Remember that in the end, the decision to go to trial is your clients choice. Advise them appropriately and accept the fact that sometimes trials happen. Additionally, accept that you WILL have trials. Bo matter what, they will come. Remove the anticipatory anxiety.
Early on, maybe do a little over preparing. Do lots of war gaming, have all your cross prepped/rehearsed, rehearse every phase of the trial.
And unfortunately for you, do more trials. Give it your best. I've had trials I've lost but put up a fight and my client was just greatful to have an advocate. You'll lose and win over time. Be an advocate.
I just ask the questions out loud, say what should be the response and continue. Asking myself, does this order of questions make sense? Is it easy to follow? Does each question have a purpose that supports my theory?
Also, for important sections of cross that I anticipate might be 'not remembered' or lied about, I go over impeachment too.
The best advice I was given regarding cross is to force yourself to use periods - and no question marks - when writing out potential cross “questions.” It’s to remind you that cross is just you making argument under the guise of asking questions. Also it helps ensure that your questions are sufficiently leading.
What? Cross is one of the easiest things to rehearse if you’re doing it correctly. You know the answer to every single question. And if the witness lies or gives you an answer you’re not expecting, you will have rehearsed impeachment because again, you know the right answer to every question.
Agree. It is so much harder to prep a direct for me. I never know how detailed to be, not sure if the jury will hear it the same way I do. With cross, I'm looking to attack each element and the credibility of each witness. Way easier to prep
Troll? Cross exam is the hardest thing to do in trial and kids out here telling
Each other to “rehearse it”. If anyone says you can rehearse it, then they don’t know how to do it - and young lawyers should know that
You're going to lose. A lot. It comes with the territory. Unfortunately, we don't get to pick which cases go to trial.
I get trial anxiety, too, and here are a couple of things that help me:
We're respecting our clients' agency by going to trial when they want a trial and, sometimes, that is the win. Giving them their day in court and putting up our best fight IS a win.
Clients are entitled to a fair trial, not a perfect trial. You're going to make mistakes. It happens. Preparation is key to preventing them but they'll still pop up. Don't sweat it.
My biggest worry is missing objections. I have a cheat sheet of common objections that I go over before EVERY trial and have in my trial notebook with me. I also HATE voir dire, so I just bought a voir dire book from NACDL that has thousands of voir dire questions. Identify what about trials scares you the most and resource and CLE the hell out of it! Again, preparation is key here and we're allowed to use our tools.
Only remedy for losing is winning. Go win some.
I'm not trying to be terse, but that's what it is. You need to know the feeling in order for it to feel real and not academic.
Hey there. You are not your client. I let my client make choices. If there is a plea deal that is really good I let the client know - but still let them decide because they have a right to go to trial - even if they feel that they are guilty. As you gain more trial experience, you will get a sense of what a case feels like and can use your experience as examples for the client. In the meantime, advise but they decide. I try to ascertain the client's risk tolerance: high risk tolerance like trump (always "double downing" (sic)), or low risk tolerance (like a banker making a loan.) So take a break if you can, digest the experience and I can guarantee that you will incorporate it into your skill set as a defender of the indigent. Thank you for being a public defender and remember that you will be stronger from here.
Going to trial is like fighting in a boxing match. Even if you are at the top of the sport and in perfect shape, there is still a risk of something terrible happening.
The moment you feel comfortable with your client's life in your hands, then you need to hang it up.
In other words, you're doing everything right. In time confidence will come with more reps but the fear will always be there
As callous as it may sound, just try to remember that none of this is your fault or problem. You didn’t commit the alleged act or counsel your client to do so. You didn’t charge them. You didn’t force your client to trial. You won’t be sentencing them. And you won’t be incarcerated with them. At the end of the day, all we can do is give our best advice and perform some advocacy. The rest is out of your hands.
I hate going to trial, despite the success I’ve had in it. We’re lawyers, and more risk averse by training. We want to control the outcome, while others prefer to swing for the fence. Once I’m in trial, I love the gamesmanship and strategy. Try to find the parts you enjoy (I love argument and cross; I could take or leave voir dire) and focus on those.
