A Tribute to James H. Gray, Jr
| Publication year | 2005 |
| Citation | Vol. 2005 No. 12 |
December 2005 - #7. A TRIBUTE TO JAMES H. GRAY, JR
I worked with James H. Gray, Jr., Esq., for eight years. I will miss him very much, especially the way his professional skills never overshadowed his humanity. Jim was a humorous and perceptive mentor. He once told me: "I'll personally build a statue of you on the green if you win this case." Despite a trial that simply could not be won, Jim wanted me to keep my chin up. Then again, when I returned with a six-figure verdict in a different case, he quickly recalled all my preparation and told me I probably had earned us a contingent fee at the rate equivalent of two dollars per hour. Jim knew risk and he knew the importance of money. He would often quote a slogan he had gotten from a Miami used car dealership: "Just remember, I need your money more than you do." We would both laugh. Once in a while, the laughter would get going and Jim would laugh to the point where he would have to wipe his eyes.
Jim invited me to co-counsel a couple of his larger trials, and the experience was like getting a front row seat to watch a courageous trial lawyer succeed. Jim was a natural. One trial in particular was a wrongful death claim he had filed in federal court in Burlington against a very large laboratory. Jim's theory was that his client's slow and painful death from cervical cancer was preventable if only the defendant's pap smear lab had not become a speed reading, profit seeking "pap mill." It was a case of high risk and important money. The corporation spared no expense. The defendant's trial counsel flew in from New York, spoke to the jury with a lot of ten dollar words, and dumped an endless supply of objections, motions, and memoranda. But Jim just kept presenting his case, day after day, and it was killing his opponent. Jim was never fazed by his opponent, just sometimes very annoyed.
After each trial day in that case, we would share dinner at the Sheraton Burlington. Jim's most frequent menu selection was the Delmonico steak. The Delmonico steak is apparently named for the Delmonico brothers and their nineteenth century New York restaurant allegedly visited once by Abraham Lincoln. It is a special cut of steak seasoned with salt, butter, and fire-grilled. I would sit across the table from Jim the trial lawyer. I was...
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