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Preference is to also have several witnesses who can <br />present the kind of evidence that appeals to "every <br />man" -- the color, touch and smell of bunker C crude oil <br />as it covers a particular shoreline ... There are still <br />advantages to having "the old timer" who can give <br />historical background of a locality and remembers how this <br />particular stream appeared before the advent of a <br />particular project which has been the subject of litiga- <br />tion. <br />The subject of damages is worth special mention. To the <br />private practitioner it is often the source of his fee. To <br />the plaintiff seeking an injunction it is the irreparable <br />injury that money cannot measure or compensate. In the <br />federal courts some . . . detect a trend toward requiring <br />a plaintiff to actually prove an "injury in fact" as a <br />condition to even opening the federal courthouse door. <br />Occasionally you will find a lawyer who would like to <br />"look at the ground." Take him there. Take a day or two if <br />need be. Have your field people and experts along if <br />possible. Take lots of pictures. It is often on such trips <br />while walking around some dry stream bed that the short- <br />comings of your data, and that of your adversary, come to <br />light. These trips provide a lawyer with the details of <br />local history and geography that enable him to later sound <br />i n court 1 i ke he may know what he's tal ki ng about. <br />There is something more important trial lawyers can do for <br />you. They can help present your best judgments as pro- <br />fessional resource managers -- quietly, effectively, and <br />free of political slogans and overblown cliches. This will <br />become more important to you personally and your agents <br />generally as our society asks for action from our resource <br />managers, which requires a higher order of planning and <br />projection than we know. Perhaps it is true that to retain <br />our hopes, while recognizing our limits, requires a touch <br />of greatness. The views, the judgments that you hold were <br />not quite your father's nor will they be your children's. <br />They may indeed turn wrong, but if today they are the very <br />best amoung our work and hopes, then the lawyer can help <br />you say them, and say them we] 1. <br />Collins's discussion (1976) is presented in a light-hearted manner, but <br />it illuminates a very important point. It cannot be stressed enough that, <br />assuming the expert and the attorney are each reasonably competent, the <br />attitude of each is of paramount importance. Each should display qualities of <br />willingness and cooperation. The witness should be willing to appreciate the <br />6