MEDIA REVIEWS

John Hill for the State of Texas: My Years as Attorney General

By John hill Jr., with Ernie Stromberger
Texas A&M university Press, 2008

John Hill, Jr. was among the most recognized and influential Texas lawyers in the second half of the Twentieth Century. Before his death in July 2007, he served the State of Texas for nearly 60 years not only as a first-class trial lawyer, but also as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Secretary of State, and Attorney General.  The special place he held in the hearts of lawyers and politicians not just in Texas but across the nation is reflected in the moving tributes accompanying the book authored by Senator John Cornyn (“Forward”) and by Justice Elizabeth Lacy of the Virginia Supreme Court (“An Introduction to My Mentor”). Both passages, which were written after Hill’s death, convey not only enormous respect and admiration for a legal and political career of rare dimensions, but also a sense that Hill was a man that treated others with kindness and respect above all else.

In this book, which he almost completed before his death, Hill tells in the first person the story of his six years as Attorney General of Texas from January 1, 1973 through 1978. He takes the reader through the legal and political battles he considered to be the hallmarks of his term in office: (1) consumer protection; (2) cleaning up the Houston Ship Channel; (3) battling Southwestern Bell over proposed rate increases; (4) fighting to correct wrongs in the state’s privately-managed homes for troubled youths; (5) fighting corruption in Duval County; (6) battling California and Nevada for Howard Hughes’ estate taxes; (7) defending the state’s death penalty; and (8) seeking reform of the state’s prisons and youth detention schools.

Perhaps the most enduring work Hill and and his office did led to passage of the Deceptive Trade Practices Act in 1973. He guides the reader through the political battles he waged throughout the first months of his term to ensure that the state’s then-meager consumer protection laws were significantly revamped. He took great pride in this achievement, and his discussion of the effort that led to passage of the act shows the trials and tribulations of guiding such legislation through rough political waters.

Hill’s account of his efforts to stop commercial pollution in the Houston Ship Channel will be of particular interest to all currently concerned about pollution in the channel and Galveston Bay. His description of the dire situation he faced when he took office in 1973, a time when large quantities of pollutants spewed into the channel waters with little regulation on a daily basis, paints a sobering picture, and the battle he waged to stop such pollution and force those responsible for it to mend their ways is inspiring. He embraced that crusade with fervor, and, with just a few bumps along the road, it was one in which he was extremely successful – as he was in most endeavors throughout his career.

John Hill for the State of Texas is as informative as it is inspiring, and is a must-read for anyone desiring insight into the inner workings of the state’s political and legal system in the 1970s.
Shawn Bates is a partner with the Houston office of Yetter, Warden & Coleman, LLP. His practice focuses on litigation and arbitration of complex commercial disputes involving the construction, pipeline, and oilfield technology industries, among others. He is a member of The Houston Lawyer editorial board.

Lessons from the Courtroom

By Frank G. Jones
Kaplan Publishing 2009

Reviewed by Hannah Sibiski

By his own admission, Frank Jones is one of the lucky ones – a lawyer who cut his teeth managing a large and varied docket and taking those cases to trial. Like Jones, many of today’s young lawyers have the opportunity to work alongside seasoned, talented litigators. But unlike Jones, most of them will not have the opportunity to follow those mentors into the courtroom and sit second chair at trial. Many aspiring trial lawyers struggle to find courtroom experience in today’s legal landscape, in which many cases settle and trials often are staffed by experienced partners.

In his book, Lessons from the Courtroom, Jones gives those young lawyers the chance to sit as his second-chair at trial, giving detailed, step-by-step instructions, suggestions, and examples of every stage of a case, from filing to verdict. He also gives those young lawyers novel ideas – and detailed explanations – of ways to get into the courtroom themselves to practice those techniques and develop their own style. Jones not only believes that “[t]here really is no substitute for courtroom experience,” he gives young lawyers practical, detailed ideas for how to get it.

