Read Online B006JIBKIS EBOK by H. Terrell Griffin - Free Book Online
Authors: H. Terrell Griffin
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courtroom where the judge presiding is some low paid clown who has worked his whole life for one state agency or another, who can’t or won’t make it in private practice, and for whom the law is a great mystery. And then the lawyers strive mightily to pick the dumbest people on the drivers’ license rolls to serve on the jury. Christ, the average juror is dumber that the average judge, and that takes some doing. Justice? Bullshit! It’s a term used in the legal business to buffalo the civilians. It’s all bullshit, and I’m glad I’m out of it.” I was running out of breath.
“Will you represent me?”
“Man, I told you. I’m not a lawyer anymore. Get yourself a real lawyer. Hell, I’m probably an alcoholic anyway, and if you know anything about the breed, you know we can’t be trusted to stay sober long enough to find the courthouse, let alone take on major litigation.”
“I checked with the Florida Bar. You are only a year behind on your dues. Two hundred fifty dollars will reinstate you, and you’ll be in good standing. I talked to Vanessa Brice, and she’ll quit her job and go back to work for you with two weeks notice.
“I don’t know whether you’re an alcoholic or not. I know that I am. My sickness came from the bottle. I got drunk and caused the wreck that killed my wife. Jeff Simmons was my doctor, and after he patched me up physically from the accident, he and Laura pulled me together emotionally. Laura said that you are an idealist who got caught up in the legal business as opposed to the learned profession that you thought you were dedicating your life to. She said that you always wanted to mount your charger and tilt at windmills, but were so caught up in being somebody, the ageless hero perhaps, that you forgot why you had gone into the law. I know a lot about Matt Royal, and I’m betting that he can win this case and feel a lot better about himself in the process.”
“It’s intriguing, Doctor, but given my present circumstances, not very practical.”
“I’ll pay all your office expenses plus four thousand dollars per month to you for as long as it takes to finish the case. If you win, I’ll pay you one-third of the gross recovery, less expenses advanced. If you lose, I’ll eat the expenses and you won’t owe me anything. All I ask is that you give me your very best effort.”
“I need to think it over.”
“No. I want an irrevocable decision from you now. If you don’t think you can handle it, we’re wasting each other’s time. I think you can do it.”
I bought the deal.
I went back to Orlando, rented a two room office and some furniture, and got to work. Vanessa, who had been my secretary the whole time I had been with the firm, came back to work, and we dug into the case. I got off the booze and didn’t even miss it. I started working out at a health club and got the old body back in shape, and worked harder than I ever had in my life. Jason Clarke stopped by from time to time, and became a good friend. He really meant what he had said. He wanted to win because he had been wronged. We worked on that crazy case for over a year, and last summer the defendant company settled with us for twelve million dollars. The surgeon was indicted for fraud, and the state revoked his license to practice medicine. Jason paid me three million dollars, less the money he had advanced, and used the rest of the money to endow an alcoholic treatment center outside Atlanta. I paid Uncle Sam his share of my earnings, gave Vanessa a bonus large enough to ensure that she would not have to work again if she didn’t want to, bought the condo, and invested the rest of the money in stocks that gave me a small but safe return. I would be able to live comfortably for the rest of my life.
Chapter 8
My cell phone rang at eight o’clock the next morning. It was Logan. “Did you get the pizza?” He asked. He sounded weak.
“Yes. Are you okay? You don’t sound so good.”
“Just
“Will you represent me?”
“Man, I told you. I’m not a lawyer anymore. Get yourself a real lawyer. Hell, I’m probably an alcoholic anyway, and if you know anything about the breed, you know we can’t be trusted to stay sober long enough to find the courthouse, let alone take on major litigation.”
“I checked with the Florida Bar. You are only a year behind on your dues. Two hundred fifty dollars will reinstate you, and you’ll be in good standing. I talked to Vanessa Brice, and she’ll quit her job and go back to work for you with two weeks notice.
“I don’t know whether you’re an alcoholic or not. I know that I am. My sickness came from the bottle. I got drunk and caused the wreck that killed my wife. Jeff Simmons was my doctor, and after he patched me up physically from the accident, he and Laura pulled me together emotionally. Laura said that you are an idealist who got caught up in the legal business as opposed to the learned profession that you thought you were dedicating your life to. She said that you always wanted to mount your charger and tilt at windmills, but were so caught up in being somebody, the ageless hero perhaps, that you forgot why you had gone into the law. I know a lot about Matt Royal, and I’m betting that he can win this case and feel a lot better about himself in the process.”
“It’s intriguing, Doctor, but given my present circumstances, not very practical.”
“I’ll pay all your office expenses plus four thousand dollars per month to you for as long as it takes to finish the case. If you win, I’ll pay you one-third of the gross recovery, less expenses advanced. If you lose, I’ll eat the expenses and you won’t owe me anything. All I ask is that you give me your very best effort.”
“I need to think it over.”
“No. I want an irrevocable decision from you now. If you don’t think you can handle it, we’re wasting each other’s time. I think you can do it.”
I bought the deal.
I went back to Orlando, rented a two room office and some furniture, and got to work. Vanessa, who had been my secretary the whole time I had been with the firm, came back to work, and we dug into the case. I got off the booze and didn’t even miss it. I started working out at a health club and got the old body back in shape, and worked harder than I ever had in my life. Jason Clarke stopped by from time to time, and became a good friend. He really meant what he had said. He wanted to win because he had been wronged. We worked on that crazy case for over a year, and last summer the defendant company settled with us for twelve million dollars. The surgeon was indicted for fraud, and the state revoked his license to practice medicine. Jason paid me three million dollars, less the money he had advanced, and used the rest of the money to endow an alcoholic treatment center outside Atlanta. I paid Uncle Sam his share of my earnings, gave Vanessa a bonus large enough to ensure that she would not have to work again if she didn’t want to, bought the condo, and invested the rest of the money in stocks that gave me a small but safe return. I would be able to live comfortably for the rest of my life.
Chapter 8
My cell phone rang at eight o’clock the next morning. It was Logan. “Did you get the pizza?” He asked. He sounded weak.
“Yes. Are you okay? You don’t sound so good.”
“Just
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