Josh Koskoff describes how he battled struggles and early defeats to discover himself as a successful trial lawyer. Josh talks about how growing up in a family of prominent trial lawyers shaped his own journey and career. Josh discusses his high-profile case representing the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting against the Remington fire arms company.
What you Will Learn
In this episode, Josh begins by discussing how his legacy growing up in a family of prominent trial lawyers shaped his outlook on the role of a lawyer and his own personal journey to becoming a successful trial lawyer. Josh discusses what he learned from his father and grandfather, and what he needed to unlearn to find his own unique style. Josh describes how he struggled early in his career to find his own clear voice in the courtroom, to the point where he came close to changing directions in his career. Josh tells us about the case that served as a turning point--a case in which he discovered his authentic self in the courtroom and achieved an incredible result for a client in what was considered to be an unwinnable case.
Josh talks about how we as lawyers sometimes fail to predict how a case will play out in a courtroom, because a trial is a human drama "not played on paper." As a result, a case does not look good on paper can sometimes be very powerful in a courtroom, as Josh proved in this "turning point" case.
Josh then goes on to discuss the status of a high-profile case, in which he represents the victims of the shooting at the Sandy Hook School in Newtown, Connecticut against the Remington firearms company, manufacturer of the AR-15 weapon used by the shooter. Josh explains how he was able to avoid Federal immunity for firearms manufacturers by pleading the case under a Connecticut statute proscribing false and misleading advertising. Josh talks about the legal challenges he has been able to overcome in the lawsuit and the current status of this important, landmark, case.
About Josh Koskoff
Josh represents the third generation of Koskoffs at Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder (https://www.koskoff.com) Known for his dedication, compassion, and creativity, Josh brings a fresh and unique perspective to all his cases. Like his father and grandfather, Josh believes strongly in the role of the lawyer as a fighter whose sole purpose is to improve his clients’ lives through the legal system. He views the law as working only when it works for the people and not just the powerful. His personal concern for the welfare of each of his clients has won their trust and devotion.
Josh has won substantial, record-setting medical malpractice verdicts throughout Connecticut, and has taken on powerful interests in cases with national implications. He currently represents 10 families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in a landmark case against the Remington Arms Company – the manufacturer of the assault rifle used to carry out the attack. He also represents Sandy Hook families in a suit against the controversial “conspiracy theorist” Alex Jones for his false claims that the Sandy Hook shooting was a “hoax” and that it was staged by actors. Recently Josh filed suit against eight manufacturers of assault weapons on behalf of the family of a victim of the Las Vegas shooting – the deadliest mass shooting in American history.
In March, 2019, Josh filed another groundbreaking lawsuit against a powerful defendant – Harvard University -- on behalf of the Connecticut descendant of an enslaved man named Renty and his enslaved daughter named Delhia.
Regardless of the nature of the case, Josh feels most rewarded fighting for his clients, and knowing he has helped his clients to have better and more satisfying lives.
REPRESENTATIVE CASES
About the Elawvate Podcast
The Elawvate Podcast – Where Trial Lawyers Learn, Share, and Grow is where the practice of trial law meets personal growth. To succeed as a trial lawyer and build a successful law firm requires practice skills, strategic thinking and some amount of business and entrepreneurial savvy. Elawvate is a place to learn and share skills and strategies for success.
But it is also a place to dig deeper and achieve personal growth.
Those who succeed as trial lawyers at the highest levels cultivate character, principle, integrity, leadership, courage, compassion and perseverance.
We learn and draw inspiration from those who have achieved this success.
