Jameis Accuser Legal Tactics Blasted By Tampa Attorney
June 7th, 2015
It’s getting nasty and dirty in the civil suit of Jameis Winston, the one that accuses America’s Quarterback of sexual battery, assault, false imprisonment, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Tampa attorney Sam Harden, of Metcalf-Harden, has been following the action and doesn’t like what he sees from the team representing Winston’s accuser, Erica Kinsman.
Harden penned a must-read blog featuring a too-naughty-for-Joe expression that describes his view of Kinsman’s legal attempt to force Jameis’ lawyer, David Cornwell, to stop representing him.
In short, Kinsman’s team filed a sealed Georgia Bar complaint against Cornwell — something anyone could do. And then is using that complaint, which has yet to be resolved, to stop the attorney from representing Jameis in Florida.
The reason that Cornwell’s attorney filed this affidavit is this: Cornwell is appearing pro hac vice in Florida on behalf of Jameis Winston. Pro hac vice is latin for “for this time or occasion” and is a way courts of other jurisdictions allow attorneys from different places to practice law there without applying to the state bar association and taking (and passing) the bar exam. Cornwell isn’t licensed in Florida’s Middle District, so he asked the court to let him appear pro hac vice on behalf of his client for this one case.
When a court is considering whether or not to allow an attorney from another jurisdiction to appear pro hac vice, they typically look at that attorney’s disciplinary history. When he applied, Cornwell said he didn’t have any disciplinary proceedings pending against him, which was technically true. A bar complaint isn’t the same as a disciplinary proceeding, which can usually only be initiated by the bar itself or by the state’s highest court. Kinsman’s attorneys must have pulled Cornwell’s pro hac vice application, saw he didn’t disclose that they had filed a bar complaint, and said “gotcha!” and then went and complained to the judge.
I wouldn’t expect too much to come from this. Most judges, especially federal judges, have limited time and less patience to dedicate to attorneys bitch-slapping each other.
There’s much more via the link above, including analysis of the technicality being argued to boot Jameis’ counterclaim against Kinsman.
What a mess, and one that’s sure to hang around a while. Joe hopes Jameis can avoid being distracted. Yes, he did that at Florida State, but this is the NFL, where every last thing is new for him and the spotlight is far more intense.
June 7th, 2015 at 10:37 am
I wouldn’t worry too much about all this. In the end, after all the BS has flown, Winston’s side will reach a settlement and put an end to it. The only question is – how much $$$ will it take for her to go away.
June 7th, 2015 at 10:45 am
Keep your head up JDubb!
June 7th, 2015 at 10:52 am
I think that’s just it. Winston doesn’t want to settle. Settling is basically admitting you did wrong. Settling is what the admitted “cleat chaser” was looking for the entire time. I think Winston wants to prove he didn’t do this. And if he does. I’m hoping every person thats called him a felon on this site is man enough to write and admit they were wrong.
June 7th, 2015 at 11:13 am
Once again Boys N Girls…. Can we say MONEYGRAB?
June 7th, 2015 at 11:16 am
I don’t think he’ll settle out of court.
June 7th, 2015 at 11:21 am
No way he settles. That’s why he filed a counter suit. He’s going to the mat on this. Good for him. He should.
Very clever though by her attys. I’m somewhat impressed. Though, as the article says, the doubt very much a judge will look kindly on this kind of (banned phrase alert!) shenanigans. So, while clever, ultimately useless and counter-productive. No one wants a POd judge.
June 7th, 2015 at 11:49 am
Don’t hold your breath waiting for anyone to apologize on this site.
If they were going to do it, they would have already done so since Winston was never even charged with any type of crime making any type of felon name calling mute.
I too think Winston wants to prove himself innocent but his best recourse is to let it go and pay the beyotch off since it will be way cheaper in the long run.
Just ask Ben Rothlesberger.
June 7th, 2015 at 12:00 pm
I, too, believe that if he is innocent, he should NOT pay out. It is not necessarily true that it would be ‘cheaper’. If she ‘gets away with it’, then others might follow suit (pun intended). If he wins, girls are on notice that Winston will not pay to make something go away (making it cheaper in the long run).
My concern is using an attorney who is not practicing in this state. Laws are different, in different states, and *I* would want a good lawyer who is very familiar with all the ins and outs of Florida law.
June 7th, 2015 at 12:35 pm
Good for Sam Harden for exposing this.
I couldn’t help but think about the lawyers in the Bubba the love sponge vs that other local shock jock case who used their hot looking Paralegal to flirt with, and get their opposing lawyer drunk, and then arrested for DUI.
I haven’t heard much about that case lately, but I sure hope that all of them loose their licenses to practice law forever, for that crap they pulled.
June 7th, 2015 at 12:37 pm
No way should he pay this cleat chaser.
June 7th, 2015 at 2:02 pm
Just slip her ten grand and call it even. Oh that’s right her lawyers fee will be many times that.
June 7th, 2015 at 4:47 pm
Zzzzzzzz
June 7th, 2015 at 4:49 pm
Jaboo wants this all to end, it’s wearing on him whether Jameis will admit it or not, but there will be no settlement outside of court, Jameis is going to pay Kinsman a dime, and by settling he would essentially say he did something wrong, which he didn’t. Jameis is a great dude that if you actually knew you’d never say anything against him relating to the accusations made by the Cleat Chasing Erica Kinsman. Keep your head up Jaboo, I know nobody is going to bring you down son!
June 7th, 2015 at 5:08 pm
Jameis went “all in”, as I personally think he should. Either she gets the money or she goes away. Going “all in” lets me formulate my own opinion when it is all said and done
June 7th, 2015 at 8:44 pm
Kinsman’s attorneys are going to play this out to the bitter end – continuances, legal delays, etc. If they don’t drop the suit before it goes before a judge I will be shocked though. Erica is opening herself up to a pandora’s box that she does not want to open if she follows through all the way with this suit. Perjury would not be that hard for a skilled attorney to elicit during cross examination in this particular case once she has already testified….
Concentrate on football Jameis. Let your attorney deal with this self professed cleat chaser and verified liar.
June 8th, 2015 at 12:27 pm
If I’m Jameis I go to her for a secret deal and say,”I’ll pay you off to go away if you come out and say you made the whole thing up” Jameis could agree to not press charges against her and both sides get things they want. I don’t know if this scenario could work, but if it could I would do it.