Legal Ethics
Lawyer Misses Client’s Murder Trial, Says He’s on Sabbatical
Posted Jan 28, 2008, 08:56 am CDT
By Debra Cassens Weiss
Screen shot from GlenLerner.com.
A Las Vegas personal injury lawyer known for his colorful commercials failed to show up last week to defend a client accused of murder, telling a prosecutor he was on sabbatical out of state.
Glen Lerner left a voice mail with a county prosecutor saying he wouldn’t return to defend the client, and "if the judge wants to sanction me, she can sanction me," the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports.
Law professor Martin Geer of the University of Nevada told the newspaper that the judge overseeing the case could hold Lerner in civil or criminal contempt of court for missing the trial. “It's an outrageous thing to do," he said.
"A lot of judges would have issued a warrant for his arrest immediately,” he said. “I've seen it happen when someone is late."
Lerner, who calls himself the Heavy Hitter, told the Review-Journal in an earlier article that he is in Pennsylvania writing a book and re-examining his life. "I've been living the life of a rock star for so long," he said.
He said he had tried to reach a deal with the prosecutor in the murder case, and when it didn’t work out, he asked for more time to prepare for trial. "I'd rather be sanctioned than railroad my guy into accepting 25 years in prison," he said.
A 2006 article in the Las Vegas Sun headlined “Ads So Tasteless You Want to Sue” said Lerner ran more ads than any other lawyer in the state. One showed space aliens asking Lerner for advice. In another, he spins like the Tasmanian Devil, the Review-Journal says.
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Comments
Posted by Budda Magoo - 3 months, 2 weeks, 13 hours, 31 minutes ago
This pathetic excuse for a lawyer says he’s worried about having to ‘railroad his guy into 25 years in prison’. He’s so hung up on himself, he doesn’t see the damage he’s doing to his client by not showing up. What’s everyone else supposed to think of the defendant when the guy’s lawyer bails? I think Lerner needs to do 25 years himself for what he’s done. Truly pathetic.
Posted by karla - 3 months, 1 week, 6 days, 7 hours, 19 minutes ago
At least the guy had the heart to NOT just let his client be railroaded, which is more than most Nevada attorneys would do. They are an unscrupulous bunch and I would like to name them individually…
Posted by Experienced - 3 months, 1 week, 3 days, 19 hours, 6 minutes ago
A-hole is as A-hole does.
Posted by FormerNevadan - 3 months, 1 week, 3 days, 17 hours, 11 minutes ago
"The Heavy Hitter” already has a long history of trouble with the Nevada bar. This may finally get his license yanked—and deservedly so.
Posted by Jersey - 3 months, 1 week, 3 days, 16 hours, 55 minutes ago
What if it is a strategy to protect his client? Albeit a really unethical one, essentially defrauding the court, but his client clearly could get worse punishment if he is not ready. I reserve judgment. I would be hopping mad if I were the prosecutor, and I hope the judge and attorney disciplinary board extract their pound of flesh for this, but again, the client is who matters. Has the client’s position been jeopardized here, as far as anyone knows?
Posted by oer - 3 months, 1 week, 3 days, 15 hours, 17 minutes ago
Heavy hitter, huh? I hope he can take a hit as well. The first one undoubtedly will come from the judge.
Posted by Heartland Attorney - 3 months, 1 week, 3 days, 15 hours, 3 minutes ago
If you look at his web site you can understand better why he didn’t show up. It doesn’t sound like he’s ever actually taken a case to trial. It’s all Settlement - Settlement - Settlement. I’ll bet the insurance companies really do love him.
Posted by Jer - 3 months, 1 week, 3 days, 11 hours, 17 minutes ago
Karla
As an attorney in Nevada I would like to thank you for painting with such a broad brush. It is always so much easier to besmirch the character of an entire state or entire class of people rather than take the time and hassle to make and informed and intelligent comment. I am sure you are a good and decent individual yourself. Thank you for your professional courtesy and your eloquent comments.
Posted by DNP - 3 months, 1 week, 3 days, 10 hours, 9 minutes ago
Jer - good for you. I question Karla’s statistics anyway. “Most” Nevada attorneys? I’ve worked with a number of Nevada attorneys and each one has been extremely helpful and very professional - and just plain nice!
Posted by Mary - 3 months, 1 week, 1 day, 17 hours, 8 minutes ago
Karla
As a future Nevada attorney, I find it sad that you feel the need to denigrate all Nevada attorneys based on your personal experience with, perhaps, a few who give the rest of us a bad name. Yes, I have met a few unscrupulous attorneys and judges, both in Nevada and elsewhere. However, the majority are hardworking, decent human beings. On that note, I cannot understand why Glen Lerner was chief counsel in this case at all. He deals almost exclusively in PI and very rarely goes to trial. His attitude about this case is appalling and he should be strongly sanctioned, perhaps disbarred, if warranted. The one I feel sorry for is his client.