For more about Elawvate, visit our website at www.elawvate.fm. You can also join our Facebook Group at Elawvate | Facebook
For more information or to contact the hosts, see:
(Ben Gideon | Gideon Asen LLC)
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Legal is a full service digital marketing firm for trial lawyers, Mica and Tyler at hype legal had worked at high impact, which is a trial animation and graphics firm for a collective 20 plus years. So they're very familiar with trial lawyers and what we do. And now they're taking the skill set a that they developed their in high-end graphics and a aesthetics and putting not to use for legal marketing. Ben Gideon (4m 24s): If you go to their website@hypelegal.com, you can check out a number of a law firm websites and digital marketing campaigns that they've created, including the graphics and the website for our podcast, which is really terrific. So I encourage you to check out HYP legal.com. 1 (4m 45s): This is the elevate podcast Where Trial Lawyers Learn, share, and grow. Let's talk about how we can elevate our trial practices, law firms, and lives. And now here are your hosts coming to you from coast to coast trial lawyers, Ben Gideon, and Rahul Ravipudi to come to the elevate podcast on Ben Gideon. And I'm Rahul Ravipudi Ben Gideon (5m 13s): Raul, what's new in your world. I understand you were about to start a trial yesterday, and now you're off a couple of weeks. What's going on with you? Yeah, the Rahul Ravipudi (5m 22s): LA superior court system down here in social distancing restrictions have been lifted. So a lot of the courtrooms are starting to open up and I'm starting to slowly see the wheels of justice start to turn, which is good, but not good enough. We didn't get sent out to trial and we got kicked out a couple of weeks and hopefully it'll happen soon enough has everything over Ben Gideon (5m 45s): There. You know, it's a, we're things move slower. Hear in the Northeast. We're about to hear from Josh Costco, from Connecticut, but in Maine, they have not held a civil jury trial for, since the pandemic began. And from what I can tell, we won't have any in 2021, despite pushing quite hard for it. So it's, it's really frustrating to be honest. So why don't we move to our guest today? A we're really pleased to invite Josh Koskoffs to our podcast. Josh, as a trial lawyer from Connecticut, Josh is a, I had a terrific career. He had a number of records, setting verdicts, particularly in the area of medical malpractice. Ben Gideon (6m 30s): He runs a large in a very successful firm and Connecticut. And what are the things that we'll talk about today? But one that I, I really admire about Josh and his firm is they're willing to, to willingness to take on righteous cases that for really important causes, ah, one of those as the case has been litigating now against the, a Remington firearms company. I want to invite them on to talk a little bit about that, but before we do and get into that a Josh welcome. Thank Josh Koskoff (7m 2s): You. Thank you, Ben. Thank you, Raul. It's a pleasure to be with you guys virtually, probably in joining this more than actually when we're physically together, to be honest. Ben Gideon (7m 12s): Well, I mean, you know, the, there's less a drinking involved when we're Josh Koskoff (7m 17s): Virtual firm. That's true. I don't Rahul Ravipudi (7m 19s): Know if that's true. That that's fine. Ben Gideon (7m 23s): So, so Josh, what's going on in, in, in Connecticut, are you guys actually seeing any, a civil jury trials these days? Mmm. Josh Koskoff (7m 31s): As far as I know, I think we're, we're like you, we have, I don't believe we've had a, a, a, a bonafide civil trial in front of a jury yet, as far as I know, other than we've had some court side cases, one of my colleagues, one of my partners had a wonderful partner, Kathleen mastery, a try the case in front of a, a federal court judge that got a terrific verdict. But of course that was in front of a jury. So you're probably, I'm probably like you guys trying to figure out how to climb out of this mountain of a backlog that, you know, we're facing before Ben Gideon (8m 6s): We get into some of the cases we want to talk about. You're a, a third generation, Koskoffs a, now the, I guess the named Koskoffs at the cost cost cost coffin Bieder firm in, in Connecticut. And I actually met your dad once, but only very briefly, but he was really a great, an impressive trial lawyer firm. What I know, what was it like growing up with that kind of legacy and how did you find your own voice as a trial lawyer was such a, you know, prominent dad and grandfather, a trial lawyers. It Josh Koskoff (8m 39s): Didn't come naturally or easy for me in terms of being a lawyer and finding that my own way, because although I had many advantages because of the work that my grandfather had done, and my dad continued at the firm, so I got to stand on their shoulders been, but, but in