Wow. Today was one of those days where *almost* everything not only went right, but exceeded my expectations. Since there are so many positive events, I will just start in chronological order. :)I woke up at 5:00 am after very little sleep. It has been a busy week at work and I have been logging some long hours. I had a 10 miler on my schedule because I did not feel well yesterday and couldn't get the full 10 in. I was a bit worried my HR would be super high and it would be a tough run b/c it was pretty humid and I was exhausted. But I hit the road and fell into a groove by mile 4. By mile 7, HR was good, I felt strong and so I picked it up a bit. I thought about how good my legs, etc. felt and was thankful I was not hurt. By mile 9.5 I decided to really pick it up and bring it home. Logged the last mile at a 7:53 pace and was probably doing closer to 7:00 pace during the last half mile. What a nice feeling after so many months of slow running! So that was a nice start.
I then got ready for work and was a bit nervous. Today was my first court appearance. No big deal, just a pre-trial scheduling conference. HOWEVER, the defendant in this case is a pretty wild pro-se defendant and I have heard many tales. So, I knew it wouldn't exactly be mundane. In addition, my client has been fighting with this defendant for years and she just won't seem to go away. They are tired of paying legal fees and dealing with this person. Unfortunately, she won't settle. The direction given to me by the senior partner who gave it to me: make it go away. Great - and I am sent to get the scheduling set and start discovery. Just what the client wants.
The good news is that my husband had a hearing at the same time/same court so we met up and walked down together - how cool is that?
So I get to court and all is well, but the defendant is not there. We wait and wait. I am thinking - wow - this is crazy! Can I ask the judge for a default even though this is only a scheduling conference and not a hearing on the merits? Or will he just let me set the schedule according to my requests without regard to the defendant since she did not show up? I did not want to ask for anything inappropriate, but did not want to lose any opportunities either. So the judge goes on record, states the defendant is a no show and then asks me what I would like the court to do. Ah, moment of truth. So, I take the true lawyer route:
Me: Your Honor, I can't say I have ever been in the position where the other party did not show up to a scheduling conference.
Judge: (Smiles) well, we could enter a default if you request it.
Me: I so move for a default
Judge: It is so ordered, when would you like a hearing to prove up your damages?
Hell Yeah!!! So my first hearing - a scheduling conference - ends up a dispositive hearing on the merits of the case. Yep, that means I won my first case today! Woo Hoo! Didn't see that one coming.
I got back to work and finished up a very painful document review we have been working on - after of course sharing my crazy story with several colleagues who were equally surprised the judge granted a default at a scheduling hearing.
But it gets better - in the midst of my doc review, my secretary, who had a dr appt due to a potential breast cancer scare, came back with good news (or at least non-cancer news). Thank God!!!
Shortly thereafer I got the bad news that my 6 year old was throwing up and feeling awful. Darn, I needed to cancel my trip to Milwaukee for a firm event (this is not really part of the bad news - sometimes an excuse can be a blessing). Hopefully the little guy is ok....
I came home and the boys were ok although a bit green. THEN, I notice my brand spankin new Mizuno Wave Alchemy 8s had arrived. I tried them on, and from first glance, I think they are going to be awesome - much lighter than the 7s and the toe box is a little roomier. Does this really mean no more black toenails? We will find out tomorrow.
So that was my day. Not many days are so good. Today was great.
BTW - The pic is my super fast 5 year old racing to the finish line from last Sunday's Diva Dash.
3 comments:
That kid has great form! Frankly, I'm jealous. His arm cross his chest though. You'll have to work on that, Mom.
Oh, and congratulations on winning your first case! It sounds so "LA Law." Does Arnie work at your place? (I'm afraid I might be dating myself.)
Me, I wrestled with a spreadsheet and drank lots of coffee today. Woohoo!
Sounds like a fabulous day! Way to go on your first court appearance! I didn't realize you were a new attorney. Nice start! Bet you see the partners start giving you more cases to make them go away too -
And nice fast finish to your 10 miler!
Greg - he DOES have great form. And I laugh about your comment re his cross motion. The second thing that came to mind (after what great leg form!) after seeing that pic was wow - he is expending way too much energy in his arms.... Yeah, but he is FIVE, Mindi. Glad I'm not the only one that doesn't hold back on critiquing five-year old form. Hey, the earlier the better, right?
RFTL - Yes, I am a relative newbie. I should be a partner/SH by now, but after I practiced a couple years I took some time off to raise my kids (aka Stay at Home Mom) b/c my husband and I were both lawyers and he was working such ridiculous hours (as was I, but now it seems "normal"), that we felt we'd never see our kids.
Litigation is entirely new to me (other than a few cease and desist letters and early motion practice). My earlier practice was heavily IP prosecution and transactional work, but when I returned to work in Jan, I wanted to focus more on litigation. And so I have....
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