The Defense Lawyer: The Barry Slotnick Story

by James Patterson, Benjamin Wallace

From a master of true crime comes the story of the criminal lawyer who represented everybody from Manuel Noriega to John Gotti to Bernie Goetz—and won every single case. Known for his sharp mind, sharp suits, and bold courtroom strategies, Bronx-native Barry Slotnick is known as the best criminal lawyer in the US.   He calls himself “Liberty’s Last Champion.”   Slotnick mediates Bette Midler’s bathhouse contract and represents John Gotti, “The Dapper Don.” He defends “Subway Shooter” Bernie Goetz and negotiates future First Lady Melania Trump’s pre-nup.   His unparalleled legal brilliance defines a profession, a city—and an era.

 

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, True Crime, Law, Crime, Audiobook, Mystery

545 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 20, 2021

About the author

Official US Site
Official UK Site
JIMMY Patterson Books
ReadKiddoRead

James Patterson is the most popular storyteller of our time and the creator of such unforgettable characters and series as Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Jane Smith, and Maximum Ride. He has coauthored #1 bestselling novels with Bill Clinton, Dolly Parton, and Michael Crichton, as well as collaborated on #1 bestselling nonfiction, including The Idaho Four, Walk in My Combat Boots, and Filthy Rich. Patterson has told the story of his own life in the #1 bestselling autobiography James Patterson by James Patterson. He is the recipient of an Edgar Award, ten Emmy Awards, the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation, and the National Humanities Medal.

Reviews

[QuinnReads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting

I went into this book knowing nothing other than it was non-fiction. I was aware of most of these cases discussed but it was interesting hearing the details of some of Barry Slotnick's biggest ones. I would not have been able to successfully read this as the style is unfavorable for me, but I did get into it the audio more than I expected as time went on.

The narrator for this was Stuart Slotnick, Barry's son. He was easy enough to listen to, especially with the subject matter. I also appreciated the authenticity of his regional NYC accent.

Story: 3.5 stars
Narration: 3.5 stars

Remember to support your local library! That's where I got this from. 😉📚🎧

[Shonda · Rating 2 out of 5]

not for me

I normally love James Patterson’s books but I prefer his fiction over non fiction. Nothing in this book surprised me… I mean I already watch ID channel and Law and Order…lol

[Mary Kamrath · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this non-fiction account of Barry Slotnick's defense attorney career. The book was written in James Patterson's typical style of short chapters with fast moving accounts of events. I learned quite a bit since I had never followed either the Goetz or Gotti trials.

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was OK. Not really my type of book. Thought it was drawn out and kind of boring. It could have been condensed a lot.

[Kay Gormley · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was surprising to find this was non-fiction (guess I didn't read the blurb carefully enough), but it was a very interesting read. I did like the honesty of the writing and learning about Barry Slotnick was informative. I would like to know what his son is now doing--so many of the cases were in the background for me. The law is not a field I would have enjoyed professionally because it's about winning, not the truth. A good read, not a typical Patterson book.

[Donna · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is one of the worst books ever written. J. Patterson should be embarrassed his name is on the cover. Just lists a bunch of random facts about a lawyer, Barry slotnick, and how great he thinks he is. Maybe James is trying to get on Barry’s good side so Barry will represent him if/when James gets sued by someone in the future. Like paying it forward. I can think of no other reason to write/publish this book unless Barry paid him lots of $ to do it. Of no interest to the general public.

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Even if you’re not a fan of biographies— one hell of a story!

It’s hard to believe that one man packed so much into his lifetime as has Barry Slotnick. With a talented storyteller at the helm, this bio is a larger than life tale. What a ride — all the ups and downs of life as a famous trial lawyer make for an extraordinary book.

I read this after checking it out from the LA County Library.

[Cheyenne Gregory · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was interesting but extremely confusing at times. There were chapters that didn’t need to be included (they didn’t add to the book) and it was, at times, hard to keep track of the various people involved in the cases. I was also disappointed in the writing style which I thought should have the book more interesting

[The Romance Book Disciple (Samantha) · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. This was just too boring to continue.

[Janis · Rating 3 out of 5]

While some parts of this book were interesting, it dragged on way too long on the major trials.

