Signs You Need a Last-Minute Trial Lawyer

If you are frustrated with your current attorneys, it is important to understand why that is. What are the 5 signs you need a last-minute trial lawyer? Perhaps your current lawyer is not telling the right story about your case and failing to focus on the right things. Or maybe they are trying too hard to settle when it is clear that you want to go to trial. Once you recognize that your attorneys are not getting the job done, it may be time for you to hire replacement counsel to represent you at trial in your business fraud case, breach of fiduciary duty complaint, intellectual property claim, employment law matter, or other legal dispute.

Read this blog to learn the signs you need a last-minute trial attorney to handle your case.

Experienced Last-Minute Trial Counsel Can Prepare Your Case at the 11^th Hour

Sometimes, it becomes clear that your current lawyer just isn’t effective. This can be even more obvious when your current lawyer is not prepared to handle your case during the impending trial. Consulting with emergency counsel about your last-minute trial situation may be just the thing you need to get the case back on track.

Trial preparation is vital if you are going to have any chance of winning the case when it is presented to a judge or jury. The Los Angeles last-minute trial attorneys at Tauler Smith LLP know how to prepare a case at the eleventh hour because we have done it before in state and federal courtrooms across the country, including California, Texas, New York, and Florida. Our experienced litigators will provide you with a last-minute consultation to evaluate your case in advance of an upcoming trial. Whether your trial is still a few months away or it is just about to start, we can help you. We will take a hard look at the evidence, witness transcripts, and case briefs, and then come up with an effective trial strategy that is tailored to your particular case.

Red Flags That Your Current Attorneys Are Not Ready for Trial

You need to pay careful attention to your attorneys in the months and weeks leading up to trial. If you determine that your current counsel is not prepared for trial, or that they are simply unwilling to take the case to trial, you should consider getting outside assistance for last-minute trial representation.

There are a number of red flags that you need to be on the lookout for when it comes to your current legal representation. These are a few of the signs that you may need to hire a parachute trial lawyer:

You are not being included in the trial preparation process.
The case is getting more complicated.
Your current attorneys are unreasonably overconfident about winning at trial.
Your current attorneys are afraid to take the case to trial.
Your current attorneys are not prepared to communicate your story to the jury.

You Are Not Being Included in Trial Preparation

Even if you are involved in a complex legal dispute, your attorney should still strive to make sure that you understand everything involved in the case and that you are being included in the formation and development of trial strategy. Your involvement in strategizing for trial can be extremely important because you have unique insight into the case facts, parties, evidence, etc. Additionally, the trial is going to be your opportunity to have your story presented to a judge or jury in an official legal setting, and you should certainly have a say in what kind of story gets told and which arguments are made.

The Case Is Getting Too Complicated

Experienced litigators recognize that your case is supposed to get easier to understand as the trial date approaches. If that is not happening, and if the amount of evidence and number of claims and defenses is greatly expanding, then you need to consider whether your current legal counsel is who you want handling the trial and arguing your case to a judge or jury. The reality is that preparing a strong trial strategy is almost always going to be easier when attorneys are able to focus on a few key arguments that can be presented to jurors in a comprehensible way.

Your Attorneys Are Overconfident

It’s good for a lawyer to be confident about winning a case at trial, but you don’t want your attorney to be so confident that they ignore obvious warning signs. Attorneys need to rigorously test their arguments before trial, and this typically involves anticipating counterarguments that might be raised by the other side. Unfortunately, some lawyers become so enamored with their own case that they can’t recognize possible flaws and weak spots, which is how winnable cases end up being lost once the trial begins. Bringing on new last-minute trial representation who can offer a fresh perspective is often the best move you can make in these situations because it will allow you to challenge your own arguments and then craft the best possible trial strategy.

Your Attorneys Are Afraid to Go to Trial

The flip side of an attorney having too much confidence about a case is an attorney who does not have enough confidence to take a case to trial. Unfortunately, far too many lawyers simply don’t have experience actually trying cases in a courtroom, which causes them to seek bad settlements on behalf of their clients rather than pursuing justice at trial. The California last-minute trial team at Tauler Smith LLP is not afraid to take on late-notice cases and go to trial. We prepare every case with the expectation that it will go to trial, and we do so with meticulous precision.

Your Attorneys Can’t Communicate to Jury

The trial is your opportunity to tell the jury your story so that they understand why you deserve to win. When your lawyer is not capable of developing a jury-friendly story that can be easily understood, things can go off the rails very quickly. Additionally, the failure of your attorney to persuade the jury will open the door for the other side to “educate” jurors and frame the case in a way that is not favorable to you. You always want your story to be the one that gets communicated to the jury, but this requires a compelling theme and strong storytelling skills, which is what effective litigators are best at. A new lawyer can help you craft a clear-cut, unified message and ensure that the jury hears what you want them to hear during the trial.

Need Emergency Legal Counsel? Contact an Experienced California Last-Minute Trial Lawyer

If you have lost confidence in your trial counsel and the trial date is looming, you need to act quickly. The California last-minute trial lawyers at Tauler Smith LLP have been practicing in litigation for their entire legal careers. We can discuss your case and help you evaluate your options, whether the trial date is 90 days away or coming up next week.

Call 310-590-3927 or send us an email to discuss your case.