Hail to the Dragon Slayer

Rating:
Summary: Any lawyer in need of some comic relief will enjoy "Hail"
Review: Any lawyer tired of tomes and in need of some comic relief will enjoy Arthur "Buddy" Lemann's "Hail to the Dragon Slayer", a memoir of selected cases handled by the successful New Orleans criminal defense lawyer over several decades.

Criminal defense lawyers all have survival mechanisms and strategies to contend with the stress which results from being responsible for protecting clients' liberty and from engaging in that particular kind of battle known as the trial. Buddy tells us about his--mythmaking and humor. The delusions of gradeur need a framework--the defense lawyer as Ivanhoe is a good one, especially for the Southern lawyer. We still look for damsels in distress. (Lawyers I know west of the Mississippi seem to prefer the cowboy archetype. You've all seen the "Gunfighters Don't Charge By The Bullet" poster.) But while what we do requires the energy of myths, at the end of the day we need a good laugh to bring us back to ear! th.

The Carlos Marcello (local allged mafioso) and the Dino Cincel (alleged pedophile priest) are the most famous of the cases. Buddy tells good stories, succinctly, unabashedly, and always with that twinkle in his eye. While weaving his knight theme though his trial tales, he also reveals some things about himself which certainly have some bearing on his skill as a trial lawyer. He admits to (or boasts about) being a sinner, which gives him something in common with both defendants and jurors. Let the judge and the prosecutor be holier than thou.

The dragons Buddy tells of fighting and sometimes slaying are the ones criminal lawyers have a license to duel--the king, the church, all authority. Years of such combat spawn a virulent form of cynicsm. Buddy reminds us that a good laugh is the antidote, and that the justice system must have some redeeming qualities, or dragons would never get slain.

His childhood adversary was that bastion of authoritarianism, the Catho! lic Church. The early duelling prepares him for his career! . He writes:

"I still remember the great agony of trying to make it from Friday's confession to Sunday's communion. But I soon learned how to beat the system. By confessing on Friday to uncommitted sins and throwing in one whopper to cover the scam, I could march up to the rail on Sunday mornings under the watchful eye of parents and priests with a clear conscience. Again, I sided with the sinners. It was also my first lesson in imunity."

Irreverent and sometimes politically incorrect, Dragon Slayer is a hoot. War stories were always my favorite part of CLE anyway.

Rating:
Summary: Great fun, great read.
Review: As a former criminal trial attorney, I loved this little novel about the chronical of a very colorful American family, and about the real courtroom wars in our criminal justice system. But I thought the novel was also the story of a "great one" coming into his own, unadorned, straight at you. Refreshing and funny...often spellbinding. I loved the apparently direct-from-the-courtroom arguments. The author's own voice adds a wonderfully real edge. Listen to this one, you'll love it. We need another soon.

Hal Dockins Jackson MS.

Rating:
Summary: Great fun, great read.
Review: As a former criminal trial attorney, I loved this little novel about the chronical of a very colorful American family, and about the real courtroom wars in our criminal justice system. But I thought the novel was also the story of a "great one" coming into his own, unadorned, straight at you. Refreshing and funny...often spellbinding. I loved the apparently direct-from-the-courtroom arguments. The author's own voice adds a wonderfully real edge. Listen to this one, you'll love it. We need another soon.

Hal Dockins Jackson MS.

Rating:
Summary: Funny, but true. Buddy Lemann did an outstanding job!
Review: Buddy Lemann's description of Louisiana law couldn't have been any more acurate! His descriptions of past cases were wonderfully worded. He did an excellent job of presenting the legal world in layman's language. I truly enjoyed learning the deepest secrets of his clients and stratagies! I can't wait for the next book!