I got the heads-up that Jim had been interviewed by Law 360 and actually said something nice about me. Thinking that it could not be so – since I once suggested that his skills as a defense lawyer reminded me of the kids that looked so closely at the details that “they burned the wings off of small insects with a magnifying glass." Now, I feel both bad and a bit humbled. Here is part of his interview:
Q: Outside your own firm, name one lawyer who’s impressed you and tell us why.
A: I can think of two from whom I’ve learned a great deal.
Leo Knowles supervises litigation as a senior vice president for ConAgra Foods Inc. I have never seen him do anything short of the right thing for his client and its customers.
He’s also taught me how much a lawyer can say without opening his mouth. As a group, lawyers talk far too much and listen far too little. Leo is different than the rest of us in that regard. I have promised myself to be more like him in that sense.
Bill Marler of Marler Clark in Seattle is perhaps the nation’s best known attorney representing food borne illness claimants. While he and I have often disagreed, he has a tremendous amount of integrity, and has never, ever failed to put his clients’ interests first.
He also understands and respects the science involved in a case and is intellectually honest enough to let the scientific facts define a particular outbreak, even when that definition may seem unfavorable to him personally.
If I needed an attorney to represent a family member in a food borne illness case, Bill is the first person I would call.
Well, I certainly agree with him about Mr. Knowles.