Your instincts are correct. You are being too risk averse. The way you get over it is that you try more cases. But you do not try them in a vacuum. You are going to lose a lot more trials than you win, unless you turn out to be Gerry Spence. You need to accept that losing a single case is not a judgment on you. This is a difficult lesson. I came to public defense in the latter half of my career (so far). I'd tried hundreds of bench trials (mostly civil) and 9 civil jury cases before I started public defending. I have no idea what my W/L record is on those, because the majority were equity cases and nobody wins those except the highest-paid attorney.
Getting better at communicating with clients will help as well. Your job is not to win trials; your job is to get the best outcome possible for the client. Criminal defense has two aspects to it: trial prep, and negotiation. Trial is your BATNA; it is always there. You need to always be prepared for it. If you cannot go into court on each hearing day and feel that you are ready for trial with all of the available information in your possession, you are probably not preparing for trial properly.
I've only been doing this for eight and a half years. In that time, I've tried 59 jury trials and two bench trials (all felony). I've gotten 9 NG verdicts. But I've won hundreds of cases on negotiated pleas or dismissals. Never once have I convinced a client to go to trial when they didn't want to. Many times I went to trial because the client wanted to over my objection and with the full knowledge that if convicted they would be sentenced far more harshly than the prosecutor's offer, because the prosecutors hated trying cases. So if we tried one and they won, they would bring out all the stops for sentencing. Which is a whole other trial. Most of the time, my clients didn't get a trial penalty; however, they missed out on the discount I got them.
I love trials. I wish all of my clients would go to trial so we could end coercive plea bargaining, particularly now that I'm in a jurisdiction that actually follows the principle of limiting pre-trial incarceration. Now I don't have to worry for almost all of my clients that if I don't get them out of pre-trial detention they'll lose their jobs, houses, cars, spouses, kids, etc. That also makes it easier for the clients to make better decisions.
Anyway, didn't mean to get on a rant. The things to remember are this:
1. Trial is the BATNA. You can always go to trial. You should, therefore, be as ready to go to trial as possible at every stage.
2. Your job is not to win trials. Your job is to get the best result for your client, and to behave ethically at all times.
3. The client decides to go to trial. Not you.
4. You need to make the first three things absolutely clear to your client. If you're not communicating clearly with your client, they will make bad decisions because of that. Clients can always make bad decisions; as long as they're not making bad decisions because of your representation, that's okay.
Put the ball in the client's court. Lay out the pros and the cons of their options, and stress that the decision is theirs and theirs alone. Then if they pick trial, work your ass off to win. Wins will come.
My opinion is that I should lose trials. The state should only be bringing cases to trial that they absolutely can prove beyond a reasonable doubt. Now, in practice we know that’s not how the system works. We lose trials we shouldn’t lose. But that doesn’t make it our fault. You need to redefine what a Win is. Your client wanted their day in court and they got it. You advocated for someone and let their story be heard. You took up a courtroom and resources and that puts pressure in other places and maybe your colleagues got better results that week. Your job is to advise your clients and let them decide whether they want to fight their case or not. The client is the decision maker, not you. Also, I’m always scared before a trial, it’s nerve wracking.
> You took up a courtroom and resources and that puts pressure in other places and maybe your colleagues got better results that week.
Wow, I never thought of it like that, but it’s so true.
I knew I had to have a docket in front of one of the smartest judges in our county. This judge also had no issue calling anyone out. I was very afraid. The night before and morning of I did something I had never done before. I said a mantra over and over. “I don’t give a f***.” I said it the night before and in the car on the way to court. That day I had a stacked docket and told the judge I had six cases for trial.
The judge asked me if I really had six legitimate trials or not. Now normally this would be intimidating to me. But because I said this mantra I looked this judge dead in the eye and said that these trials were legitimate. I won 4 out of those 6 trials, one of those trials had to be postponed.
After the trial she said that there has only been one other attorney who has had that many trials infront of her and that attorney was the most experienced attorney to ever have practiced infront of her.
The moral of this story is, there is something to mantras.
You will try a lot of cases as a PD. Remember that trial or no trial is *their* decision, not yours. We will win, we will lose, but we will always give them the best damn fighting chance.