Jones lists pro bono cases and attorney loan programs, providing helpful advice for young lawyers who are trying to talk their firms into sponsoring such work. He also describes ideas that associates may think are impossible – at least until they read exactly how to make them happen. For example, Jones discusses alternative billing arrangements in which a law firm shares the costs of taking the case to trial so that allowing the associate to try the case is a good business decision for the firm and its client. Jones gives specifics on how to determine the appropriate cases to take to trial under such arrangements, what types of arrangements work well for clients, and how to talk partners and clients into agreeing to try the case.

Jones also gives young lawyers specific examples of stages in a trial in which a lawyer not working on the case can add value to the trial team. For example, he explains that a young lawyer can sit in the courtroom during voir dire and then give the trial team valuable insight into individual answers, facial expressions, or other body language that the trial team may have missed. Jones encourages young lawyers to not just observe, but to find a way to be a part of the trial team and add value to the case – and to their skills as trial lawyers.

Jones’s use of Rolling Stones’ lyrics in his lesson on how to use discovery effectively could be used to describe the ultimate lesson from the courtroom that he shares: “You can’t always get what you want, but if you try some time, you just might find, you get what you need.” Much of what you need to develop your trial lawyer skills is in Lessons from the Courtroom – including how to get there yourself.

Lessons from the Courtroom is available at Brazos Bookstore and online at Amazon.

Hannah Sibiski is an associate at Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. and a member of The Houston Lawyer editorial board.

The Candidate Conspiracy

By John Odom
iUniverse
$17.75 (paperback, 269 pp)

Reviewed by Farrah Martinez

Houston lawyer John Odom is no stranger to politics, which is evident from his new suspense novel, The Candidate Conspiracy.  In politics, anything can happen, and this novel explores that notion in Texas politics while illuminating the impact of lobbyists, political action committees, fundraising, and the disregard of campaign finance laws by candidates.

Jennifer Spencer is a Houston lawyer who dedicates her time volunteering for Warren McDonald’s campaign for the U.S. Senate.  As her involvement grows, she quickly discovers that McDonald, her once prominent candidate, is raising less and less money and drawing fewer crowds, while his primary opponent, Andrew Smith, a candidate with few credentials and even less political experience, is raking in campaign contributions and drawing huge crowds of supporters.

As the plot thickens, Spencer uncovers an international scheme involving not only the U.S. Senate race but also the race for the White House. And Sergei Yazkov illegally enters the United States under instructions from the Russian Mafia to ensure the success of “Tejano Project,” a scheme funded by wealthy individuals and special interest groups determined to put more guns into the hands of U.S. citizens and prevent the passage of gun control legislation. Yazkov murders a police officer, demonstrating he is not afraid to kill anyone who dares to jeopardize the success of his mission.

Jack Hardesty and Dan Morton, the masterminds and lobbyists behind the Tejano Project, subsequently risk it all to not only sabotage McDonald’s primary campaign but also to guarantee victory for Senator Russell Creighton, an incumbent running both for re-election and for President of the United States of America. They believe Creighton’s re-election or victory in the race for the White House will decrease gun control restrictions and increase gun sales, and cause foreign contributors to gain a major return on their illegal contributions. Hardesty’s nerves become rattled, and he fears he could be the target of a federal investigation, after his counterpart reveals too many details about the Tejano Project in return for millions of dollars in contributions.

Meanwhile Yazkov infiltrates the McDonald campaign with one of his many disguises. Once he discovers Spencer is close to uncovering the Tejano Project, she becomes his next target; however, Spencer is not his only problem. Texas Lone Ranger Juan Falcone is searching for the murder suspect who killed two individuals not far from the border of Mexico, and the trail is leading in Yazkov’s direction. As Falcone closes in on Yazkov and Spencer closes in on the Tejano Project, the three paths finally cross for an unforgettable encounter.

In the end, Governor Bates, who is uneasy with the thought of political corruption in the great state of Texas and impressed by the teamwork shown by Spencer and Falcone, offers the pair an opportunity to continue their work to crack down on corruption in Texas politics. As the duo accepts the Governor’s offer to work on the Tejano Project case, Odom leaves us wondering if a sequel will soon follow. This novel is a great read for a relaxing day away from the office.

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