The Practice Corner: Trust, but Verify

by Daniel DeWoskin
Trial Attorney
www.atlantatrial.com

“Trust, but verify.” These immortal words of Ronald Reagan are in fact words I live by as an attorney. I have clients that will tell me things that range from the facts of their particular cases to the payment schedule to which they agree and intend to adhere. I also deal with scores of other attorneys, paralegals, court personnel, and others who tell me all sorts of things upon which I need to rely in order to see to my clients’ interests. I am a trusting person, but I always must verify that what I am trusting is in fact the truth or will come to pass.

“Trust, but verify” means exactly that. It does not mean that I have to be dubious of everything anyone tells me, but that I should have an insurance policy in place for the things that I rely on in providing my best work. Think to those critical moments in your own careers when you have stood before the Court only to have the rug pulled out from under you by opposing counsel. Think of the times that you did not check each case opposing counsel cited in his or her brief only to later learn that a pivotal case did not in fact say what he or she claimed it did. Most of us have been there at some point. It may have been a situation where we did not want to reinvent wheels and trusted the work product of a competent and trusted colleague or (heaven forbid) a boss, but had to wipe the egg off of our face when our adversary exposed our less than diligent and accurate research.

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Raising the Bar: Strategies for Compelling Communication

by W. Blair Meeks
Communication Strategist
Jackson Spalding

Communication touches everything we do. Everything we do communicates something. In a world where communication options are changing more rapidly than ever before, it is important to think about the best ways to deliver our messages.

That is the mission of Raising the Bar, a new monthly column I’ll be writing for this newsletter. In it we will explore best practices in internal and external communications. We’ll look at jury communications, presentation skills, social media strategies, branding, relationship building and other topics that can help you succeed.

I’m not an attorney, but do have 19 years as a television reporter documenting communication successes and failures in very public forums, and more than three years as a communications coach and strategist at one of the top marketing and communications firms in the Southeast. My goal for the column is to provide practical, useful and timely information, and you can help keep me on track with suggestions and reactions. I know it’s rare for attorneys to have opinions about things . . . but opinions are encouraged. Please share.

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From the President: In Memory of Judge Workman

by Matthew McCoyd

As you all probably know by now, Judge Anne Workman passed away on September 2. She was a leader of our bar, a trailblazer in our profession, and will be greatly missed. Among her numerous accomplishments are a number of firsts: first woman prosecutor in DeKalb County; first woman judge in DeKalb County; one of the first two women elected to the Bench in DeKalb County; and first woman president of the council of State Court Judges.

In honor of Judge Workman, we are republishing the text of her speech at the 2008 Bench and Bar Dinner:

A Curmudgeon’s View from the Last Century Forward
by Chief Judge Anne Workman, DeKalb Superior Court
(Keynote speaker for the DeKalb Bar Association Bench and Bar Dinner, March 2008)

When I was approached by Noah [Pines] and Mike [Hawkins] to speak tonight, I was told in no uncertain terms that this speaking opportunity was only being offered under the strict condition that the speech not last more than 20 minutes. I tell you this to allay any fears or flashbacks that you may harbor about being kept here into the night. I was somewhat surprised to be asked to speak, as a reason to select me did not immediately come to mind and the topic was to be how the bar in DeKalb has evolved in the 35 years that I have been a member.

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