terms of finding my way and feeling my legs firm, you know, under me, it really took me quite a long time to develop, oh, my own style. And growing up was fun. A my grandfather, I was a first born grandson in the, I mean, maybe in many traditions was certainly the Jewish tradition. Josh Koskoff (9m 21s): And it was a embarrassment of riches being the first grandson. It was like none of the, none of the other grandkids really matter. So, and my grandfather used to have this expression in utero expression for me, I used to call me TOK shit, which means a big shot and in a set, a special relationship with my grandfather, who I didn't work with as a lawyer, but I did work driving him around in his 46 foot Lincoln, continental a, and that was a harrowing experience cause he couldn't go slow enough on the highway. And, you know, he would say, where's the fire when I try to get it up to 55 miles and our, but, but I got to hear great stories, a trial lawyer stories. Josh Koskoff (10m 8s): And as you guys know, the, the practicing as a trial lawyer has, there's a lot of a risk. There's a lot of stress. There's a lot of it, anxiety. There's a lot of dysfunction, but there's also a lot of great stories. And so I heard a beep I think stories about my grandfather as clients, the client, he got off for setting fire to me, his own factory, but also who Casey last win in the same guy, try to collect insurance for that fire. And, you know, the characters and my dad was somewhat of a hippie and did a lot of work early on, especially with the, with the black Panthers. Josh Koskoff (10m 55s): And so we had Panther's in the Panthers, which we had a members of the black Panther is in our home. Ah, and they were great characters and great friends really. And I got to know more because I was in my, the age difference. Wasn't that significant. And, and so there was no, and there was the guy that we represented, who is a mafia guy who got rubbed out one day, uncle Frank, we called him, you know, he'd bring a bagels to the house and we all loved him, his kids. And then in one day we said, where's his uncle, Frank and Sunday. And the somebody in my dad broke the news that he'd been basically rubbed out like a gangster that it gets. He was, you know, we had people escape from our house who were on furlough. Josh Koskoff (11m 38s): And we had a, occasionally my dad was share stories about some of the tragic cases he represented in terms of civil lawsuits. So it was a very vibrant upbringing. And the, I didn't know that I thought all lawyers did the three of us do. I thought they just all went to court and, and try cases and represented, deserving people. I didn't realize what a minority we actually were. And so that's why if I want it to become a lawyer at all, as a kid, it was that kind of law that a now I'm now ending up doing. So it was a, a, it was really a great experience. And I'm probably somewhat in my blood because of those stories. Rahul Ravipudi (12m 20s): No, I'm just curious. So with your grandfather and your dad and their styles and personas, what was it about theirs or did anything about them make it harder for you to sort of unlearn some of the things you may have emulated from them? And then how did you develop your own style? Josh Koskoff (12m 38s): Yeah, well, a, it's a great question because on learning is something that you don't think of consciously, but you probably a, it probably is what's happening for most of the time in your early development in as a lawyer, whether you have a family lineage, his lawyers or not really on learning a lot. A and you're also learning a lot of course, but, but I was just describing this to some lawyer and I don't mean to punt the question, but I have these two young, a high school and a high school kids in a, in a, in a college kid working here for the summer. And I was just explaining to them how long it takes to shed all of the stuff that you grow up with and all of the preconceptions about what lawyers should be until you are really reduced to yourself in a day in court and feel comfortable being yourself. Josh Koskoff (13m 30s): And it's not until you get there that you start to find that you're having success. And so, you know, I really, I think I emulated in my grandfather and a little bit who had, he was always, he had a grand gesture and I like to be Mr. Grand gesture, a I emulated in my dad because he was dramatic and in empathic and passionate I'm, and both of those certain aspects of both of those things, a fit me like a glove in certain aspects, just a just didn't feel right. And a, I can't explain it other than I feel that I had enough failure early on to succeed just enough failure to succeed. Josh Koskoff (14m 11s): There's the way of looking at at, and that in that I was in it, it got to the point early on where I was wondering whether this kind of work was for me. And I don't know about your first successes, his lawyers, where you actually felt like it