About John McCloud
Articles written by John McCloud
The Badger
No one digs up and chews details like trial lawyer Gerald Schwartzbach—just ask Robert BlakeGerald Schwartzbach clearly didn’t go into law to get rich. Though the 65-year-old Marin County attorney now lives comfortably, the first half of his professional life was a challenge, made bearable by the loyalty of an understanding wife and the knowledge he was helping those who needed help most. “When our son was born, I couldn’t afford a new crib,” he says. “I remember being so upset about that. I had worked so hard for so many years, and my son was born and I had to buy him a …
All He Cared About Was Law
Become the King of Janitors? No, thanksWhen other little boys were dreaming about being cowboys, doctors or firefighters, Daniel Johnson Jr. already had his sights set on practicing law. "I wanted to be a lawyer since I was 7 years old," he recalls. "I was a little kid watching ... I don't remember if it was Perry Mason or The Defenders ... but I said to myself, ‘That's what I want to do.'" In fact, he was so intent on becoming an attorney that when it came time to take a standardized aptitude test in the ninth grade, he worried …
A Nice Guy Finishes First
Robert Van Nest proves that “world-class litigator” and “decent guy” aren’t mutually exclusive conceptsForget about Raymond. Every-body loves Robert Van Nest. For a guy who has made his reputation fighting others in courtrooms, Van Nest has somehow won the affection of even the lawyers he battles—and often bests. Joseph Cotchett, a partner in Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, has faced off against Van Nest in several important cases. “He’s a very personable guy,” says Cotchett, “and that means a lot. Some lawyers are pompous asses. This guy is far to the other direction.” James …
Find Him in the Classifieds
Imagine you’re hired to defend someone in a sensitive position in the government. After a lengthy search through top-secret documents, you think you’ve found the information that will make your case. But what you’ve found are classified documents, and they can’t be released to the public, even in a trial. What do you do? This has been a dilemma faced numerous times by Jones Day attorney John Cline. Cline’s specialty is criminal cases with national security implications, and he’s …
Definitely Not Attorney Barbie
Annette Hurst wasn’t toying around when she took on Mattel, but she still finds law a lot of funAnnette Hurst only vaguely recalls playing with a Barbie doll when she was growing up — “I think maybe I played with one one summer,” she says — but she very clearly recalls her encounter with the ubiquitous wasp-waist blonde as an adult. Hurst was the lead attorney in artist Thomas Forsythe’s successful defense against a suit concerning his use of the company’s topselling dolls in a controversial series of photographs titled Food Chain Barbie. Mattel Inc. charged him with …
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