Any day you walk away from disaster is a good day. Today’s court hearing reminds me of the joke Steve McQueen tells Yul Brynner in Magnificent Seven as best I can recall it:
There was a cowboy who went to Kansas City and because he’d never seen a tall building he climbed up to the top of a seven story building. He looked over the edge and fell off the roof. The people in each floor who saw him pass by on his way down overheard him say, “So far so good.”
This joke indicated the grim situation the cowboys were in but as everyone who has watched the movie knows both men landed on their feet and road away into the sunset. In the case of today’s hearing both plaintiffs and defendants can say, “so far so good.”
I took copious notes during the hearing which lasted for about an hour and a half. After Craig Hunter’s five minute presentation of the case Judge Hylden peppered him with questions. One was a question I had posed to Craig Hunter a week ago. The questions were tough and Mr. Hunter had anticipated all of them judging by replies. It was obvious that the Judge had studied the thick pile of pleadings carefully.
I hoped that the Judge would ask just as many questions of the Defense team and I was not disappointed.
Since all the issues were spelled out in JCI’s briefs I would have expected the Defense attorney’s to have good responses prepared. They were only so so.
The issue that could kill us is the possible requirement that we post a large bond for any delays we cause the District. Mr. Hunter laid out many reasons why this should not be a problem and the defense team suggested a number of reasons why this would be necessary. Judge Hylden laid all the issues out but did not tip his hat as to how he would rule. He noted the disadvantageous provision of the contract that let JCI name its charges after the District agreed to letting JCI have the job and he noted the provision of the contract that forbade the District from hiring anyone else to to the work if the School Board decided not to proceed with JCI.
One of the parties to this case will crash and burn. We’ll find out which side prevails on this motion within the next ten days.
