My first year I tried 30 or 40 cases because I would walk in and find cases that people would not want to try and I said, “Let me learn to try that.”
in America, deny them their right to vote, is something that cannot be tolerated. I would hope that we are able to continue to have all the laws that we need to enforce every citizen’s right to vote. Politics aside, I would like as a matter of law, to be able to enforce every citizen’s right to vote. And I think the Voting Rights Act is necessary to do that. If we talk about either the
University of Texas or the recent University of Michigan (Grutter v. Bollinger) case they all go back to the same concept: At what point can we say that the playing field has been lev- eled so that race is no longer a relevant issue for admission? I don’t think we have reached a point yet because if you look at the declining numbers of admission of minority students, either in California at Berkeley, or at University of Texas, I think that the statistics clearly establish that we are losing ground and not balancing the demographics of students and that is not to say that we are lowering standards for admission. While [SAT scores] are clearly
criteria for selecting a bright student, that doesn’t mean other factors don’t need to be considered. While colleges or universities are saying we’re elimi-
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nating or denying a student who has 1550 while admitting a student that scores 1200, that does not mean one of them didn’t work 40 hours a week, or that one of them may have come through a system where they had an inferior elementary, middle, or high school. A score of 1200 is still good, and it’s part of a larger whole. So I think using standardized tests alone does not achieve a recognition of the individual students facing admission; while it can be a criteria I think look- ing at more diverse students popula- tion is beneficial to the university.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to young lawyers? It’s an interesting question because I had the benefit of being trained by and a mentee of Johnny Cochran and he helped me understand how to try a big case. We talked about the media before and some of the training I had was watching Johnny Cochran try the big cases and give press conferences. I recognize now that to many lawyers, many young lawyers, both African American and Caucasian, see me as a trial lawyer with a fantastic reputation and they want to know: How did you get it and what advice do you have?
I know minority lawyers and law
students see me and wonder: What does it take? So the advice I give them is to follow your dreams, believe in yourself, do your best, and find a men- tor who is willing to spend time with you. As a prosecutor in the city of Cincinnati, where I began my career, I used to try a case two or three times a week—so my first year I tried 30 or 40 cases in my first year because I would walk in and find cases that people would not want to try and I said, “Let me learn to try that.” I think I polished my skills in the courtroom because I have experienced every scenario in court. To those young lawyers I say
believe in yourself. When that door does not open when you knock, step back and try another door, or step back and try that door again, but don’t let them convince you that you should not be at that door. Keep try- ing until you find what it is that you want because you would not be here with that law degree if you weren’t able to practice law. D&B
Billy Martin spoke withDiversity & the Bar Editor-in-Chief Joshua Shields for this interview.
MAY/JUNE 2013 DIVERSITY & THE BAR®
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