Sue Unto Others Outline and Handouts
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
SUE UNTO OTHERS AS YOU WOULD HAVE THEM SUE UNTO YOU A One-Hour Webinar Covering: Professionalism Presented by: Sean Carter CA Bar# 200356 OVERVIEW Increasingly, lawyer civility and congeniality is becoming a thing of the past. Yet, it doesn’t have to be that way. In this presentation, veteran attorney and legal humorist Sean Carter will remind lawyers that zealous advocacy does not require them to be zealots. In particular, Mr. Carter will discuss practical ways to: • Reduce the hostility in interactions with even the most difficult opposing counsel; • Increase camaraderie among colleagues; • Diffuse tensions between warring clients; • Secure accommodations from opposing counsel; • Structure more mutually beneficial arrangements with clients; • Maintain proper decorum before the court; • Assist in providing pro bono legal services; • Serve the bar and the legal profession; and • Provide service to the community at large. TIMED AGENDA (60 minutes) 0:00-0:05 General Overview of State Professionalism Creeds 1. Genesis of the creeds 2. Aspiration nature Six Suggestions for Professional Behavior 0:05-0:15 Suggestion #1: Show Some Respect 1. Avoid undue familiarity with members of the judiciary 2. Avoid unfounded, unsubstantiated, or unjustified public criticism of members of the judiciary 3. Show respect by attire and demeanor 0:15-0:25 Suggestion #2: Behave Yourself 1. Consider the effect of our individual conduct on the image of the law and the profession 2. Work to improve the law 3. Defend profession against unjust criticism 4. Respect and honor the traditions of the profession and those lawyers who best uphold those traditions 0:25-0:30 Suggestion #3: Don’t Run Up the Bill 1. Use technology to provide efficient and expeditious resolution of client matters. 2. Avoid unnecessarily increasing the costs of litigation through vexatious and harassing tactics 0:30-0:35 Suggestion #4: Give Back 1. The need for pro bono representation 2. Give talents to deserving individuals and the organizations dedicated to serving them 3. Contribute financially to deserving organizations 4. Be mindful of opportunities to facilitate the administration of justice 0:35-0:45 Suggestion #5: Don’t Be So Difficult 1. Counsel clients towards settlement and dispute resolution 2. Make reasonable accommodations to opposing counsel 3. Make stipulations and concessions when appropriate 0:45-0:55 Suggestion #6: Play Nice 1. Be courteous and civil in all communications 2. Avoid rudeness and other acts of disrespect 3. Look for opportunities to reduce hostilities 0:55-0:60 Conclusion and Q&A ABOUT THE SPEAKER Sean A. Carter graduated from Harvard Law School in 1992. He was a corporate securities lawyer in private practice in large law firms in Boston and Los Angeles serving clients such as GNC, the Boston Beer Company, Experian, Safelite Auto Glass, J. Crew and many others. In 2000, he accepted a position as in-house counsel for a publicly- traded financial institution, at which he remained until October 2002. Since that time, Mr. Carter has been a full-time lecturer, columnist, and legal commentator. His written have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Daily Journal, the ABA e-Report and on numerous blogs and websites, including Findlaw.com. He has been a guest on numerous radio programs across the country as well as online legal media outlets, such as The Legal Broadcast Network. In addition, Mr. Carter delivers more than 100 MCLE presentations each year on topics such as legal ethics, professionalism, the elimination of bias, substance abuse prevention, constitutional law, etc. He has spoken for state and local bar associations, law firms, law schools and corporate in-house legal departments in more than 30 states. Here is a partial list of organizations that have engaged him to give MCLE presentations. Bar Associations Center for American and Internatl. Law Charlotte Estate Planning Council 11th Circuit Judicial Conference Chattanooga Bar Advocates' Society (Canada) Cincinnati Bar Association Akron Bar Association Collier County Bar Alabama State Bar Colorado Bar Association Alabama Courts Connecticut Defense Lawyers Assoc Alameda County Bar Continuing Education of the Bar Alaska Bar Association Dade County Bar American Bar Association Dallas Bar American Bankruptcy Institute Dayton Bar Association American Board of Trial Advocates Dekalb County Bar American College of Trial Lawyers Defense Research Institute ACTL New Jersey Erie County Bar Association State Bar of Arizona Federal Bar Association Arkansas Bar Association Florida Bar Association of Corporate Counsel Foothills Bar Association Association of So Cal Defense Counsel Georgia Assoc of Crim. Def. Lawyers Atlanta Bar Association State Bar of Georgia Bar Association