Legal Reserves

by James Rosenberg

  Sandy Richards, though in her mid-fifties, still looked thirty-

  something. Outwardly, she maintained the positive outlook that allowed her to overcome a childhood being shuttled from foster home to foster home, to becoming the proprietor of Detroit’s second largest flower boutique, Flowers in Bloom. Living alone, even with an active group of friends and social life, Sandy was still not ready to consider opening up her life to anyone new.

  Sandy sat on Jeri’s bed and beckoned her over so they could speak. “Sweetie, I have enjoyed these last two days so much. Now that you are a judge, we just don’t get to talk or see each other enough. Soon you are going to be married, and then have a kid. It’s just happening so fast to my baby.”

  Jeri rolled her eyes. “Mom, we talk all of the time. Maybe not quite as much as usual, but I let you know what’s happening with me. Thanks for helping me get through my checklist for the wedding. It’s coming up faster than I thought it would.”

  “You must be worn out. Planning a wedding is not easy, but I loved having you all to myself this weekend.”

  “So did I Mom, but there’s a lot I need to do in Pittsburgh. I know you want me to stay longer, but I need to get out of here.”

  “I know you want to go home.” Sandy stuck out her lower lip and pouted. “I know we’ve covered this territory all weekend, but let’s make sure you have everything ready for the wedding.”

  “Awesome idea Mom, because something probably changed in the last hour since we went over this,” Jeri said, realizing that most of her attention to detail had been inherited from her mom.

  Wanting to placate her mother, Jeri good naturedly went through the checklist again. “Dress−I will have the final measurements on Tuesday to allow for any last-minute bodily changes.” Jeri patted her belly which had gotten marginally bigger in the past few weeks. “The hotel’s confirmed. Caterer has the menu finalized. We will go over the guest list next week. You are to call Aunt Betty to make sure she brings enough of her medication and takes it before she arrives. I spoke with the band and will give them your playlist when I meet with them. Is that everything?” Jeri smiled at her mom, knowing she only wanted the perfect wedding for her.

  “One more thing I wanted to talk about,” Sandy said, again caressing the quilt on the bed. “I thought of this and couldn’t imagine what you were doing about it, but who is going to walk you down the aisle?”

  Of all the details which Jeri, with the help of her mom, planned with bureaucratic zeal, this was the one she did not want to think about. When her mother posed the question, Jeri realized she had been unconsciously ignoring this issue. With her father having been killed when she was in high school, and no close relative available to step into that role, Jeri was at a loss.

  “Why can’t you, Mom?”

  “I don’t think I should give my daughter away. Your dad would’ve been so proud to walk with you down the aisle. I’m worried I would want to keep you rather than give you away and that just wouldn’t make for a happy wedding, would it?” Jeri pictured her mom desperately holding onto her arm as Jeri tried to finish her walk to Alan.

  “You are probably right. I don’t need that video on YouTube the next day.” Jeri stopped, turned her head to the side as an idea emerged. “I have a thought. I don’t want to tell you now, but I have a possible solution. I will tell you when I finalize it. Is that okay?”

  “Sure, honey, whatever you want.”

  Jeri stood to signal she was ready to leave. She walked to her mother and embraced her. Sandy still appeared sturdy to her, but for the first time Jeri noticed a subtle frailty in her shoulders and her back.

  “I love you, Mom,” Jeri said as she left the room to head downstairs to leave for home.

  Chapter 34

  May 15, 2018—Five Years after Graduation from Law School

  THE DIN IN the restaurant drifted over the patrons spinning their pasta and sipping their drinks, but didn’t seem to reach the back table where Mike and Megan had been quietly conversing for ninety minutes. Mike was still picking at the remnants of his eggplant linguini while Megan tossed back the last sip of wine, effectively killing the bottle. Mike eyed Megan pushing away her dish.

  “Damn, you are a good eater,” Mike remarked. “We’ve been to Thai, Vietnamese, barbecue, and now Italian restaurants. I don’t believe I’ve seen you leave a speck of food on your plate anywhere. It’s good to see someone enjoy eating so much.”

  Megan patted her stomach and smiled at Mike. “You do just fine yourself. I think it’s good we share this love of food. It gives us more time to talk.”

  “True. Tonight we’ve discussed your family. I told you about my disappearing dad. We came to an understanding on action flicks. I guess that only leaves a little time for you to tell me what happened at the hospital.”

  Megan shifted uncomfortably. “I had an interesting day, but I’m not sure I’m ready to share.”

  “Come on. I promise I won’t tell anyone.”

  “Fine, but this is a little embarrassing.”

  Mike nodded, but said nothing.

  “Okay, I am juggling three extra patients because we were a little short in the morning. Mr. Davis−I will call him that to protect his HIPPAA rights−is in one of the rooms. He’s been in bed for a couple of days for pneumonia. Nothing life threatening, but he’s demanding star treatment. Ordinarily, I would be happy to give him a little extra kindness, but I am running from room to room checking IVs and dispensing medicine. You know real patient care stuff.”