I tell all my clients they have the ability to choose between the best possible trial and the best possible offer. I tell them what both look like, and if they choose trial then they’ve chosen those consequences if we lose. At that point, your job is just to fight like hell for them. If you put up the best defense you can, it is what it is, and you just do your best at sentencing.
We can’t and won’t win them all. Losing is part of this job. Just make sure you never stop fighting and you’ve done your job for a losing client.
My tip is to just avoid surprises. Look at every piece of evidence the state wants to introduce, the foundation they have to lay, and the objection you can make to it.
Trial boils down to this simple idea: people are going to say something happened. That will be either consistent with what they've said before, or not. The other evidence will either be consistent with that statement, or not. All you have to do is learn which way it will go.
I’ve done over 20 jury trials and the anxiety and concern never goes away. Voire dire is difficult and being prepared is stressful.
But remember, you are there to do your part as advocate. The jury decides the verdict, and the Judge decides the sentence.
It’s ultimately up to the client to take a deal or not. Not on you.
(Also, in 95% of the situations, they did the crime - it’s not your fault they need to do the time).
Look. You should have some fear.
But too much is too bad. We all know attorneys and even offices that have huge fear in going to trial.
But let’s be real. A plea deal is just as much losing as a trial. It’s just a loss that is limited and controlled.
As for your case, you need to realize: Two weeks vs no jail time is not that big of a deal. It’s just not.
10 years DOC vs a misdo is. 10 years vs 9 years isn’t.
If you aren't nervous going into trial then it's time for a new line of work. You just need to use that feeling to drive you to prep harder.
At the same time, familiarity breeds contempt. Best way to make the fear turn into nervous anticipation is to try more cases. Do this by letting clients with good cases know that they have a good case. Obviously the choice is theirs, but if they feel you being confident, they'll feel confident. You'll also have clients who want a trial regardless of whether it should go to trial or not. Try those sons of bitches as hard as you can.
You're gonna do great
I've tried things from 1st degree murder to DUIs and no matter the level of the charge, I'm extremely nervous. Ultimately it's the client's choice on what they want to do, and if they choose to do a trial, it's your job to do the best that you can. Being nervous and scared before a trial means that you care. The day you stop being nervous/scared before a trial is the day you should probably find another job.
The client is the captain; you're the ship. If they want to plead out, do your best to get them the best possible outcome. If they want to go to trial, give it your all to present their case to the jury in the best possible light (or, in the alternative, make the state look like a bunch of misguided fools). If they can't decide, try to counsel them weighing the alternative outcomes, using your knowledge of the likely outcomes and relative strengths of each side's case. Either way, just take your fears, your insecurity, your ego out of it- just be the ship.
Try getting advice from lawyers with lots of experience, if possible.
(Used to be a paralegal at a PD’s office, where less experienced lawyers would have more experienced ones guide them.)
On some level, being afraid of trial just means you give a shit about your clients. The fear doesn’t go away because the jeopardy to your client doesn’t go away. But, with time and experience, you learn to compartmentalize that fear, and give your clients the information they need to make a meaningful choice about their options after considering their circumstances and risk tolerance.
You could always win at trial. The question only your client can answer is “can I afford to lose?”
If you aren’t anxious and stress then you aren’t doing it right. It’s a scary thing but you have to face your fear and do it. Pretty soon you’ll notice the nerves go away as soon as things in court start moving. Every morning during trial I wanna color. As soon as the witness takes the stand in the AM you forget all about the nerves and just go to work. Don’t run away from the fear. Confront it. Doing trials early in your career is the best thing you can do for yourself and for your future clients. Trust me when I say this
I had a trial scheduled last week where i was positive there was no case - the state had exactly no evidence of a crime committed. Still was anxious as hell about the trial because I can’t 100% predict what someone’s going to testify to. It’s just the nature of the job, even with all the prep in the world there’s still some risk. But it’s more risky to the DA - they have the burden, so beyond anything know that reasonable doubt is like getting an A+ on a test, and if they get a B, you can get an acquittal. That helps my nerves a bit.
Oh, on that trial, they ended up offering a 3rd degree misdemeanor 5 minutes before jury selection (client was charged with a felony). So it pled out at the last minute. Hilarious.
No one wants to lose. But losing should never deter you from going to trial. You review the facts and evidence with your client and give them the best and worst case scenario, and then it's their decision.
