thomas a. mesereau, jr
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Mesereau’s fame is ironic. He admonishes
attorneys who seek fame and fortune and
believes such goals are responsible for much
misery in the legal profession.
Known for his shock of white hair and
his brilliant and often unusual cross-
examination skills, Mesereau said winning
the Jackson trial with �4 not-guilty verdicts
had increased interest in his career, but had
not changed him as a man or an attorney.
He recently started a new firm, Mesereau
& Yu, with his co-counsel from the Jackson
and Robert Blake trials, Susan Yu. And he
continues to take on death penalty cases pro bono.
“Unfortunately, most lawyers don’t want
to do pro bono work. They’re caught up in
their lifestyle; they’re caught up in paying
their debts; they’re caught up in wearing
nice clothes and driving fancy cars, and, you
know, all of sudden, they realize they’re not
terribly fulfilled,” he said. “Civil rights work,
pro bono work can be extremely fulfilling.
I didn’t get to Michael Jackson through
Hollywood, and I didn’t get to Michael
Jackson by being known as a celebrity
lawyer. I got to Michael Jackson for my work
in the black community and my concern for
civil rights.”
While some believe Michael Jackson
was found innocent partly because of his
celebrity, Mesereau says Michael Jackson
was a targeted because of his fame.
“I felt that Michael Jackson was a victim of
his own celebrity status,” he said. “I felt that
prosecutors and sheriffs were trying to make
names for themselves and obtain fame and
fortune at his expense by trying to exploit
the fact that he’s a different kind of human
being. And I felt he was a victim of what I call
celebrity injustice. He was targeted because
he’s a megastar and they used resources
that they would never have used even if he
were a serial killer.”
Mesereau said that millions of dollars were
needlessly spent trying to convict Jackson
and 70 officers raided Jackson’s home and
prosecutors traveled overseas to find people
to testify against Jackson. Mesereau is in
the initial stages of writing a book on the
experience.
“I’d like the book to focus on my views of the
justice system, my views of criminal defense,
and also use the Michael Jackson case as an
example of how injustice can appear in all
areas, including how the media treated the
case, how the prosecutors treated the case,
et cetera,” he said.
Mesereau needed a vacation after the case.
Now he’s working on a book proposal, setting
up the new firm, and preparing for a death
penalty case in Alabama. He tries one such
case a year in Alabama and is passionate
about abolishing the death penalty, which
he considers barbaric and ineffectual.
One of Mesereau’s friends was the former
director of the American Bar Association’s
Death Penalty Representation Project in
Washington, DC, and she got him involved
with a group of attorneys in Alabama.
“She was primarily trying to get the services
of lawyers to do appellate work and post-
conviction work. I told her that I don’t do
post-conviction work, that I’m a trial lawyer
and I’m willing to try cases,” he said. “And
she indicated to me that that was highly
unusual, that most trial lawyers don’t want
to go anywhere near a death penalty case pro bono.”
Community service has always been a part of
Mesereau’s life, even before he went to law
school. The son of a World War II hero and
West Point graduate, Mesereau said it took
him years to decide he wanted to work in
criminal defense and urged young attorneys
to keep trying different areas of the law and
different firms until they find what makes
them happy. Early in his career, Mesereau
tried administrative law in a big Washington,
DC, firm and spent a year as a prosecutor,
which he disliked. Mesereau is known for
putting prosecutors on the stand during
trials.
“Don’t give up finding a niche that satisfies
you. Too many lawyers will go from one firm
to another firm to a third firm to a fourth firm
and basically finally throw up their hands and
say, “It’s never going to get better,’” he said.
“I think that’s a mistake. I think there are
fulfilling opportunities for all lawyers if they
will really look into who they are and keep
trying.”
After studying government and international
affairs at Harvard, Mesereau worked as a
speechwriter on Capitol Hill. He then earned
a Master’s degree in International Affairs
at the London School of Economics before
attending law school at the University of
California, Hastings College of the Law.
continued on back
Thomas A. Mesereau, Jr. [by Regan Morris]
Since the Michael Jackson trial ended in June, Thomas Mesereau’s phone has been ringing off the
hook. His successful defense of Jackson made Mesereau one of the most famous attorneys in the world.
LawCrossing speaks to Mesereau about his practice and his commitment to fighting injustices—for both
celebrity clients and impoverished men on death row.
PAGE �
www.lawcrossing.com 1. 800.973.1177
LAWCROSSINGTHE LARGEST COLLECTION OF LEGAL JOBS ON EARTH
LAW STAR
Mesereau said he finally found his niche with
criminal defense work, but can’t remember
the first criminal case he tried. When asked
the about his success in the courtroom,
Mesereau said the secret is a good memory
and old-fashioned work habits.
“I do not use a computer. I don’t like them,”
he said. “I’m known for my prodigious
memory when I try cases. I’ve been known
to cross-examine people for days based on
what’s in my head and looking at documents
in front of me. And I feel if I were used to
stuffing everything into a computer, I would
not stuff it into my head.”
Mesereau said he does not talk about his
financial situation, but does not consider
himself overly affluent. He consistently talks
about how fulfillment is more important than
money. He is an active volunteer in South Los
Angeles, offering legal advice to the poor.
“I really believe that lawyers often miss
the boat. They’re unhappy in their work;
they’re unfulfilled; but they never try to find
a way out of it,” he said. “People with our
education and our professional opportunities
have many, many options available to them.
And one of the options they have is to fight
injustice and to make a contribution to
society.”
In �003, when prosecutors announced
the warrant for Jackson’s arrest during a
televised press conference, many people
were shocked to see the media, prosecutors,
and the sheriff laughing and telling jokes
about Jackson and the child molestation
charges.
“Well, we had the last laugh,” Mesereau said.
“We got �4 not-guilty verdicts, �0 felonies
and four misdemeanors. So I think we had
the last laugh in that one.”
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