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. He waits for me to indicate that this figure is impressive, but I just stareat his tie.The toilet flushes and rumbles in the distance. And so, Great Benefit has authorized me to offer you and your clientsseventy-five thousand to settle. I exhale heavily.A dozen wild thoughts race before me, the largest of whichis the figure of twenty-five thousand dollars.My fee! I can see it.Wait a minute.If his pal Harvey here is about to dismiss the case, why is heoffering me this money?And, then, it hits me-the good cop/bad cop routine.Harvey lowers the boom andscares the hell out of me, then Leo steps in with the velvet touch.I can'thelp but wonder how many times they've played tag-team in this office. No admission of liability, you understand, he says. It's a one-time offer,good for only the next forty-eight hours, take it or leave it right now whileit's on the table.If you say no, then it'sWorld War III. But why? Simple economics.Great Benefit saves some money, plus they don't run thePage 129 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlrisk of some cra2y verdict.They don't like to get sued, you understand? Theirexecutives don't like to waste time in depositions and court appearances.They're a quiet bunch.They like to avoid this kind of publicity.Insurance isa cutthroat business, and they don't want their competitors to get wind ofthis.Lots of good reasons for them to settle quietly.Lots of good reasonsfor your clients to take the money and run.Most of it's tax-free, you know. He's smooth.I could argue the merits of the case and talk about how rottenhis client is, but he'd just smile and nod along with me.Water off a duck'sback.Right now Leo Drummond wants me to take his money, and if I said nastythings about his wife it wouldn't fate him.The door opens and His Honor exits his private little rest room.Leo now has afull bladder, and he excuses himself.The tag is made.The duet moves along. High blood pressure, Hale says to himself as he sits behind his desk andgathers his bottles.Not high enough, I want to say. Not much of a lawsuit, kid, I'm afraid.Maybe I can lean on Leo to make anoffer of settle-ment.That's part of my job, you know.Other judges approach it differently,but not me.I like to get involved in settlement from day one.It moves thingsalong.These boys might throw some money at you to keep from paying Leo athousand bucks a minute. He laughs as if this is really funny.His face turnsbloodred and he coughs.I can almost see Leo in the rest room, ear stuck to the door, listening.Itwouldn't surprise me if they have a mike in there.I watch him hack until his eyes water.When he stops, I say, He just offeredme the cost of defense. Male's a lousy actor.He tries to seem surprised. How much? Seventy-five thousand. His mouth falls open. Geez! Look, son, you're crazy if you don't take it. You think so? I ask, playing along. Seventy-five.Jeez, that's a buncha money.That doesn't sound like Leo. He's a great guy. Take the money, son.I've been doing this for a long time, and you need tolisten to me. The door opens, and Leo rejoins us.His Honor stares at Leo, and says, Seventy-five thou-sand! You'd think the money was coming out of Bale's office budget. That's what my client said, Leo explains.His hands are tied.He'spowerless.They serve and volley for a while longer.I'm not thinking rationally, so Isay little.I leave the room with Leo's arm around my shoulder.I find Deck in the hallway, on the phone, and so I sit on a nearby bench andtry to collect myself.They were expecting Bruiser.Would they have tag-teamedhim the same way? No, Idon't think so.How did they plan their ambush of me so quickly? They probablyhad another routine planned for him.I'm convinced of two things: First, Hale is serious about dismissing thelawsuit.He's a sick old man who's been on the bench for a long time, and isimmune from pressure.He couldn't care less if he's right or wrong.And itmight be very difficult to file it again in another court.The101lawsuit is in serious trouble.Second, Drummond is too anxious to settle.He'sscared, and he's scared because his client has been caught red-handed in avery nasty act.DECK'S MADE eleven phone calls in the past twenty minutes, and there's no signof Bruiser.As we speed back to the office, I replay the bizarre scene in Male's office.Deck, ever the quick-Page 130 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlchange artist, wants to take the money and run
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