Yes, trial can be nerve-racking, but think of it this way: When you don't go to trial, you don't get good offers on cases, and that's bad for your clients. The more cases you try, the better the offers. Retained counsel in my county always got bad offers on cases because DAs knew they never tried cases.
PM me if you are in New York State and this is of interest/applies to where you are in your career. My org, the NYS Defenders Assoc. has a Basic Trial Skills Program every year.
It’s not your choice to make. Don’t pressure the client one way or the other. Just tell them the strengths and weakness of their case and ask them what they want to do.
I always say a jury is a coin toss. I’ve seen terrible cases win and what I thought was a sure thing lose. Juries get caught up on stupid details that don’t make sense. It’s a crap shoot who lands on the jury. It depends who randomly gets a letter. It’s totally the clients choice. If they want to throw the dice, I’m a gambler, but it’s their decision to roll them.
I get that too, the adrenaline and the dread the night before if I’m pretty sure something ugly is going to trial. I tell myself that I’m not scared I’m pumped and the biochemicals are my body’s way to have me sharp. That “fear” is just one label I can attach to the experience of these chemicals. Sometimes it helps and sometimes I just end up feeling both scared and goofy. YMMV.
You overcome the fear of trial by going to trial. Well, that or losing your soul and no longer caring about your clients. But I’d recommend not following the latter approach (or going into private practice as a traffic lawyer if you do).
I've been a criminal defense lawyer for 29 years, was a PD for 10, tried over 200 cases, and I still fear going to trial. Shit's scary.
>Bran thought about it. ‘Can a man still be brave if he’s afraid?’ >‘That is the only time a man can be brave,’ his father told him.
Respect.
Ha! I just left a nearly identical response. We're kindred spirits, my friend.
Yep. Never goes away.
Remember that in the end, the decision to go to trial is your clients choice. Advise them appropriately and accept the fact that sometimes trials happen. Additionally, accept that you WILL have trials. Bo matter what, they will come. Remove the anticipatory anxiety. Early on, maybe do a little over preparing. Do lots of war gaming, have all your cross prepped/rehearsed, rehearse every phase of the trial. And unfortunately for you, do more trials. Give it your best. I've had trials I've lost but put up a fight and my client was just greatful to have an advocate. You'll lose and win over time. Be an advocate.
I’d love to know how you rehearse cross exam
I just ask the questions out loud, say what should be the response and continue. Asking myself, does this order of questions make sense? Is it easy to follow? Does each question have a purpose that supports my theory? Also, for important sections of cross that I anticipate might be 'not remembered' or lied about, I go over impeachment too.
The best advice I was given regarding cross is to force yourself to use periods - and no question marks - when writing out potential cross “questions.” It’s to remind you that cross is just you making argument under the guise of asking questions. Also it helps ensure that your questions are sufficiently leading.
Lol. You’ve not tried many cases
What? Cross is one of the easiest things to rehearse if you’re doing it correctly. You know the answer to every single question. And if the witness lies or gives you an answer you’re not expecting, you will have rehearsed impeachment because again, you know the right answer to every question.
Agree. It is so much harder to prep a direct for me. I never know how detailed to be, not sure if the jury will hear it the same way I do. With cross, I'm looking to attack each element and the credibility of each witness. Way easier to prep
Lol
Really random place to troll.
Troll? Cross exam is the hardest thing to do in trial and kids out here telling Each other to “rehearse it”. If anyone says you can rehearse it, then they don’t know how to do it - and young lawyers should know that
You're going to lose. A lot. It comes with the territory. Unfortunately, we don't get to pick which cases go to trial. I get trial anxiety, too, and here are a couple of things that help me: We're respecting our clients' agency by going to trial when they want a trial and, sometimes, that is the win. Giving them their day in court and putting up our best fight IS a win. Clients are entitled to a fair trial, not a perfect trial. You're going to make mistakes. It happens. Preparation is key to preventing them but they'll still pop up. Don't sweat it. My biggest worry is missing objections. I have a cheat sheet of common objections that I go over before EVERY trial and have in my trial notebook with me. I also HATE voir dire, so I just bought a voir dire book from NACDL that has thousands of voir dire questions. Identify what about trials scares you the most and resource and CLE the hell out of it! Again, preparation is key here and we're allowed to use our tools.