[Jill McDeavitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating

[Gladys Drybred · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was interesting. Was aware of the crimes but really knew nothing about them or the lawyer in the cases. Not a book I would have probably read except for the fact that it was a James Patterson book. He did a good job of showing the workings of a trial along with Ben Wallace.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was interesting to me since I never followed the Gaetz or Gotti trials. This lawyer was a blessing to the mob members., Quite a reputation for winning at all costs. I recommend this one for anyone interested in following mob trials, etc.

[DiAnne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would have liked to have given this a five-star rating. There were several places where I had a hard time wading through the bog. I feel like there could have been more told about the bigger cases and/or more details about his mafia affiliation it might helped to keep the readers' interest.
I do realize Patterson must have invested a great deal of research in order to write this book. There were places where I found it to be fascinating and craved more. For Barry Slotnick to have never lost a case is truly an amazing career achievement.


For more than a decade, Barry Slotnick never lost a case—no matter how notorious or dangerous his clients.

Everyone deserves the best defense.
Known for his sharp mind, sharp suits, and bold courtroom strategies, Bronx-native Barry Slotnick is known as the best criminal lawyer in the US.
He calls himself “Liberty’s Last Champion.”
Slotnick mediates Bette Midler’s bathhouse contract and represents John Gotti, “The Dapper Don.” He defends “Subway Shooter” Bernie Goetz and negotiates future First Lady Melania Trump’s pre-nup.
His unparalleled legal brilliance defines a profession, a city—and an era.

[Tameka Fleming]

I have never read anything from James Patterson before so I hate that this is my first. None the less, it is and so. I never heard of a mafia boss named Columbo and don't think the publisher should have sold this on mafia cases. Gotti was a big name in the 90s (primarily in the New York area) but I don't think he [nor Columbo] are nationally known and will draw peoples attention today. However, if you are looking for a true crime read about real-life court cases that were headliners in the 80s and 90s, this is your book. I wasn't impressed but that's probably because I was expecting something completely different based on the presentation of this book.

[Wesley Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy James Patterson books a lot. With this one but I found most interesting was his ability to tell him incredible story that is also a non-fiction. In this book, James effectively took us through multiple decades of stories and was able to weave with clarity and help me stay in tune with every detail in every case. I love this one so much that I bought a few more by him.

[WM D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

The defense attorney by James Patterson was a very good book. It explored the life of Bernard slotniick and the cases in which he handled. I truly enjoyed the characters. A must read for anyone who likes non fiction books

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

A biographic book of one of the best if not THE best lawyer in his era, however; the book depicts Attny Slotnick somewhat self-centered and above it all. Yes, the efforts, skills, courage were beyond the norms of average but.......YOU be the judge!

[Hannah Watson · Rating 3 out of 5]

US lawyers are so dramatic

[Jordan Malcom · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hard to say why I read this book

[Ty 📚🌸]

DNF @ 32%

I’m just straight up bored with this

[Stephanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I only read half of this book. I started with the sample liked the first few chapters. This story intreged me I wanted to understand how someone could do this job and live etc. I found my answer but half way through it turned into reading about each legal case he took to court and it lost a lot of its movement.

[Laurie Norris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found it to be really interesting an a quick read.

[Joann 'bartunek' prashek · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5, I sometimes had a hard time keeping the defendants straight, especially during the Mafia RICO trial. All in all, it was a very interesting book to listen to. Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to review this audiobook.

[Papaphilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great read! The Defense Lawyer: The Barry Slotnick Story is one heck of a tale. this is the story of Barry Slotnick, one of the greatest defense lawyers the country has had in the twentieth century. James Patterson brought his story telling to this wonderful book. A non-fiction that reads like a gripping novel. The Defense Lawyer: The Barry Slotnick Story tells Barry Slotnick's story by bouncing between two parallel trials happening at the same time. Balancing between the Gotti mob trials and the Bernard Goetz trials. Two truly heavy weight criminal trials at the time. Using this method, James Patterson tells a captivating story, but also deftly explains Slotnick's approach to the law and how he maneuvered to win his cases. It also explains how Slotnick saw the law and why chose to defend the worst.

Do yourself a favor and read this book.

[Darinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

A biography of Barry Slotnick, a defense attorney. I'm not a fan of Patterson's nonfiction books, but it was still an entertaining read.

[William de_Rham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting look at the life and career of high-profile criminal defense attorney Barry Slotnick, a brilliant young man who graduated law school at the age of 20 and had to wait until age 21 to take the bar exam; and who went on to negotiate with President Kennedy, represent high-ranking organized crime figures, helped engineer the acquittal of multiple defendants in the trial that earned John Gotti the sobriquet “The Teflon Don,” and simultaneously defend the so-called “Subway Shooter,” Bernard Goetz.

