In the movie Can-Can (1960), Frank Sinatra, playing, François Durnais, is in court and addresses the judge:

“Your honor, I am a member of the bar and wish to represent myself.”

The Judge replies: “You realize that a lawyer who represents himself is said to have a fool for a client?”

François Durnais responds: “That may be true, but it’s better than having a fool for a lawyer.”

The website https://quoteinvestigator.com/2019/07/30/lawyer/ attributes the earliest iteration of that retort to a book published in 1682 and to numerous others thereafter.

I mention that as background to the remarkable circus playing out in the New York fraud trial against Donald Trump in which it is alleged he, and perhaps other family members, manipulated the values of various assets to secure loans at favorable rates and reduce taxes below appropriate levels.

Overall, the testimony of Trump and family members consists of two points: (1) Trump: the businesses were worth way more than we claimed, I don’t care what anyone says; everyone involved made money so what’s the problem? I relied entirely on accountants and others for valuations despite what I might have signed off on; sure, I was a trustee but, no, I take no responsibility; and (2) Trump family members: Who, me? I wasn’t involved. I know nothing; I relied entirely on accountants and others for valuations despite what I might have signed off on; I just took the money that magically appeared at the end of the rainbow; no, I take no responsibility.”

And together: “We are innocent of all charges, as usual. We did nothing wrong. We are rich because we deserve to be. Thank you; we’re leaving now.”

Nothing about the reported testimony of Trump and family is surprising. What is surprising, shocking really to any sane, responsible lawyer, is the manner in which Trump’s lawyers have adopted his personality and style in addressing the prosecutors and the judge.

It is the most appalling display of bad judgment imaginable. I am hard to surprise at this late stage of life but am stunned that lawyers would think it’s in their client’s interest to attack the prosecutors openly and repeatedly and, worse, to attack the judge handling the case. The normal, and correct, approach is to be respectful at all times, make your arguments, fight for your evidence but always, always show respect to the judge and court staff.

The only “strategy” implied by Trump’s lawyers’ contrary approach is that, having no other meaningful or substantive defense, their attacks might goad the judge into making an appealable mistake by, for example, lashing out at the defendants or making an egregiously bad ruling out of frustration/anger.

The judge is highly experienced, however, and likely knew what was coming. So far, based on the reports, he has maintained his composure and has not made any meaningful mistakes that would support an appeal by the Trump as against the overwhelming evidence that Trump approved, indeed drove and promoted, the use of wildly incorrect asset values in the pursuit of his life-ambition to enrich himself beyond all reason.

How Trump’s attorneys think it is smart to attack the very people who hold their client’s future in their hands is simply beyond understanding, unless it is simply their personal need to get maximum media exposure for themselves by behaving like hooligans in court and to provide more fodder for Trump’s political base that is prepared to believe anything except the truth about him and his grifter family. If that’s what they are doing, they deserve the severest sanctions for gross malpractice for, among other things, putting their interests ahead of their client’s.

In this case, the adage about having a fool for a client appears to miss the mark. This client appears to have fools for lawyers as well. Client and lawyers alike.