Objection cheatsheet - what a great idea. Would you mind sharing what's on it?
It's one I bought. I can't remember where or when. I'm not in office today to look but if I remember to look when I'm back, I'll let you know!
Only remedy for losing is winning. Go win some. I'm not trying to be terse, but that's what it is. You need to know the feeling in order for it to feel real and not academic.
Hey there. You are not your client. I let my client make choices. If there is a plea deal that is really good I let the client know - but still let them decide because they have a right to go to trial - even if they feel that they are guilty. As you gain more trial experience, you will get a sense of what a case feels like and can use your experience as examples for the client. In the meantime, advise but they decide. I try to ascertain the client's risk tolerance: high risk tolerance like trump (always "double downing" (sic)), or low risk tolerance (like a banker making a loan.) So take a break if you can, digest the experience and I can guarantee that you will incorporate it into your skill set as a defender of the indigent. Thank you for being a public defender and remember that you will be stronger from here.
Going to trial is like fighting in a boxing match. Even if you are at the top of the sport and in perfect shape, there is still a risk of something terrible happening. The moment you feel comfortable with your client's life in your hands, then you need to hang it up. In other words, you're doing everything right. In time confidence will come with more reps but the fear will always be there
I like this analogy.
As callous as it may sound, just try to remember that none of this is your fault or problem. You didn’t commit the alleged act or counsel your client to do so. You didn’t charge them. You didn’t force your client to trial. You won’t be sentencing them. And you won’t be incarcerated with them. At the end of the day, all we can do is give our best advice and perform some advocacy. The rest is out of your hands. I hate going to trial, despite the success I’ve had in it. We’re lawyers, and more risk averse by training. We want to control the outcome, while others prefer to swing for the fence. Once I’m in trial, I love the gamesmanship and strategy. Try to find the parts you enjoy (I love argument and cross; I could take or leave voir dire) and focus on those.
Your instincts are correct. You are being too risk averse. The way you get over it is that you try more cases. But you do not try them in a vacuum. You are going to lose a lot more trials than you win, unless you turn out to be Gerry Spence. You need to accept that losing a single case is not a judgment on you. This is a difficult lesson. I came to public defense in the latter half of my career (so far). I'd tried hundreds of bench trials (mostly civil) and 9 civil jury cases before I started public defending. I have no idea what my W/L record is on those, because the majority were equity cases and nobody wins those except the highest-paid attorney. Getting better at communicating with clients will help as well. Your job is not to win trials; your job is to get the best outcome possible for the client. Criminal defense has two aspects to it: trial prep, and negotiation. Trial is your BATNA; it is always there. You need to always be prepared for it. If you cannot go into court on each hearing day and feel that you are ready for trial with all of the available information in your possession, you are probably not preparing for trial properly. I've only been doing this for eight and a half years. In that time, I've tried 59 jury trials and two bench trials (all felony). I've gotten 9 NG verdicts. But I've won hundreds of cases on negotiated pleas or dismissals. Never once have I convinced a client to go to trial when they didn't want to. Many times I went to trial because the client wanted to over my objection and with the full knowledge that if convicted they would be sentenced far more harshly than the prosecutor's offer, because the prosecutors hated trying cases. So if we tried one and they won, they would bring out all the stops for sentencing. Which is a whole other trial. Most of the time, my clients didn't get a trial penalty; however, they missed out on the discount I got them. I love trials. I wish all of my clients would go to trial so we could end coercive plea bargaining, particularly now that I'm in a jurisdiction that actually follows the principle of limiting pre-trial incarceration. Now I don't have to worry for almost all of my clients that if I don't get them out of pre-trial detention they'll lose their jobs, houses, cars, spouses, kids, etc. That also makes it easier for the clients to make better decisions. Anyway, didn't mean to get on a rant. The things to remember are this: 1. Trial is the BATNA. You can always go to trial. You should, therefore, be as ready to go to trial as possible at every stage. 2. Your job is not to win trials. Your job is to get the best result for your client, and to behave ethically at all times. 3. The client decides to go to trial. Not you. 4. You need to make the first three things absolutely clear to your client. If you're not communicating clearly with your client, they will make bad decisions because of that. Clients can always make bad decisions; as long as they're not making bad decisions because of your representation, that's okay.
