Gerald Bruce Lee

Gerald Bruce Lee (born 1952 in Washington, D.C.) is currently serving as judge on the United States District Court in the Eastern District of Virginia, commonly referred to as the "Rocket Docket.".

Education and career highlights

Lee was educated at American University where he earned a B.A. in 1973, and a J.D. in 1976 from American University's Washington College of Law. Lee worked in private practice in Alexandria, Virginia until 1992, when he became a Circuit court judge on the 19th Judicial Circuit of Virginia, Fairfax Circuit Court. Lee was nominated to his present position as U.S. District Judge by President Bill Clinton on May 22, 1998, and received his commission on October 1, 1998.

Biography

As an attorney

Prior to ascending to the bench, Judge Lee was a trial lawyer for fifteen years, representing individuals and businesses in civil and criminal cases in state and federal courts. He was a partner at Cohen, Dunn & Sinclair, an Alexandria, Virginia, law firm.

As an attorney, Judge Lee was involved in a number of notable cases. He was one of the first to assert the “battered woman defense” in a murder case in 1978 and his client was acquitted of murder. He successfully defended a Vietnam veteran in a criminal case and arranged for the veteran to receive proper medical treatment for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and drug treatment. As counsel for local civil rights organization he defended the principal of a local high school against disciplinary action after school officials learned he was in an interracial marriage. He defended a number of corporations against commercial and employment claims.

Judge Lee was an active member of the Virginia State Bar. He was an elected member of the Virginia State Bar Council, Chairman of the General Practice of Law Section, President of the Northern Virginia Black Attorneys Association, and Chairman of the Judicial Selection Committee of the Alexandria Bar Association.

In 1990, Governor Douglas Wilder appointed Lee to serve on the Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, the managers of Washington National and Dulles International Airports. During his tenure on the board both airports were in the midst of modernization and expansion.

When he was under consideration for the appointment, Judge Lee’s credentials were reviewed by twelve bar associations. Judge Lee received the highest rating possible for all twelve bar associations for the appointment.

As a state judge

Prior to his appointment to the United States District Court, Judge Lee was a trial judge with the 19th Judicial Circuit of Virginia (Fairfax) for six and one-half years. As a Circuit Court Judge in Virginia’s largest and busiest trial court, he tried a wide variety of cases, both jury and non-jury. His trial docket included cases involving commercial law, products liability, personal injury, medical malpractice, contracts, and criminal law.

During his tenure on the Fairfax Bench, Judge Lee was an active member of the Virginia Judges Judicial Conference. He served on two key committees of the conference, the Circuit Court Judicial Education Committee, and the Circuit Court Judges Bench Book Committee. He served as Chairman of the Judicial Educational Committee, and was responsible for ongoing training and continuing education programs for 150 state trial judges. Judge Lee served as a member of the Bench Book Committee, where he was responsible for editing and updating the Virginia Judges’ courtroom reference text, the Virginia Circuit Court Judges Benchbook.

Judge Lee has been a member of the legal community for twenty-five years. Subsequent to his appointment to the Fairfax Circuit Court in 1992, he became known throughout the legal community for his handling of complex civil cases, his efforts to improve the court’s use of technology, and his commitment to community service.

As a federal judge

In April 1998, Virginia's U.S. senators Chuck Robb and John Warner recommended Judge Lee for appointment to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, to fill the seat vacated when Judge James C. Cacheris took senior status. President Clinton made the appointment on May 22, 1998, which was confirmed by the Senate in unanimous vote on September 28, 1998.

Notable cases

• Brian Patrick Regan, former Air Force master sergeant convicted of espionage
• Jay Lentz, who was acquitted of the kidnapping and murder of his ex-wife, but later convicted on retrial before Judge T.S. Ellis, III
• Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, convicted of providing material support to Al-Qaeda and a conspiracy to assassinate the President of the United States

Commentary

Judge Lee coined the phrase "adrenaline of excellence" for what occurs in the instant before entering the courtroom to begin a proceeding.

One day I was about to enter court and one of my student interns, a WCL [Washington College of Law] student, asked me, he said, "Well, Judge, are you ever afraid when you walk into the courtroom? Is it fear that you experience?" I stopped and I thought about it and I said, You know, we’re never afraid as we enter a courtroom or as we begin a presentation, fear suggests that we’re not prepared or that we’re inadequate. What we experience as we’re about to enter a courtroom as lawyers to present a case is what I call "the adrenaline of excellence." I call it "the adrenaline of excellence," I call it that because, as you walk into a room, what you experience is your body and your muscles tighten, your heart and your mind concentrate, and your body and your heart and mind are telling you that you’re prepared to deliver peak performance, so I call the feeling of what you’re about to do "the adrenaline of excellence."