Although a modest man focused almost exclusively on career, and then family, Slotnick also manages to rub elbows with the likes of Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Jr., Bette Middler, and some of the makers of “The Godfather.”

Authors James Patterson and Benjamin Wallace offer an impressively detailed account, not only of some of the high-profile trials Slotnick handled, but also of the high-risk, high-pressure (often downright dangerous) life of top criminal defense attorneys, their often arms-length relationships with clients, and what it’s like to deal day-to-day and in court with members of organized crime.

I found it a little sparse in terms of exploring and explaining legal strategies and tactics. Then again, that’s not of great interest to most readers. I also found the description of the RICO trial of John Gotti and others a bit overlong and over-graphic with a fair amount of foul language and imagery. Then again, that's the world being described. (And the trial did take up some 17,000 transcript pages so Kudos to the authors for being able to boil that down to less than100 pages)

Weighing in at more than 400 pages, "Defense Lawyer" may seem daunting to some. But the writing is exceedingly clear and straightforward and the chapters are short—which means the pages turn quickly.

[Marsha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I mostly wanted to read this book as I wanted to learn more about what happened with Bernie Goetz. When I was living in New York, I remember this incident when it happened as it received a lot of press coverage. It was in 1984, Bernie Goetz shot at four African American young men, who were harassing him on a New York subway. One of the boys, Darrell Cabey, was paralyzed and suffered brain damage as a result of his injuries. Defense attorney Barry Slotnick and his professional partner Mark M. Baker represented Goetz. Slotnick tried to prove that the men who were harassing Goetz on the train were dangerous and Goetz’ reaction was justified. Goetz was afraid that they were going to rob him as he had been mugged in the past. One of the young men asked Goetz to give him five dollars. Goetz was acquitted of all charges except he was convicted of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree for carrying a loaded, unlicensed weapon in a public place.

Slotnick also represented Mafia crime bosses Joe Colombo and John Gotti. This book describes it like something out of a movie, since Slotnick would get them off many charges that were against them, and it was very surreal. But, Slotnick being the excellent lawyer he was, would be able to manipulate jurors into believing his clients did not do the illegal things they were charged with.

Slotnick had a long legal challenging legal career.

I did like this book, but found it to be a bit of a slow read, because of all the details.

[Nich · Rating 2 out of 5]

A flourish of still-relevant tidbits sit atop this flailing, disconcerted attempt to elevate a successful lawyer beyond his locality. The driving moral imperative of being a defender of liberty unsettles one as liberty is never truly defined, leaving naked drivel steeped in the cult of personality. Fancy suits, mob connections, and delusional grandeur fill the hollow actions and words. The book vacillates from character studies to haphazard, useless events that drag the story on and on. Ultimately, the lawyer is portrayed as a magician: well prepared, committed to the craft of legal innovation, and genuinely intelligent; all contribute well to his magical acts in the courtroom. His bullish work ethic and commitment are historically noteworthy, but wrapping up a case in the sense that it is the most important one in the world at that time fundamentally rattles one’s bones. Contrary to the accomplished attorney written about, the book fails at presenting its case that the resolutions of so-called justice pushed forward liberty for the common American. For most, the subject matter are still just passing lyrics in a fiery song.

[Writemoves · Rating 3 out of 5]

A criminal defense lawyer in this country, under our Constitution, has two duties. First, he must get paid. The lawyer's next duty is to approach 12 citizens who sit in a jury box and do not get paid, and try to confuse them so much that at the end they will have no idea of what they have heard and what it all means. They will go home broke and disgusted and the lawyer will go home with his money.”
Jimmy Breslin

One wonders after reading this book how much justice is served within our court systems. Guilty people, with the help of very extravagantly paid lawyers, are acquitted or have their cases thrown out in court. Mr. Slotnick was all about winning. I wonder if he had conscience pangs with some of the people that he defended including John Gotti and Bernard Goetz.

This book was a relatively quick read. I was not really familiar with Barry Slotnick before I read this book. He's not exactly a hero. He's just a well paid lawyer who is able to use his verbal magic to get his clients cleared. Since this was just a library book, I just invested a little bit of time… Not that kind of book that I would have paid for.