was because something you did, but for me, it just happened really by accident. And it was probably within about six months of me hanging them up and thinking I couldn't do this job. So I couldn't articulate exactly what it was I unlearned, but whatever it was a allowed me to succeed in the courtroom. What Ben Gideon (14m 45s): Was that turning point for you when you first realized that this is something you could be really good at? And what, what would you say to, you know, newer lawyers that are starting out that are still in the phase where they're questioning or struggling? Yeah. Yeah. Well, I Josh Koskoff (15m 2s): Would say is that perseverance is important in terms of getting back up on your feet a day. And that those humiliations that we all go through as young lawyers, everybody goes for them. So the people that, that Ben you and me and Raul emulate some people in our groups, a Brian Panish, his, you know, an example was phenomenal lawyer. If you sat down with Brian and you'd talked to him about his early experiences, he would Kopp to having real struggles. And so for me, it was some realization of, I have to keep plugging away to a reasonable extent until I know I can't do this. And, you know, my dad would say, look, you know, when a Richard Bieder who, who was the partner in a third partner of Koskoffs Koskoffs and Bieder a year I would come home and I say, well, I lost a case. Josh Koskoff (15m 50s): And he said, no, that's not really. He goes, how long was the jury out? And I said, I don't know about an hour. He goes, that's amazing. You kept them out in an hour in that piece of crap, or, or he'd say a, I'd say a lost another case to go. You can't even come close to my record. He goes on and he'd say I lost my first nine cases. And I noticed that that every time somebody will lose a case, he goes, well, that's not, that's not so bad. I lost my first 10 cases. Next time I was at first, I lost my first 11 cases. But what Richard was trying to do was he was trying to remind us that nobody just, it just doesn't happen because you're a magical person. And you have at this, this magic that nobody else does, it happens through like Martin Luther king would say a continuous struggle. Josh Koskoff (16m 31s): And so I think that helped get me far enough. And, and I've also said that a lot has to go wrong for you to have that for our success. You know, it's the trial. That is the case. I'd bet for you guys, what was the case that was going to settle the didn't or that should have settled that didn't, or that you didn't wanna try, but somehow you have to. And so eye that has lead me to say L just a lot, it has to go wrong for you to have success in this business, because we will take off ramps if we can, to often to early to avoid the anxiety of losing a case or the risk. And a so essentially the first case where the turn-around case for me was the malpractice case. Josh Koskoff (17m 11s): And I have tried to convince the plaintiff's to drop the case, but I think a God bless her. She wouldn't let me. And it was the case of just very briefly where we settled with, with, to parties. My Joe was trying to my, my partner, Jim Horowitz, and they were the two. If there was a mama, Papa bear, mama bear, a baby bear, they were a Papa bear and a mama bear. And a baby bear was a doctor who had seen the patient who ultimately died about a year before his death. So we got to a gym through his skill, got a bunch of money for Papa bear and mama bear case. And I said to the widow, who was his name was Vieta Carlson. I owe all of my professional accomplishments, her, because if she hadn't done this, I don't know where I'd be. Josh Koskoff (17m 55s): But I said, I had said to her, you know, Vieta, you got this money, this case against this doctor, Goldsmith is a hard case. He saw you on your husband a, a year before. And you know, he didn't die until a year later. And there was a surgery and all of these things. And so I'm thinking you've got, you know, do we want to drop it? Or if we try at this more cost and she said, she would talk to her family. And she talked to her family and she called me back. And she said, well, w w I will drop this case depending on how you answer this question. And she said, was, Gary was her husband was Gary's EKG the year before normal. Now the EKG was non-specific. Josh Koskoff (18m 35s): The actual, honest answer is no, because it didn't, it wasn't normal. It, if she had said it was at abnormal, I probably would have said, I was just to say no, also, because it was non-specific. So the way she phrased that question, ah, was critical. And I said, no. And she said, well, let's give it a shot. And we had offered to settle with them for $250,000. And they were pretty reasonably at some point saying that they weren't going to pay any money. And then during the trial, I think because I had all this anxiety about my future and I was left in my own devices. Jim had bailed on me. I'm thinking