Skip to main content

Lawyer Claims License to Insult Because Trump Got Elected

By George Khoury, Esq. on December 19, 2018 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Depositions can get heated. Sometimes witnesses just get under the skin of attorneys, and sometimes it's one of the other attorneys in the room making the questioning attorney's life miserable.

However, for one Illinois attorney, it has just become painfully obvious that while the standards of the American public may have gone right down the drain pipe, lawyers are still expected to maintain professional, courteous relationships with their adversaries. Currently, that lawyer is facing potential discipline due to the barrage of insults he hurled, on the record, during a deposition, at his opposing counsel.

"Standards Have Changed"

In the disciplinary charge, a couple sections of the deposition were reproduced. At one point, after attorney Charles Cohn instructed his witness not to answer, the deposing attorney requested the court reporter "certify the question" to which attorney Cohn responded:

"Okay. Then certify your own stupidity at this point."

At which point, the deposing attorney responded: "Counsel, I'm not going to sit here and take insults from you."

To which Cohn responded: "At this point in time, a man who insults on a daily basis everybody he does business with has now been elected President of the United States. The standards have changed. I'll say what I want."

Later on in the same depo, attorney Cohn, on the record, called his opposing counsel a "bitch."

Say What?

Surprisingly, or maybe not, Cohn attempted to defend his statements, despite only being reprimanded by the trial court for them, then went on the attack. He asserted that the trial court became angry with him, and referred to the trial court judge's lambasting of him as a "robe rage incident." He further claimed that the judge's "robe rage" showed that the court was biased against him, and, by extension, his client too.

Hat tip to Keith Lee for tweeting out this amazing story for all us lawyers to learn from. Thanks Keith!

Related Resources:

Copied to clipboard