Judge Lee's motto is "To whom much is given, much is expected."

Judge Lee's Top Ten Ways To Succeed In Law School:

1. Be prepared for class. Read everything, the cases, the horn book, and the statutes. Study. Use tapes to acquire information in your ride to school in your car or on the bus or train. When you study for exams practice writing out the answers to old law school exams so you can be sure you cover all the issues. This will give you practice writing out the exam. Study formula – for every (2) hours of reading, spend one (1) hour writing practice exams and then review each answer for completeness and accuracy. Use IRAC. Issue, Rule, Analysis, and Conclusion.

2. Schedule everything. School and personal life. Prepare your family and significant others that you will not have a lot of free time. Most law students are told to spend about five hours preparing for each class.

3. Join a study group and make the study group focus on the law and bring your contribution each week to the group. Form friendships with students of diverse backgrounds. WCL has a diverse student body and faculty. WCL has students from all parts of the globe. Meet and get to know international students to acquire a broader knowledge of the law and their world.

4. Prepare your family for the pay increase or decrease you expect in the early years of your career by setting realistic expectations. Many major life decisions can impact your focus in law school, e.g. Auto debt, buying a house, or getting married. Think it through and formulate a plan to manage these major events in life while balancing law school.

5. Remember that you are now held to the standard of an attorney. There are things that you used to do – you cannot afford to do anymore. There are certain situations you may have allowed yourself to enter with friends in the past that could adversely impact your career.

6. Do not drink and drive.

7. Be honest and pay your bills and taxes on time because you should and the bar examiners will review your credit rating.

8. Seek out relevant work experience while in law school. Work in a law office, firm, government or public service agency. Evening students must consider quitting their day jobs and seek out a job in the law in order to make the transition to attorney. You cannot steal home plate with your foot on third base. Plan to move your career to the law full time by the third year of your four year program so you can compete for jobs with day students.

9. Seek out clinical programs and internships with judges, law professors, government, and public interest firms. WCL has a wide variety of legal clinics. Participate in at least one clinic in law school. Can you imagine attending medical school and never working in the emergency room or the operating room. Well, all law students should regularly visit a courthouse to watch trials and proceedings to acquire a better understanding of how the system works.

10. Go to Court. You cannot attend law school in Washington, DC and not visit the Supreme Court and local courts.

Judge Lee’s Top Ten Tip’s for Bar Exam Preparation and Success

1. Take a Bar Review Course Write out every practice question provided to you for the state essay portion of the exam.

2. Study formula – for every two (2) hours of reading, spend one (1) hour writing practice exams and then review each answer for completeness and accuracy.

3. Set a schedule for study of subject matter before bar review begins – outline what subjects you will study each day from the beginning of the course to two days before the bar. 9:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m., lunch, dinner, class

4. No distractions

• You must not work while you study for the bar. • You must not engage in distracting activities while studying for the bar. No concerts. No beach. No weekends off.

5. Schedule – 8:00 a.m. – 9:30 p.m. daily; 7 days a week

6. Build in breaks during the day.

A. Commence the day with some form of exercise or take one hour a day for • Walking • Running • Lifting Weights • Aerobics To get the body warmed up B. An afternoon nap or walk is helpful to energize yourself.

C. Meditations and Affirmations

7. Prepare for the bar exam with laser focus Make sure that everything you do everyday all the time is connected with success on the bar.

• Reading • Practice test taking • Class • Discussions with study partner or other exam test takers

8. Affirmations

I believe that you become what you prepare yourself to be. In other works you must seek out the higher power and each day declare what you want to become. I suggest the following text are helpful.

• Daily Word • Daily Bread • Acts of Faith

Affirmation

Look yourself in the mirror and declare I AM A LAWYER! Repeat in the mirror 3 times in the morning and 3 times before you go to bed.

9. Exam days

• Go to the exam in comfortable clothing • Visualize Success • When you finish your exam – review it once – leave even if you are first or early. • Do not discuss your exam answers with other exam takers. Discussing questions with other test takers will make you crazy. • Stay away from negative people

10. Visualize Success – Claim it – I am a Lawyer!

Judge Lee’s Top Ten Ways to Succeed As A Law Clerk

1. Always have a pen and a stenographic spiral pad handy whenever you are in your judge’s presence because your judge is bound to give you an assignment or to ask you for help.

Keeping a stenographic spiral pad will help you date and keep track of assignments, important telephone calls to return, and your “Things to Do Today List.”

2. Getting the assignment: Make sure you understand your assignment. What are you being asked to do? Research, pull cases, draft a bench memorandum, letter, or draft an opinion.

A. Get a definite deadline and meet it.

B. If you encounter any problem that will prevent you from meeting the judge’s deadline, go see your judge before the deadline and seek guidance. Do not wait until the assignment is due or late to indicate to your judge that you cannot meet the deadline.

