Monday, April 21, 2008
Courtroom Gems
When you put 3 Senior Counsel (SC) together in a case as the Arbitrator and lead Counsels of the plaintiffs and defendants, you will quite often get witty snippets of dialogue because they are such clever people to begin with.
Today, at the end of a long cross-examination which I undertook as 2nd Counsel for the defendants, I asked for my cross-examination to be adjourned to tomorrow pending the delivery of further relevant documents. Wanting to ensure that the witness would not be examined for too much longer tomorrow, the learned Arbitrator asked if I would be limiting my cross-examination tomorrow to just issues raised by the further documents which I was going to receive overnight.
Fore: "Mr. Arbitrator sir, I would be grateful for your indulgence that my cross-examination tomorrow not be limited in that way. I do not claim to be anywhere near as capable as the 2 leading SCs in this case or yourself, sir and I therefore humbly ask that I be allowed to review the transcript of today's hearing overnight and be allowed to raise any points I may have overlooked tomorrow."
Arbitrator [smiling]: "Mr. Fore, are you trying to play me like a violin?"
Fore: "I wouldn't dare play a Stradivari, sir."
Plaintiffs' SC: "I think it's called a Stradivarius."
Defendants' SC: "Well that just proves Fore doesn't play the violin, doesn't it?"
Arbitrator [smiling]: "Yes, ok Fore. You have leave to continue all areas of cross-examination tomorrow. We will adjourn for the day."
I'm still just barely young enough to get away with blatant flattery like that :)
When you put 3 Senior Counsel (SC) together in a case as the Arbitrator and lead Counsels of the plaintiffs and defendants, you will quite often get witty snippets of dialogue because they are such clever people to begin with.
Today, at the end of a long cross-examination which I undertook as 2nd Counsel for the defendants, I asked for my cross-examination to be adjourned to tomorrow pending the delivery of further relevant documents. Wanting to ensure that the witness would not be examined for too much longer tomorrow, the learned Arbitrator asked if I would be limiting my cross-examination tomorrow to just issues raised by the further documents which I was going to receive overnight.
Fore: "Mr. Arbitrator sir, I would be grateful for your indulgence that my cross-examination tomorrow not be limited in that way. I do not claim to be anywhere near as capable as the 2 leading SCs in this case or yourself, sir and I therefore humbly ask that I be allowed to review the transcript of today's hearing overnight and be allowed to raise any points I may have overlooked tomorrow."
Arbitrator [smiling]: "Mr. Fore, are you trying to play me like a violin?"
Fore: "I wouldn't dare play a Stradivari, sir."
Plaintiffs' SC: "I think it's called a Stradivarius."
Defendants' SC: "Well that just proves Fore doesn't play the violin, doesn't it?"
Arbitrator [smiling]: "Yes, ok Fore. You have leave to continue all areas of cross-examination tomorrow. We will adjourn for the day."
I'm still just barely young enough to get away with blatant flattery like that :)
# posted by Fore! @ 6:48 PM 
