else in the room.

Oh, and most important: Have Fun!!

:cool:


The poster formerly known as jti (sig™ inserted at request of dantheman).

Erratum: “Like Spavined Gelding said…”

So, Moebius, how’d it go? did you survive? does the fact that you’re not posting mean that the judges zapped you into a little puddle of grease in the Junior High gym? or are you just recovering from the delayed post-graduation bender?

curious Dopers (well, one, anyway) want to know.

Sorry that I haven’t replied sooner. Thanks, all, for the advice and the kind words.

It went freakin’ fantastic. I was arguing for the Defense, so I went first. I was so damned prepared, and waited eagerly to answer any question the justices might have. They didn’t ask a damn thing.

Most lawyers say that they would rather that the Court hit them with a lot of questions rather than just sitting there in silence. Not me.

When the prosecution got up, he barely got his name out before they started drilling him with questions. He also admitted that we were right about a key point right off the bat. It was obvious from the questions that the Court asked that they didn’t like his argument.

(The guy arguing for the prosecution is a buddy of mine. We were outside smoking before we went in to argue, and he asked me if I had prepared anything to say. I waved my outline at him. He admitted that he hadn’t done anything to prepare except jot a few notes down in his brief. Right then, I had an inkling that things might go my way.)

Well, the State could still win, but I doubt it. I’m so relieved that my last experience at law school was so positive.

I’M THE KING OF THE WORLD!

Now, if I could just find a job. . .

Well! I was going to send you some rhinocerous hide underwear for your showdown but this would be apparently be pointless as you are now a BSD of jurisprudence and any confinement would be a mere affectation.

Congrats!

Oh yeah, I rock.