MoChassid, Litigator

The Aibishter works in mysterious ways.

I didn't know exactly what kind of law I wanted to practice when I was in law school but I knew I didn't want to be a litigator. It just wasn't for me.

And, for the first 25 years of my career, I managed to steer clear of anything smelling of litigation. I once had to testify at a bankruptcy hearing (I was represented by a Very Famous Lawyer who never bothered to prepare me and I was crushed during cross-examination because I was so unprepared) and I once supervised a trial on a complicated derivatives matter, but other than that, I've almost never stepped foot into a courthouse.

That's what makes my current situation so amusing. In the 21 months I've been at my job, we have already intervened as amicus curiae (friend of the court) on two major cases and have intervened in a couple of other cases through affadavits and joinders. We have also declined to intervene in a couple of other situations. Consequently, I've had to read scores of pleadings over this period. Complaints, motions, briefs, TROs, etc., etc. Stuff I managed to avoid for so long. Not only do I get to pick and choose which cases to get involved with (Technically, I make a recommendation to the board and they approve but in reality, I do a lot of homework first so that I never make a recommendation to the board that they are unlikely to accept), I also get to choose and supervise the lawyers in all these cases. What a joke.

The sad part is that I actually find this stuff interesting, indeed, sometimes absolutely fascinating. How pathetic is that?