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Tuesday, Mar 19, 2024
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Scandal!

Lawyers and the media have always had a contentious relationship.

But the love-hate affair has intensified lately as blow-by-blow media coverage of local trials and cases has thrown law firms into the spotlight.

With big trials happening in Orange County,including those of former sheriff Mike Carona, Broadcom Corp. cofounder Henry Samueli and ex-Broadcom chief executive Henry Nicholas,lawyers on such headline-grabbing cases have become almost as famous as their clients.

It’s not at all unusual for law firms to seek media attention when there’s a big case in play or a big win is imminent.

“We all toot our own horns, including me,” said John Hueston, former federal prosecutor in the Enron Corp. case and an attorney at Los Angeles-based Irell & Manella LLP’s Newport Beach office. “I’m not any kind of saint. I talk about my good case results.”

Some firms hire press specialists to reach out to reporters and issue statements during or after trials.

“I certainly think it’s a practice that’s intensified,” said Lawrence Rosenthal, a professor at Chapman University School of Law in Orange. “I suspect that almost every firm above 20 lawyers has a media person these days. It’s considered a practical necessity.”

Some look to engage newspaper readers as a means to reel in more business.

Rosenthal said getting a mention in the Wall Street Journal is akin to “nirvana” for a commercial lawyer.

“A publication like (the Business Journal) might be a particular object of desire because the audience is a very discrete one,” he said. “One way you compete for business is through personal relationships. Another way is by getting your firm’s name or its lawyers’ names in front of more eyes.”


High-Profile Cases

Representing a controversial figure doesn’t matter in the big picture, according to H. Dean Steward, a defense lawyer who runs his own practice in San Clemente.

Steward is perhaps best known for defending Carona after he was indicted. He’s not part of Carona’s trial.

“The high-profile stuff is certainly there, but my reputation was made long before Mike Carona asked me to represent him,” he said. “That’s what carries me, rather than the salacious details of the case.”

Steward said he’s nonplussed by the media attention he’s seen over the years for various federal cases.

“The fact that my name ends up in the paper or that I end up on TV isn’t all that important to a sole practitioner,” he said. “(Whether) I end up on ‘Inside Edition’ or ‘Oprah’ shouldn’t make a difference at all.”

Steward points out that he doesn’t employ a full-time media relations person.

“I’m kind of old school like that,” he said. “I actually answer the phone myself most of the time.”

He said the days of celebrity-like lawyers are long over.

“It’s a different day in the legal profession,” Steward said. “The folks who become media stars are fewer and fewer these days. I can’t really name any other Johnny Cochran types out there. The big cases tend to get drowned in media attention and then the lawyers become insignificant.”

Still, he acknowledged that there are some benefits to having a famous client.

Civil attorneys are more likely to send referrals his way because of his expertise in federal criminal cases.

“In the end, every lawyer wants their name out there,” Steward said. “In federal court it’s a small group of people and we all know each other. When a client gets into trouble and the FBI shows up at his doorstep, I want them to think of me.”

Taking on controversial cases makes for a tricky balancing act, because it can cement an attorney’s reputation,good or bad.

Some say that an attorney is likely to be judged based on the public perception of the client he or she is defending, according to Chapman professor Rosenthal.

“There’s a big advantage in representing a guy like (Broadcom’s) Henry Samueli,” he said. “What you are signaling to the world is that someone who is considered extremely sophisticated and successful has confidence in your judgment.”

The reverse is true, too.


Dangerous Tool

Being very present in the media can be harmful to clients as well.

“Working the press can be a tool of public relations, but it can also be a dangerous one,” Irell’s Hueston said. “Dealing with the press must be really carefully considered because there are potentially adverse consequences to your existing clients. I’ve seen lawyers hurt by press conferences.”

Hueston pointed to the case of the Lewis “Scooter” Libby, who in 2007 was convicted of obstruction of justice, perjury and making false statements to federal investigators for his role in outing CIA agent Valerie Plame.

“In the Libby case, the attorneys spoke frequently to the press and secondarily to the public about what they believed the case involved and who was responsible,” Hueston said. “They didn’t end up calling on a number of witnesses who they earlier described as involved, but the jurors were aware of that. It hurt their credibility and perhaps hurt their client’s chances for acquittal at trial.”

Media presence can be especially harmful during criminal proceedings, Hueston said.

“It can be injurious to a client during the case, particularly criminal cases, when lawyers are accusing prosecutors of bad faith actions,” he said. “Those messages, in an attempt to cultivate the court of public opinion, can often misfire at trial. The best legal representatives are the ones who say very little at all during the pendency of the case.”

A lot of consideration should go into any decisions to reach out to the media, Hueston said.

“You can increase your business by continuing going to the press, but you can often hurt your client. That’s not good lawyering,” he said. “Contact with the media is often at cross-purposes with the client’s best interests.”

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