L.A. Law1986

Richard Mathers:
[Kuzak has arrived at the courtroom, take a seat and listen to who Richard Mathers is, while addressing a speech when representing himself as an unlicensed lawyer] I was felt that the beauty of the jury system was that ordinary people make the ultimate decisions. Guided by their hearts, their minds, and their own humanity. Right now, I don't want to talk about the elements of fraud, burdens of proof, or reasonable doubt, or any of that. I just want to tell you who I am. My whole life, I never wanted to be anything but a lawyer. The time I was a teenage. I can recite the courtroom speeches from every loyal movie I had ever seen. Inherit The Wind. To Kill a Mockingbird. Town Without Pity. I knew all of them. I went to law school for a year at night. When I lost my scholarship, I dropped out, I drove a cab, I taught high school, I sold office furniture. But the whole time, I read, and I work at teaching myself how to be a lawyer. At first, I practice just for friends little by little though I realize I could really do this. I didn't needed the diploma. I was going up against graduates from top 10 schools and beating them cold. I might not have been legitimate. But I served my clients with unstinting loyalty. A single one of them came to testify against me, because not a single one of them felt defrauded. Competent representation is what they ask for, and competent representation is what they got. Yes, I practice law without a license. And regardless of your verdict, I will never practice law again. Not for me is the greatest punishment of all.

[Members of the Jury listen to Mr. Mathers' speech]

Richard Mathers:
When I walked through those doors, when I see that reporters seating at her machine, and I plead my case knowing that someone is depending on me, to get them through whatever most likely the most desperate moments of their life, I feel more life year than I do anywhere else on earth. I love doing this. God, I love doing this. It's hard to imagine, this the last time I ever will.

[Richard Mathers ending his speech in court]