Proverbs 17:10
Now long retired as a County Court Judge, Carmine Marasco learned a lifelong lesson early in his career. As a struggling young lawyer in private practice, he very much wanted to be noticed by a particular firm, hoping they'd hire him as a senior associate or perhaps even a junior partner. His day came.
Carmine had a small insurance claim scheduled immediately be- fore a major case the big firm was to handle in the same court. Carmine's matter would just take minutes, so a partner in the firm would certainly be in the courtroom awaiting his own proceedings. This is it, Carmine thought. I'll impress him with my crisp courtroom style, engage him in conversation between cases and slip him a resume during the day, a perfect opportunity.
The day before his big day in court, Carmine was not surprised to be called to a conference in the judge's chambers with Bill, the insurance company's attorney, an experienced lawyer whom he got along with quite well. The claim had already been settled, and the only issue remaining was approval of his legal fee. No matter how small, fees must always be approved by the presiding judge.
The judge, an older man of Italian descent, was a favorite of Carmine's, and he knew the judge liked him because of their common heritage.
"Have a seat," he said with a friendly wave as Carmine arrived in chambers. "Bill and I were talking about your fee for this insurance case tomorrow. What are you planning to charge?"
"Two hundred dollars."
"No, that's way too low," the judge said. "Normal for this sort of thing is $500. So here's what we'll do in court tomorrow.
"I'll ask you how much you plan to charge, and you'll say $1,000. Bill here will object. I'll agree that it's too high and cut you back to $500. Bill looks good to his company, I'm on record for keeping legal fees down - remember, I'm up for re-election next month - and you get $300 more than you planned. Everybody's happy."
Bill nodded agreement.
Not quite right, Carmine thought. But then again, I have been undercharging. My time is valuable. And I did put some work into that claim. Maybe it's worth $500. Okay, judge, whatever you say.
The next day, the courtroom was packed for the big case, and sure enough, there was the partner from the large firm waiting patiently in the front row, talking with a reporter from the local paper. The undercurrent of conversation buzzed steadily as housekeeping matters were disposed of. Finally, Carmine's case was called, and the old judge smiled at him warmly.
"I understand this is an insurance case that's already been settled," he said, "and the only matter remaining is the amount of the plaintiff's attorney's fee to be paid by the insurance company. Is that correct?" "Correct, Your Honor," said Carmine and Bill together.
"Good," said the judge. "What fee do you propose, Mr. Marasco?"
"One thousand dollars, Your Honor."
"Does the insurance company have any objection to this fee?"
"Yes, Your Honor, we do," said Bill. "We feel that's substantially too high."
Then Carmine was blindsided. An angry scowl replaced the judge's smile, and he leaned forward to wave his finger menacingly in Carmine's face.
"I AGREE! A THOUSAND DOLLARS IS EXORBITANT! YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF, MR. MARASCO, ASKING A FEE LIKE THAT FOR A SIMPLE CASE LIKE THIS. "
The judge actually shouted the words at him, bringing a shocked silence to the courtroom as everyone turned to stare at Carmine, including the partner from the major law firm.
The judge continued coldly and deliberately in front of the now silent courtroom. "I'm going to teach you a lesson, young man. I'm cutting your fee in HALF...to $500. That's all you deserve. Dismissed."
Slinking back from the bench, Carmine realized the judge had kept the bargain, but with no warning that it included humiliation in open court. He saw the disgusted look on the face of the major firm's partner and thought; I made an impression all right. Gathering his papers, Carmine overheard the partner say to a young assistant, "Wonderful. We use all the pull we have to schedule our case before an easy judge, and this young jerk puts him in a rage right before we go on."
Carmine never got the chance to work for that firm.
