National Jurist - February 2008 - (Page 42) Plaintiffs’ advocate n just three years since graduation from law school Jackalyn Olinger has made her mark as a civil litigation specialist. Through her role as a member of the board of governors of the American Association for Justice (formerly the Association of Trial Lawyers of America), Olinger has helped build houses in New Orleans through Habitat By Ursula Furi-Perry for Humanity, raised money through AAJ’s D.C. Phone-athon and signed on to chair the Young Lawyers’ Special Projects Committee. Now a third year associate at Simmons Cooper, LLC in East Alton, Ill., Olinger represents plaintiffs and specializes in mesothelioma cases and asbestos litigation. “I work in my firm’s asbestos discovery department, so my work focuses on building liability cases against defendants,” she said. Much of Olinger’s work involves document review, including reading interrogatories and making sure defendants’ answers to discovery requests are sufficient. She also drafts motions and conducts depositions of defense experts such as pathologists, doctors, and corporate representatives. “Our cases usually don’t go to the jury,” Olinger explained. “Most of our work is done behind the scenes.” But the job’s most rewarding part comes when she does enter the courtroom, Olinger said. She has trials scheduled about twice a month. In a recent asbestos case, she helped pick the jury, reading over juror questionnaires and coming up with a ranking system to figure out which would be the best fit. The client — a man in his 40s who was dying of mesothelioma and had a young daughter — was younger than most of Olinger’s other clients. Though the firm lost the case, she still feels personal satisfaction from attempting to help a deserving client. New grad impresses trial lawyers’ association Jackalyn Olinger says the most rewarding part of her job is entering the courtroom and defending plaintiffs who have been seriously injured. “No matter how compelling or sad your case is, sometimes the jury’s not going to get it right,” she said. Olinger enjoys helping innocent plaintiffs who have been seriously injured, often as a result of large companies not protecting their workers from asbestos dangers. She also relishes the first trial she conducted by herself, representing a plaintiff pro bono in a case involving prisoners’ civil rights. She encourages recent law grads to take on pro bono matters. “Pro bono cases will get you the most experience,” she said. “You’re there on your own and you learn everything there is to know about filing a case and working with the court.” Olinger said she looked to work for 42 THE NATIONAL JURIST February 2008 a plaintiffs’ firm when she graduated because she wanted plenty of time in the courtroom. “Most lawyers don’t actually practice courtroom work, and I was trying to look for a firm that would allow me to do that,” she said. Olinger found that working with plaintiffs means not having to keep up with billable hours — so unlike colleagues who work in civil defense, she doesn’t get bogged down by the business of law. “There’s no competitiveness, no ladder that you have to climb,” she said. One of the greatest challenges of the job is keeping up with medical and scientific issues. “You’ve got to know so much about
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