of Southern Illinois Hillsborough County Bar Association Bar Association of St. Louis Hispanic Bar Assoc of Orange County Bleckley Inn of Court Houston Bar Association California Bankruptcy Forum Idaho State Bar Association CA Society for Healthcare Attorneys Illinois State Bar Association State Bar of California Illinois ICLE Indiana State Bar Association State Bar of Texas Inn of Court - Shreveport TX Assoc of Civ Trial and App International Assoc of Gaming Advisors Utah State Bar International Assoc of Holistic Lawyers Virginia CLE International Society of Barristers Virginia State Bar J. Franklyn Bourne Bar Association Washington State Bar Kansas Association of Defense Counsel Washoe County Bar Kentucky Bar Association WealthCounsel Larimer County Bar (CO) W San Bernardino County Bar Assoc Lex Romano Wichita Bar Association Los Angeles County Bar Association State Bar of Wisconsin Louisiana Assoc of Defense Counsel Maine Bar Association Law Firms Memphis Bar Association State Bar of Michigan Akin Gump Minnesota CLE Alston & Bird Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys Armstrong Teasdale Missouri State Bar Arnstein & Lehr Montana Assoc of Crim. Def. Lawyers Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud et al Montgomery County Bar Association Balch & Bingham LLP Nashville Bar Association Baker & Hostetler LLP National Association of Bar Executives Baker, Manock & Jensen Natl Network of Estate Planning Attys Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff Nebraska Assoc of Defense Counsel Best, Best & Krieger State Bar of Nevada Brown & McCarroll New Hampshire Bar Association Cummins & White New Hampshire Trial Lawyers Assoc Dickstein Shapiro New Jersey ICLE Drew Eckl & Farnham, LLP State Bar of New Mexico Farella Braun + Marella New York State Bar Association Finnegan Ohio State Bar Association Fredrikson & Byron Oklahoma Bar Association Friedemann & Goldberg Orange County Bar Association Fisher & Phillips Orange County Trial Lawyers Assoc Gibson Dunn & Crutcher Oregon State Bar Hall Estill Ottawa County Bar Association Heller Ehrman Pennsylvania Bar Association Henderson Franklin Pennsylvania Bar Association Jones Day Pennsylvania Bar Institute King & Spalding Philadelphia Bar Association Kring & Chung Riverside County Bar Larkin Hoffman Daly & Lindgren Salmon P Chase Inn of Court Lewis Brisbois Shreveport Bar Association Lionel Sawyer & Collins South Carolina Bar Littler Mendelson Southeast Bar Association Looper Reed & McGraw Southern Law Network McDermott Will & Emery McDonald Hopkins North Carolina Central University McDonnell Boehnen et al University of Houston McGlinchey Stafford Washburn University Morgan Lewis & Bockius Widener University Motley & Rice Moore & VanAllen Government Agencies Manatt Phelps Perkins Coie TN Administrative Office of the Courts Quarles & Brady AL Administrative Office of the Courts Randick O'Dea & Tooliatos County Counselors of Kansas Resources Law Group Georgia State Board of Worker's Comp Robins Kaplan Miller & Ciresi Missouri Public Defender System Sheppard Mullin Riverside City Attorneys Office Smith Gambrell & Russell San Bernadino District Attorneys Office Sterne Kessler Sutherland Asbill & Brennan Professional Associations Troutman Sanders Assoc of Continuing Legal Education Corporations Assoc of Legal Administrators Legal Marketing Association American Online Natl Org of Home & Life Guar Assocs ARAG Insurance Group Los Angeles Paralegals Association Arizona Counties Insurance Pool Orange County Paralegals Association Boeing Clorox CVS Caremark Corporation First Data Health Management Association Johnson Bank Marathon Oil New Century Mortgage Sun Healthcare Taco Bell Xerox Corporation Law Schools Arkansas Little Rock Brigham Young University Thomas M. Cooley Cumberland Drake University Florida State University Georgia State University Howard University Loyola Marymount (LA) SUE UNTO OTHERS AS YOU WOULD HAVE THEM SUE UNTO YOU The Six Suggestions for Improving the Profession (Rules taken from A Lawyer's Creed of Professionalism of the ABA Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section) Sean Carter Humorist at Law MESA CLE LLC 4710 Falcon Dr. Suite 210 Mesa, AZ 85215 Phone: (480) 262-2653 [email protected] www.mesacle.com Sue Unto Others Sean Carter Humorist at Law Mr. Carter graduated from Harvard Law School in 1992. His ten years of legal practice focused on corporate securities and mergers and acquisitions. During this time, he represented such clients as GNC, Experian, The Boston Beer Company, Homeside Lending, Safelite Auto Glass, J. Crew and many others, before eventually serving as in-house counsel to a publicly-traded finance company. In 2002, Mr. Carter left the practice of law to pursue a career as the country's foremost Humorist at Law. Since then, Mr. Carter has crisscrossed the country delivering