  Megan stabbed a piece of eggplant off Mike’s plate and continued. “Every time I go by his room, he’s trying to get my attention. I told him I would help him as soon as possible, but that didn’t slow him down. He pressed his call button like three times in fifteen minutes, but it was clear he had no medical issues, he only wanted someone in his room with him. I couldn’t get to him for a little while, so I hear him singing, really loud. ‘oh, nurse, oh nurse, would you please come and help me.’“

  Mike started laughing as Megan became animated, telling her story. “This goes on for five minutes. He comes up with three verses about how beautiful I am and how he needs me to come see him. Everyone on the floor hears him: patients, nurses, doctors, families, but nobody is doing anything. It’s starting to get embarrassing because everyone knows he is singing to me.

  “After about twenty-five minutes, I go to Mr. Davis’s room. He’s a sweet man, but I think extremely lonely. He smiles at me. Mr. Davis is pushing eighty and his wife died a few years back. He finally stops singing and I stand next to his bed thinking I was going to have to be stern with him. There is a tear rolling down his cheek and he says to me, ‘You remind me of my wife. I used to sing to her. I’m sorry I caused so much trouble.’

  “I see his small frame lying in his bed and I tell him I loved his singing, but I thought we should keep it between the two of us and he should only sing to me when I am in his room, but not when I am walking down the hall. He agrees it would be our little secret. I go into his room two more times before my shift ended and he sang two beautiful songs. He has a lovely voice when he’s not singing at the top of his lungs.”

  Megan glanced at Mike and caught him admiring her. “You better start singing to me,” she said, “or I may be eating my dinners with Mr. Davis.”

  Mike took a sip of water. “Thanks for sharing your story−not where I thought you were going when you started. By the way, don’t count on me singing to you anytime soon. I don’t have much of a voice. Sounds like Mr. Davis was looking for some company, and I think he was looking in the right place.”

  Megan blushed allowing Mike to continue. “I was thinking. We’ve been spending a lot of time together and I have a proposal.”

  “Go ahead,” Megan said, her voice wavering.

  “I told you a law school friend of mine was getting married in a couple of weeks. The wedding is in Detr
oit and I would love it if you would come with me for the weekend.”

  Megan took a moment before replying. “I don’t know Mike. First of all, you must have RSVP’ed months ago when you didn’t know me, so there is no place for me there.”

  “I told you Jeri is a close friend of mine. If I called her, she would be so excited I was bringing someone. She thinks I don’t have much success in the dating department. It wouldn’t be a problem.”

  “Well it sounds like fun, but I don’t know if I have anything to wear.”

  “I will take you shopping.”

  “I don’t know if I am scheduled that weekend.” Megan pulled her phone out of her purse and opened it to her scheduler. She blushed. “It looks like I’m off then. But, my dad would be unhappy if I went to another city and shacked up with some guy in his hotel room.”

  “Hopefully, I am not just some guy and we can reserve two rooms if necessary. I want you to come for two reasons. First, I would have much more fun with you along, and second, I want to show you off to my law school friends. Make them realize I’m doing okay here in the boonies. Please come with me. You will like most of the people I know, I promise.”

  Megan fidgeted in her seat. Finally, she locked eyes with Mike and said, “Fine, I would love to go with you, but you better be ready to dance all night.”

  Chapter 35

  May 18, 2018—Five Years after Graduation from Law School

  THE COURTROOM WAS abuzz with activity. Lawyers huddled together trying to agree on stipulations before they argued their motions. It was forty-five minutes before the scheduled time for all of the arguments, but so far no court personnel had arrived to sign in the attorneys and tell them what number they were on the argument list.

  Mike arrived an hour before the scheduled time for the argument, hoping for an opportunity to say hi to Jeri. After being denied entry by her staff into her chambers, he sat alone in the courtroom looking over emails on his phone. A young attorney, wearing a charcoal grey pinstripe suit and sporting the beginnings of a goatee placed himself next to Mike and said, “Mr. Reigert, good to see you again.”

  Mike recognized the man as an attorney he opposed on a case which had settled a few weeks earlier. “Hey, Charlie, how’s it going?”

  “Just great. I filed summary judgment in a commercial claim. Got here early trying to get the lay of the land. I’m hoping to get to watch a few arguments before my case is called. Have you had anything before Richards before?”

  Mike shook his head. “No, this is my first time in front of her. Although we were law school classmates.”

  “Really, how do you think she’s going to handle the motions? Think she’ll be like Weksel and just sit there like a potted plant and not ask any questions?”

  “I doubt it. I think you’re going to get plenty of questions.”

  “Good. That makes it easier. It’s hard when you have no idea what the judge is thinking.”

  “Don’t you worry. She’ll know your brief better than you do.”

  Charlie chuckled. “Then I better go study my brief a little more. See you, Mike.”

  A few minutes later Jack rolled a huge document bag into the courtroom. He looked around undecided where to sit or place his bag until he spied Mike sitting on the last wooden bench gathering his materials. He walked over to him and plopped down. “How are things Mike?” Jack asked, smiling.

  “Pretty good, Jack. Good to see you again.”

  “We’re making a habit of it, aren’t we? I’m glad we got all of corporate depositions out of the way last week.”

