From the Sensei case files: What a difference a judge makes. After many weeks of poison pen letters exchanged between irate counsel who couldn’t agree that two plus two equals four, much less agree on how to handle electronic evidence, the judge had had enough. He gathered his misbehaving pupils together and gave them a lesson in judicial power. He explained solemnly that they would have two weeks to reach an amiable resolution of their issues. “Failing that (he paused here for dramatic emphasis), someone is going to spend some time in jail.” Funny how a few words from a judge can change the demeanor of legal warriors. Their subsequent meeting was all peaches and cream, with the former adversaries outdoing one another in their courtesy. In the end, agreement was indeed reached and they did everything except toast marshmallows around the campfire and sing “Kumbaya.”
Apparently, no one doubted that this judge was dead serious.
E-mail: snelson@senseient.com Phone: 703-359-0700
