Sometimes Work Doesn't Suck

Since I spend so much time bitching on here, I occasionally feel obligated to trot out the warm and fuzzies. I don't want anyone thinking I walk around with a black cloud over my head every day. Indeed, there are some weeks, months even, when the sun doth shine and I cannot complain. This was one of them.

Work, which I take pains to avoid writing about, was pretty good this week. I had my first appellate oral argument in front of five judges of the Appellate Division, with a partner watching carefully right next to me, and it actually went well (knock on wood, spin three times, and pee on the rug for good luck). Preparing for it was like cramming for a major exam -- it brought back memories of law school. I think one of the more challenging things lawyers do is argue appeals. You have 3-5 judges who have read your briefs and usually are pretty familiar with your case, firing questions at you about any fact or legal issue in the record, which can be hundreds of pages long. If you don't prepare, and sometimes even if you do, they can make you look like a total friggin' idiot. This is especially true if you have lousy arguments and should never have brought the appeal in the first place. (Word to all you appellants out there.) The experience actually reminded me of why I became a lawyer in the first place, which I will try to remember when I'm back to reviewing documents and writing briefs.

And tonight we settled a terrible case against a ballbusting attorney who has been the bane of my existence for the better part of the last two years in three separate cases. Picture someone who never got to breastfeed and was bullied relentlessly as a child, who will argue with you about about the color of the moon, whose legal correspondence typically takes the form of a ten page, single-spaced diatribe full of personal attacks and mischaracterizations of the record to which you have to respond, and who will twist anything and everything you say, and you will begin to get a taste of what a colossal a-hole this guy is. By the time the third case came around, I was in Zen mode and able to ignore 90% of his bullshit. To make matters worse, all three cases had major problems from our side, so we had to settle them, which put plenty of $$$ in his pocket. I hope he enjoys the new addition to his house, the prick. At least I can start dealing with normal adversaries again. The funny thing is, I always seem to learn more when I deal with jerks. I'll say this, it was never boring. If I start missing him, someone better slap me hard.

With that case over and no arbitration next week, the three day weekend is MINE, ALL MINE! I don't even know what to do with myself now. I feel like Charlton Heston when he first landed on the Planet of the Apes. Where am I? What do I do?

There you have it. A good week and a positive entry from me for a change. Wasn't it fucking boring?