  “Three days in Atlanta and I never left the hotel. We got to spend a lot of time in the same room, but we didn’t speak much, did we?”

  Jack laughed. “At least you didn’t yell at me this time.”

  “Nope, you were a perfect gentleman and professional during those depositions. Thanks for letting ask my questions without getting in the way too much. Your witnesses were pretty good at spewing the company line, weren’t they?”

  “Absolutely. That’s why they are corporate executives. They know our policies backwards and forwards.”

  Mike and Jack quickly gave each other personal updates. Noticing the court personnel had entered the courtroom, Jack switched gears. “Mike, I want us to take one more stab at settling this case. We upped our offer to your clients to a hundred and twenty-five thousand. So far you have indicated they would be interested only in a ‘substantial payday.’ I’m not sure exactly what that means, but I talked to my client who is prepared to offer two hundred thousand. Now Mikey, I will let you know I might have a little more money to close a deal, but you got to let me know where your clients are. If not, we will try this case and you may be looking at a big fat zero.”

  Mike waited for his annoyance at Jack’s comment to pass. “Here’s the thing Jack,” he began, “we are not worried about getting nothing. We are confident in our position. As I told you repeatedly, your people substantially impaired the lives of my clients by what they did to her. You know I’m not blowing smoke here, Jack. You met the Gebberts. Try and tell me they are full of shit−I know you can’t. I’ve told you they have not given me authority to settle the case. They appear like they want their day in court and whether or not I think you are making a fair offer, if they don’t want it, I can’t do anything.”

  Jack gritted his teeth and ran his hand tersely through his hair. His face turned crimson, his eyes narrowed. He tossed the file folder he held onto the seat next him. “Mike, you’ve made this difficult from the beginning. We are offering real money and you do nothing. We are about to argue summary judgment and your clients may be thrown out of court in the next hour.”

  “I doubt that and you do too. Jack, your offer doesn’t interest my client. In a lot of ways, you ‘re making it easy for them,” Mike stated calmly.

  Jack bent to pick up some of the papers which had fallen on the floor. When he lifted his head up to face Mike, not a trace of his smile remained. “Okay Mike, we’ll play it your way. I’m trying to teach you how to dance, but you keep standing off on the sidelines like you’re the prettiest girl at the party. But sometimes the best-looking girl never gets asked to dance.”

  Dumbfounded, Mike kept quiet, allowing Jack to continue. “I know I am not supposed to do this, but I’m going to make you an offer that will make your mouth water. I’ve got quarter million dollars for your clients. Tell me they accept and we can walk out of this courtroom still friends.”

  Jack’s offer nearly knocked Mike off of his chair. His first reaction was to leap in the air, throw his arms around Jack and tell him they were going out for a beer. His clients, however, had not authorized him to accept anything close to that and his marching orders were to keep plugging away and prepare for the trial scheduled in less than a month.

  Mike shook his head. “Jack, it sounds like a reasonable offer, but like I told you, my clients want their day in court. All I can do is take the offer back to them and once I talk to them, I’ll call you. Right now, I think we have to argue your summary judgment motion.”

  “God dammit Mike,” Jack said with undeniable exasperation, “you are crazy. No sane jury would ever give you anything in that ballpark.” As his voice rose, their conversation was interrupted by the banging of a fist on the clerk’s table. “Please, quiet in the courtroom,” the clerk instructed Jack and Mike. “Have all lawyers with arguments today checked in with the court?”

  Mike and Jack stood and walked to the front of the courtroom to check in and find out when how long they had to wait for the court to hear Jack’s summary judgment motion. Both were a bit disconcerted when they found out they would be the last to argue. They returned to their seats and sat together in stony silence.

  Chapter 36

  May 18, 2018—Five Years after Graduation from Law School

  “ALL RISE, THIS Honorable Court is now in session, the Honorab
le Jeri R. Richards presiding,” the tipstaff announced as Jeri strode out of her chambers and up the three steps to her seat behind the bench. She carried a stack of files and placed them next to the larger pile which was already on her stand. Pushing her black robe down as she sat in her leather chair framed by the flags of the United States and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Jeri gazed out over the packed courtroom.

  Before announcing the first case for argument, Jeri motioned for her tipstaff to come up to the bench. Kathy stood on her tippy toes as Jeri leaned forward.

  “Hi Kathy. Are you sure we have all of the files up here?” Jeri asked in a whisper, motioning to the papers next to her.

  “Absolutely Judge. I think you are ready to go.”

  “I don’t know why I am so nervous. Probably because I haven’t handled oral argument yet.”

  “You’ve spent the last three days reviewing the briefs for every argument. I think you’ve read all of the cases in the Pennsylvania Reporters. You’re ready.”

  “Do you think all of the lawyers know how much time I spent getting ready for these arguments?”

  “I doubt they care.”

  “Kathy, I’m not sure I told you before but when I used to argue motions, we would stand in the back of the courtroom and make nasty comments about the judge. Things like, ‘What a moron, he doesn’t know the law?’ Or, ‘Don’t be such an ass, Judge, we’re all doing our best here.’ Look at all of the attorneys here. You think they are talking about me?”