Chuck Otey’s Pro Bono Barrister for September 3

September 3, 2013 By Charles F. Otey, Esq Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Screen Shot 2013-09-03 at 10.45.13 AM.png
Share this:

Kings Inn To Deal With ‘Difficult’ EBT Challenges

Kicking off its 13th season of offering creative, often dramatic, CLE programs, on Sept. 24, the Kings County American Inn of Court will tackle one of the thorniest issues faced by trial lawyers, to wit: dealing with the “difficult” if not “impossible” adversary at a deposition.

The new president of the Kings Inn is Justice Ellen Spodek. Directing the deposition drama will be Inn president-elect Dave Chidekel, working with a talented team including, but not limited to, President Spodek, Justice Lawrence Knipel, Kings Civil Administrative Judge; Justice Carl Landicino, Federal Judge William Kuntz, John Lonuzzi, a former Brooklyn Bar president; Joy Campanelli, a court attorney; Theresa Ciccotto, a court attorney and top trial lawyers Andrea Hill, William Gentile and Serena Blanchard.

Director Chidekel is known for his imaginative presentations and has been urging his colleagues to recollect true stories featuring the “difficult” and “impossible” EBT adversary. One situation sure to come up is the deposition wherein all ‘objectionable’ questions must be handled over the (cell) phone with the presiding judge.

But occasionally a beleaguered barrister may choose instant retreat over a judicial comeuppance, we can reliably relate.

One story being passed on to attorney Chidekel dealt with an opponent who suddenly yanked his client out of the far-from-complete court-ordered deposition, telling him to “leave, leave now!” His reluctant and poorly prepared witness had been summoned from his upstate New York home. (The escaping attorney later confided – as the case was being settled – that he was willing to risk a rapid departure and the wrath of the judge, rather than endure further damaging testimony by his own client.)

But what should the examining attorney do? Act, act fast, he concluded. Quickly, the questioning attorney rose, insisting that the court reporter, her high heels clicking, accompany him to record the actual “chase” through the hall, Then, in the descending elevator and out of the 32 Court St. building, he finally proclaimed to the stenographer, “Let the record reflect that attorney [blank] is now fleeing 32 Court St. with his client and both are running toward the subway at the corner of Court and Montague…”
* * *

Some Kings Inn Skits Are Now Legendary

The Kings Inn was founded almost 13 years ago by a group consisting of Justice Marsha Steinhardt and then-Justices Gerard Rosenberg, Abraham Gerges and Edward Rappaport.

Over the last 13 years, Inn members have performed scores of skits calculated to represent challenges lawyers face on a day-to-day basis.

These presentations, by the way, are never boring since the skits are often framed with popular figures (e.g., when Justice Rosenberg played Larry King, red suspenders, horn-rimmed glasses and all, or when Justice Gerges presided over a parable as Chicken Little with the appropriate headpiece)

Other current officers include Counselor Justice Arthur Schack, Treasurer Justice Miriam Cyrulnik and Secretary Jon Besunder. The executive director is Jeff Feldman, while Lucy Disalvo serves as inn administrator.
* * *

BBA Panels Explore Medicare And Delve Into Bankruptcy

Getting an early and proactive start is the Brooklyn Bar Association’s CLE season, which director Meredith Symonds reminds us will start Sept. 9 when a talented panel explains the latest, often complex, developments regarding Medicare and Medicaid liens.

Then there’s an in-depth three-lecture presentation on the pitfalls of filing for bankruptcy, beginning the evening of Sept. 12 and continuing on the 19th and 26th. These programs are structured carefully so that new and experienced attorneys will have their most pressing questions dealt with by practicing experts.

Leading the BBA this year is President Andrew Fallek, with the able assistance of BBA Executive Director Avery Okin.
* * *

Columbian Lawyers To Learn How D.A. Has Handled Crime

The Kings Columbian Lawyers Association, led by President Robert Musso, will benefit from a special presentation on crime-fighting when District Attorney Joe Hynes addresses them at their first CLE session of the season on Sept. 3 at the Rex Manor on 11th Avenue in Brooklyn.

D.A. Hynes’ agenda is titled “Public Safety Then (1990) and Now (2013) — Strategies That Worked.” Coincidentally, that same period  happens to approximate the time during which District Attorney Hynes has held this very influential position.

Columbians attending will enjoy delicious dinner and CLE credits.

The other officers include Bartholomew T. Russo, first vice president; Rose Ann C. Branda, second vice president; Dean G. Deliantes, third vice president; Mark A. Longo, treasurer; Linda Locasio, corresponding secretary; Hon. Frank Seddio, recording secretary; and George J. Siracuse, historian. Msgr. David L. Cassato is chaplain and Ludina Di Salvo is executive secretary.
* * *

Stop-and-Frisk Done Due to Court Decision?

Some lawyers are puzzled over a portion of the new law against the NYPD’s stop-and-frisk practices.

Most barristers and others we talked with were in agreement about better (equal) protection of the rights of young minority men.

Still vague in the minds of many critics of the legislation – passed over the angry veto of Mayor Michael Bloomberg – is the new cause of action based on the victim’s perception.

What the puzzling portion – fashioned by Federal Judge Sarah Scheindlin —  seems to say is that if you think you’re being profiled you can sue the offending police officer.

It enables the new cause but offers no financial benefit to the victim. However, it does provide for attorney’s fees and costs which, some believe, could lead to a rash of actions against hundreds of police officers.

The ACLU unsurprisingly approves of this concept, but its detractors see it doing more to‘stir up litigation than to afford more respect for young minority men on our city streets.
* * *

Did Bloomberg’s Stubbornness Doom Stop-and-Frisk?

Many who believe stop-and-frisk has been an effective crime deterrent blame Mayor Bloomberg for not having done more to refine stop-and-frisk in order to remove any part of the practice that might be unconstitutional.

“Bloomberg knew that if the decision went against him, there was the likelihood of a court-appointed monitor coming in and adding another lawyer of bureaucracy” one barrister told us.”He wanted everything and now – unless this decision is reversed – he’s left with a mess to deal with as his term is about to end.”

Indeed, Commissioner Ray Kelly has offered numbers that strongly champion his and Mayor Bloomberg’s  position.

He recently wrote that “stop-and-frisk has saved 7,383 lives — and if history is a guide, they are largely the lives of young men of color,” adding that “murders are down 29 percent so far this year from 2012’s 50-year low.

“As a city, we have to face the reality that New York’ s minority communities experience a disproportionate share of violent crime,” he wrote. “To ignore that fact would be a form of discrimination in itself.”

There has to be a better way to achieve these results, but whether Judge Scheindlin’s specific ruling accomplishes that goal remains to be seen.
* * *

 

Subscribe to our newsletters


Leave a Comment


Leave a Comment