When a caller on an initial consultation asks me whether his military counsel will be enough, that says a lot about his confidence level. If he’s asking the question, it tends to reason he is feeling some level of doubt. Or maybe he’s looking for an atta-boy and to get back into the “game.”
The facts are that I have no earthly idea whether any given military counsel (or any civilian for that matter) will be enough to achieve success at trial. See my previous post about no one knowing a case outcome until it is announced. Enough is a nebulous concept and no one knows what is enough unless there is a successful outcome. I never spend time asking myself after an acquittal if I could have achieved it with any less effort. The goal is to leave it all on the court so that when you walk away from closing arguments, you do not question whether or not you could have done anything else. I do not feel anxious during deliberations; there is a calm in me that closes out after my final words are spoken and the case is given to the jury for decision. Because I walk away from each case very firmly convinced that my efforts were the absolute maximum that I could possibly have given. It is a huge reason that my trial work is so draining and completely exhausting.
So, to ask me whether another attorney’s efforts will be “enough” is impossible. Even if I know the lawyer because I have observed him on a previous trial, that tells me nothing of their current case load, motivation, or energy level to give to the caller’s case. It would be completely inappropriate for me to comment either way. I don’t believe in scare tactics to tell them that all uniformed military defense counsels are incompetent or worse in cahoots with the government. The fact is that I have no idea. I cannot begin to speak to the capability of anyone other than myself.
This blog post is part of a series…
- No Crystal Ball For Military Justice
- How Likely Is It That I Won’t Be Charged?
- What Are The Chances That If I Go All The Way To Trial That I Will Be Convicted?
- Is My Retained Civilian Lawyer Doing What He Should Be?
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