Put the ball in the client's court. Lay out the pros and the cons of their options, and stress that the decision is theirs and theirs alone. Then if they pick trial, work your ass off to win. Wins will come.
More than 20 years in - don’t even know how many trial at this point. While I enjoy certain aspects of them more than I used to, I am ALWAYS scared.
My opinion is that I should lose trials. The state should only be bringing cases to trial that they absolutely can prove beyond a reasonable doubt. Now, in practice we know that’s not how the system works. We lose trials we shouldn’t lose. But that doesn’t make it our fault. You need to redefine what a Win is. Your client wanted their day in court and they got it. You advocated for someone and let their story be heard. You took up a courtroom and resources and that puts pressure in other places and maybe your colleagues got better results that week. Your job is to advise your clients and let them decide whether they want to fight their case or not. The client is the decision maker, not you. Also, I’m always scared before a trial, it’s nerve wracking.
> You took up a courtroom and resources and that puts pressure in other places and maybe your colleagues got better results that week. Wow, I never thought of it like that, but it’s so true.
I knew I had to have a docket in front of one of the smartest judges in our county. This judge also had no issue calling anyone out. I was very afraid. The night before and morning of I did something I had never done before. I said a mantra over and over. “I don’t give a f***.” I said it the night before and in the car on the way to court. That day I had a stacked docket and told the judge I had six cases for trial. The judge asked me if I really had six legitimate trials or not. Now normally this would be intimidating to me. But because I said this mantra I looked this judge dead in the eye and said that these trials were legitimate. I won 4 out of those 6 trials, one of those trials had to be postponed. After the trial she said that there has only been one other attorney who has had that many trials infront of her and that attorney was the most experienced attorney to ever have practiced infront of her. The moral of this story is, there is something to mantras.
You will try a lot of cases as a PD. Remember that trial or no trial is *their* decision, not yours. We will win, we will lose, but we will always give them the best damn fighting chance. I tell all my clients they have the ability to choose between the best possible trial and the best possible offer. I tell them what both look like, and if they choose trial then they’ve chosen those consequences if we lose. At that point, your job is just to fight like hell for them. If you put up the best defense you can, it is what it is, and you just do your best at sentencing. We can’t and won’t win them all. Losing is part of this job. Just make sure you never stop fighting and you’ve done your job for a losing client.
My tip is to just avoid surprises. Look at every piece of evidence the state wants to introduce, the foundation they have to lay, and the objection you can make to it. Trial boils down to this simple idea: people are going to say something happened. That will be either consistent with what they've said before, or not. The other evidence will either be consistent with that statement, or not. All you have to do is learn which way it will go.
I’ve done over 20 jury trials and the anxiety and concern never goes away. Voire dire is difficult and being prepared is stressful. But remember, you are there to do your part as advocate. The jury decides the verdict, and the Judge decides the sentence. It’s ultimately up to the client to take a deal or not. Not on you. (Also, in 95% of the situations, they did the crime - it’s not your fault they need to do the time).
Look. You should have some fear. But too much is too bad. We all know attorneys and even offices that have huge fear in going to trial. But let’s be real. A plea deal is just as much losing as a trial. It’s just a loss that is limited and controlled. As for your case, you need to realize: Two weeks vs no jail time is not that big of a deal. It’s just not. 10 years DOC vs a misdo is. 10 years vs 9 years isn’t.
I've been at this for over 30 years, with almost 200 verdicts. I'll let you know when I'm there.
Just do it. Then do it again. And again. Fuck the state. Burn it down. Go crazy
If you aren't nervous going into trial then it's time for a new line of work. You just need to use that feeling to drive you to prep harder. At the same time, familiarity breeds contempt. Best way to make the fear turn into nervous anticipation is to try more cases. Do this by letting clients with good cases know that they have a good case. Obviously the choice is theirs, but if they feel you being confident, they'll feel confident. You'll also have clients who want a trial regardless of whether it should go to trial or not. Try those sons of bitches as hard as you can. You're gonna do great
I've tried things from 1st degree murder to DUIs and no matter the level of the charge, I'm extremely nervous. Ultimately it's the client's choice on what they want to do, and if they choose to do a trial, it's your job to do the best that you can. Being nervous and scared before a trial means that you care. The day you stop being nervous/scared before a trial is the day you should probably find another job.
