C. Martin Stepp's Blog: Walking Backwards
April 22, 2013
July 11, 2012
June 8, 2012
Walking Backwards
I listened intently, or at least tried to put an expression on my face that would make it appear to my client that I was listening intently. When he finished speaking I waited for a moment to see if he was going to elaborate on what “much worse” was. A few seconds passed and I realized he had finished and now expected a response. I complied: “I don’t have enough information to completely rule out a ‘fling’ as you called it, but I have worked on countless domestic cases that did involve infidelity. This case does not seem to exhibit the usual elements of an extra- marital affair.” Marx was sitting there looking at me like he was only half listening so I said: “I can keep working on your case if you like. It’s your money.”
That statement had the desired effect. Mr. Marx quickly rejoined me in the here and now. He obviously understood that he needed to make a decision. A decision that involved money, and possibly a significant amount of it. I was happy to have regained my client’s full attention but there was also a subtle look of consternation on his face. His mind worked like a fine piece of machinery- the kind with gears and cogs and ratchets. The kind of machine that can self- correct for errors. When it hits a snag it
will repeat the cycle that occurred just prior to the malfunction with minor modifications. It will eventually clear the jam and allow it to continue working normally. I waited patiently for Marx’s clockwork brain to reset itself and resume normal operation.
That statement had the desired effect. Mr. Marx quickly rejoined me in the here and now. He obviously understood that he needed to make a decision. A decision that involved money, and possibly a significant amount of it. I was happy to have regained my client’s full attention but there was also a subtle look of consternation on his face. His mind worked like a fine piece of machinery- the kind with gears and cogs and ratchets. The kind of machine that can self- correct for errors. When it hits a snag it
will repeat the cycle that occurred just prior to the malfunction with minor modifications. It will eventually clear the jam and allow it to continue working normally. I waited patiently for Marx’s clockwork brain to reset itself and resume normal operation.