C. The assignment with no deadline never gets done.

3. Standard of care for drafts for the judge: Each assignment must be publishable quality and in Blue Book format of citation.

A. Opinions in my chambers are generally in IRAC form. Issue, Rule, Analysis, and Conclusion. Read your judge’s opinions and follow the judge’s style.

B. Judicial opinions may be published even when the judge does not intend to release the opinion for publication.

C. Never turn in an assignment that has not been proofread and in which the cases have not been key cited. Doctors can bury their mistakes, judges’ mistakes end up in bound text and on line in perpetuity, so strive for excellence.

4. Westlaw and Lexis are great and all . . . but, it is in the books!

A. Use the United States Code Annotated, Model Jury Instructions, and state code in book form. The pocket part first! I do not care how smart you are as a new lawyer, but you cannot possibly anticipate the form of words in judicial opinions on a wide variety of subjects without some basic understanding of the issue and how it is likely to appear. Use the books and do not forget to check American Law Reports in book form. Model Jury Instructions are a time saver in reviewing a motion to dismiss or a demurrer or a motion for summary judgment because the elements of the cause of action and the leading cases are summarized in one place. If you have the model jury instructions and the complaint, you can easily resolve a motion to dismiss or draft a complaint.

5. Maintain your docket and keep it current. See our matrix form. Make is your own system, but keep track of your work. It is impossible for the judge to keep track of 600 cases, so it is your job to keep your judge’s docket current.

6. Professionalism: You would not have the job if the judge did not have confidence in your ability as a lawyer. Now that said, you represent your judge in all your interactions with staff in chambers, clerk’s office staff, the public, and lawyers. Your clothing, appearance, language and decorum should reflect positively on your judge.

7. The judge’s clerk, secretaries and the clerk’s office staff can make you or break you, so be nice to them. Ask them questions about their children, remember their names, birthdays, and bring them donuts and they will share valuable information with you. Never lose your temper or be impatient or rude to them or you will live to regret it. Law clerks come and go, but the clerk’s office staff will be here when you return. The clerks will remember you fondly when you return as a lawyer if you were nice or maybe not.

8. Critical reasoning and discussion, do not be afraid to raise issues, point out differing authority and to question your judge’s reasoning in the proper setting. Most judges welcome in a discussion of the law with a law clerk who raises issues in a private conference with the judge that may seem obvious, not so obvious, or that disagrees with the judge’s proposed ruling and explains the weaknesses in the law of a position. We are judges, not gods, no matter what the lawyers may think. We cannot know everything. We do not necessarily want “yes” law clerks who do not make us think by pointing out additional cases or authorities or ideas that warrant consideration. In the end, the final decision is always the judges, nothing you write has any meaning until it is signed or announced by a judge. You may be smart, but you have not practiced law and there is a lot for you to learn. By asking questions and raising additional authority, you may help your judge produce a better opinion.

9. Exceed expectations. Is there anything else you can do to make the assignment better?

10. Mistakes: You will make mistakes, we all do, that is why they call what we do “practice.” If you make a mistake, go to your judge right away, say ‘Í made a mistake, this is what I did, it was wrong, here is how I propose to correct it, and I will do my best not to repeat it.’ Accept responsibility and apologize. I tell my law clerks that the only mistake you can make that I cannot correct is if you fail to deliver the stay of execution to the warden in time. I can correct my mistakes if I am notified in time. I can vacate an erroneous opinion, I can issue a new opinion, I can change the ruling and I will if I am wrong. Face mistakes and strive for excellence.

The American University Washington College of Law website: http://www.wcl.american.edu/

Washington College of Law Office of Career & Professional Development Judicial Clerkship Page: https://www.wcl.american.edu/career/clerkships/overview.cfm

Just the Beginning Foundation "Share the Wealth" Announcement: http://www.jtbf.org/clientuploads/Share%20the%20Wealth%20Clerkships/JTBF%20Clerkship%20Opportunity%20announcement%202012.pdf

Controversy

In 2003, Judge Lee dismissed the kidnapping and murder charges against Jay E. Lentz, a former naval intelligence officer, even though a jury had found him guilty. It marked the first time a judge dismissed a jury verdict in a federal death penalty case. Earlier in the case, Judge Lee advised a witness that if she cried he would stop her testimony, a move that is unusual in that it is rare for a judge to preview testimony in a death penalty hearing or restrict how witnesses can act or what they can say.

In the 2011 case of USA v. Ishmael Jones, a pen name, Judge Lee ruled in summary judgment for the government that Jones, a former CIA officer, had violated his agreement with the Agency by failing to obtain pre-publication approval for his book.