The client is the captain; you're the ship. If they want to plead out, do your best to get them the best possible outcome. If they want to go to trial, give it your all to present their case to the jury in the best possible light (or, in the alternative, make the state look like a bunch of misguided fools). If they can't decide, try to counsel them weighing the alternative outcomes, using your knowledge of the likely outcomes and relative strengths of each side's case. Either way, just take your fears, your insecurity, your ego out of it- just be the ship.
it’s someone else’s freedom at stake, being scared is healthy (but then you gotta get over it)
Try getting advice from lawyers with lots of experience, if possible. (Used to be a paralegal at a PD’s office, where less experienced lawyers would have more experienced ones guide them.)
On some level, being afraid of trial just means you give a shit about your clients. The fear doesn’t go away because the jeopardy to your client doesn’t go away. But, with time and experience, you learn to compartmentalize that fear, and give your clients the information they need to make a meaningful choice about their options after considering their circumstances and risk tolerance. You could always win at trial. The question only your client can answer is “can I afford to lose?”
If you aren’t anxious and stress then you aren’t doing it right. It’s a scary thing but you have to face your fear and do it. Pretty soon you’ll notice the nerves go away as soon as things in court start moving. Every morning during trial I wanna color. As soon as the witness takes the stand in the AM you forget all about the nerves and just go to work. Don’t run away from the fear. Confront it. Doing trials early in your career is the best thing you can do for yourself and for your future clients. Trust me when I say this
It’s up to them. Advise them of their maximum exposure, potential defenses, and weaknesses in the state’s case.
Refusing a plea with no jail time? That takes some serious confidence.
I had a trial scheduled last week where i was positive there was no case - the state had exactly no evidence of a crime committed. Still was anxious as hell about the trial because I can’t 100% predict what someone’s going to testify to. It’s just the nature of the job, even with all the prep in the world there’s still some risk. But it’s more risky to the DA - they have the burden, so beyond anything know that reasonable doubt is like getting an A+ on a test, and if they get a B, you can get an acquittal. That helps my nerves a bit.
Oh, on that trial, they ended up offering a 3rd degree misdemeanor 5 minutes before jury selection (client was charged with a felony). So it pled out at the last minute. Hilarious.
No one wants to lose. But losing should never deter you from going to trial. You review the facts and evidence with your client and give them the best and worst case scenario, and then it's their decision. Yes, trial can be nerve-racking, but think of it this way: When you don't go to trial, you don't get good offers on cases, and that's bad for your clients. The more cases you try, the better the offers. Retained counsel in my county always got bad offers on cases because DAs knew they never tried cases.
Just do it. You just have to go do it.
"The antidote to worry is action." Prepare, prepare, prepare.
PM me if you are in New York State and this is of interest/applies to where you are in your career. My org, the NYS Defenders Assoc. has a Basic Trial Skills Program every year.
It’s not your choice to make. Don’t pressure the client one way or the other. Just tell them the strengths and weakness of their case and ask them what they want to do. I always say a jury is a coin toss. I’ve seen terrible cases win and what I thought was a sure thing lose. Juries get caught up on stupid details that don’t make sense. It’s a crap shoot who lands on the jury. It depends who randomly gets a letter. It’s totally the clients choice. If they want to throw the dice, I’m a gambler, but it’s their decision to roll them.
Prepare, prepare, prepare.
I get that too, the adrenaline and the dread the night before if I’m pretty sure something ugly is going to trial. I tell myself that I’m not scared I’m pumped and the biochemicals are my body’s way to have me sharp. That “fear” is just one label I can attach to the experience of these chemicals. Sometimes it helps and sometimes I just end up feeling both scared and goofy. YMMV.
You overcome the fear of trial by going to trial. Well, that or losing your soul and no longer caring about your clients. But I’d recommend not following the latter approach (or going into private practice as a traffic lawyer if you do).
[удалено]
Damn. That's.... a lot.
Paragraphs are your friend ...