Q. How do you know this lawyer?
Mr. Smith and I have worked together on a handful of felony criminal cases, on different occasions, during the past 25 or more years.
Q. In the cases you were involved in with this attorney, which of the following apply?
Mr. Smith and I teamed up on occasion on complicated felony cases.
Q. When did you work with this lawyer?
Over the course of my career, 1995 - to present, I have often worked together with another lawyer on a case of high importance, in civil, commercial, and criminal, matters. Anthony Smith is one of many lawyers with whom I have joined forces for a particular case.
Q. Was this lawyer an effective advocate/counselor and why?
Yes
First, he genuinely cares about his client, irrespective of any thing and everything the client has been charge with criminally. This is a rare trait.
Second, Smith is very good at all the typical things that need to be done to get a good "deal" or "plea" for his client. Pleas are how most criminal cases are resolved.
Third, sometimes you have to go to trial. Everything is on the line. Client needs a strong trial fighter. Smith is.
Q. Please rate this lawyer on the following:
Legal Knowledge:
Very Good
Mr. Smith has strong legal knowledge in the area of criminal law. Most importantly, he does the research and finds the answers when new legal issues show up in a given case, as they constantly do.
Legal Analysis:
Excellent
Mr. Smith does not just accept the obvious or apparent answer. He will dig, question and truly analyze his client's case. He persists in this and revisits the facts time and again, and investigates additional facts. He personally interviews all possible witnesses he can find and makes real efforts to find them. He is adroit at finding errors, contradictions, etc. in police testimony and reports. He seems to have an "eye" or "nose" for police fabrication. He can pick them apart.
Communication Skills:
Very Good
In terms of client communication, Mr. Smith is conscientious and keeps-at-it. Some of his clients are not so easy to communicate with. What is good about Smith is that he does not give up on trying to find that elusive "zone" of rapport with this kind of client. Mr. Smith is dutiful and respectful in all his professional communications. And Smith's communication skills include the ability to often convince prosecutors to see the case in a new light, more favorable to his client.
Ethics and Professionalism:
Excellent
Very high ethical character. This ethical character does not mean just making sure to be in compliance with ethical canons of the Texas State Bar, it is also simply who he is - the kind of person he is. Overall, I would say he holds himself, without self-pretension, to a higher standard, above that necessary for a lawyer to "remain ethical."
Q. For which practice area(s) would you recommend this lawyer?
Criminal law. Criminal defense. Grave and serious felonies - the gravest and most serious. Particular strength in gang-related violent crimes; serious crimes of violence all the way up to Capital Murder; drug crimes; and family violence and DWI. This listing is not exclusive. I know he does other types of cases, like financial crimes and others, but I have not worked with or seen him on those. Those listed are where I believe Anthony Smith would be one of the client's best possible choices
Q. Which of the following skills does this lawyer possess?
- Client Relations
- Document Review
- Emotional Intelligence
- Financial Literacy (handling client funds)
- Legal Research
- Legal Writing
- Litigation
- Negotiation
- Oral Argument
- Problem Solving
- Trials
Trials.
Smith has a strong trial presence and skills.
Cross-examination.
Lawyers generally work on this hard, but most vital, skill over the entirety of their trial careers. Anthony Smith is no different, but he is blessed (and his client's are also) with a "knack" of being incisive and successful at cross-examination.
Investigation. Smith does not just accept the apparent "story" of what happened. He investigates and often reveals a much different, more accurate story of the case.
Q. Please provide any additional comments about this lawyer
Besides technical or professional skills, Anthony Smith brings two things that can only be learned before law school and the start of legal practice. 1. Plain courage. Smith cannot be intimidated by any judge, prosecutor, police authorities etc. 2. A deep sense of Justice. He was a prosecutor for five years. He returned to defense because he saw far too many instances where the system (including bad defense lawyers) convicted people on shoddy, insufficient police work. That is his cause.
Q. I would recommend this lawyer to my family and friends
Yes
