Dream of: 15 July 2004 "Pro Hac Vice"
I was in a one-room building, with pews -- like a church -- filled with men who seemed to be mostly Hispanics. I was the lawyer for two of the Hispanic men, probably in criminal cases. Both men were big. One was sitting up front, as if on the witness stand in a court, and was telling his story. The other man walked up to him, hit him several times, and finally kicked him in the face.
I had seen enough. I called out that I intended to call the police and I picked up a phone. I was surprised that the whole place suddenly emptied out. Only one other fellow (also a lawyer) remained. He was probably about 30 years old and seemed inexperienced. As I gathered up my papers (which I had scattered on a table), he and I began talking about my cases, and we finally reached an agreement that he could help me.
I told him we had a problem: we were in Kentucky -- across the river from Ohio -- and we weren't licensed to practice law in Kentucky. He seemed to think we could get permission for these cases to practice in the Kentucky courts. The words "pro hac vice" (meaning "for this time") went through my mind. I thought he was probably correct.
I gathered up my papers and we left (I didn't want to wait around for the police). We boarded a car and began driving down the road. Suddenly something on the right side of the road attracted my attention: an old mansion. I pulled the car up to the house and stopped. The house was probably three stories tall, but also had a square tower attached to it which was four or five stories tall.
The other lawyer and I stepped out of the car and walked inside. Some other men were walking around and I had the feeling the house was going to be torn down. However it was still filled with furniture. The more I looked, the more I liked the place. We found some old intricately-carved beds in one room, and in another room the wall (two-stories high) was covered with old paintings.
I learned that the owner had tried to sell the house for $30,000 but had received no offers. I immediately decided I wanted to buy it. By this time, my wife Carolina and another person had joined the other attorney and me in our walk through the house. Carolina seemed uncertain of the wisdom of buying the house, but she didn't object.
I learned from the men in the house the name of the owner, who was supposed to be on down the lane in another building. When I saw a moving van go past headed down the lane, I concluded that the furniture was probably going to be moved from the house and that I should act quickly if I wanted to buy it. With the attorney, Carolina, and the person with Carolina, I boarded my car and drove down the lane.
We reached a barn-like building and stepped out of the car. We walked inside where many people were milling about. I asked where the owner was and was told he was sitting on the other side of the barn. I walked over to some seats which looked like seats in a movie theater and finally found him.
He stood up and we talked about the house. I was already thinking of offering him $25,000, or maybe only $22,500. I told him I had heard he wanted to sell the house for $30,000. Carolina and the others with me listened as the man and I began talking (he was probably about 60 years old). He seemed wealthy. He didn't seem to care whether he sold the house, and he even began talking about some movies. I however directed his attention back to the house, informing him that I was interested in buying it.
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