you wanted no part of this loser. And I had, like the first day just went really well, just went really when I wasn't used to a day like that. Josh Koskoff (19m 21s): And then the second day went really well. And then I started thinking about decisions that I could make, and my decisions started to pay off. And I started to see a real cause and effect. And by the end of that trial, I was convinced that we had a good shot. And I had sent a letter demanding the policy, which was a million dollars. And, and they told me to pound sand, and the jury came in with a $10 million verdict. And then they get in the court. The case was reversed for a reason. I don't need to get into it. I was at evidentiary ruling, which I knew it was going to be a problem on apportionment, but on retrial, they also said it was gonna say that the first verdict was an aberration. And I was thinking, and I'm going to win again. I'm going to do, you know, do twice as well as I'm thinking. Josh Koskoff (20m 1s): Oh, shit. Yeah. Because, because my won victory. And so on a second, and you know what, I don't know if you've tried a case twice, it's very hard to get back up a second time. You know, you almost rather have a decision the first time around the sticks, even if it's a loss you can move on. And the second time the jury came back with $22 million. And so I sent a, a, I couldn't help it. This is the, the worst thing I've ever done that the lawyer for the insurance company in sent me an email saying that it was an aberration. So I printed out the email and I autographed it. And I sent him back a note that said your right, the first trial was an aberration. And that's when I learned that. And then when I did that and I told my dad, he's like, all right, let's not let this get to your head. Ben Gideon (20m 43s): You know, what, what do you think explains the verdicts in this case and, and why you and everybody else misjudge it? Because we like to think of ourselves as a good judges of what makes a good case, where a bad case. Josh Koskoff (20m 57s): You know, I, I think about court cases. I don't know if you think about it this way. It's like when football, they say, well, the game has and played on paper. We can game out something in advance all the way we want. We can apply whatever things that we, that make us feel that we know how to predict, you know, the future and how we can read cases and analyze cases and judge cases. And that's all on paper, you know, but it's not, but the, the courtroom is in its own special place. And so it was just a case that looked a lot better without the other, to defendant's in it. First of all. And I, I, I think I appreciated reasonably early on that when you could focus just on one defendant, instead of because, because when he's in it, the other three to two, he's a baby Baer. Josh Koskoff (21m 46s): Right. But when he is not with the other to, he's just a bear. And so I think that was one of the things. And, you know, the jury is being asked to decide his, this particular doctor, his culpability in a, or not the, in, in, in some sense of the other to parties, but, but they were there in court to analyze him and, and all of that gaming out all of that prediction game. You kind of forget about it when you're on trial. And I know, and I still had, had gone through the age old, a, a ritual, I guess, a thinking that I had won every case that I would, that I had lost until I lost it. And so it wasn't, it wasn't unusual for me to think that I'd won the case. Really, it just, at this time, I actually really think I knew I was going to win the case. Josh Koskoff (22m 29s): And it was just because everything was breaking, right. So Ben Gideon (22m 32s): We're going to take a short break. We'll be back in about 60 seconds with more of Josh Koskoffs during our quick break. I want to remind you that our show today is being sponsored by smart advocates. Smart advocate is a case management program designed for trial law and personal injury law firms all the way from smaller PI firms to the largest MDL in class action firms. It's the case management software we use at our office, and we love it. Our show also was sponsored by hype legal hype. Legal is a full service digital marketing firm started by friends of the pod, Tyler and Micah who have years of experience helping trial lawyers, getting great results in their cases. Ben Gideon (23m 13s): And now they're turning a, that attention to digital marketing. So check them out@hypelegal.com. Our show today is sponsored by expert Institute expert Institute as the ultimate partner for helping trial lawyers pair with the right experts for their cases and working their cases up all the way from intake through verdict. So check them out at expert institute.com/elawvate ELA, w a V a T E. And you will receive a 25% off discount on your first expert consult. All right. So we're back with more of Josh Koskoffs Josh. I wanted to turn out in case you're working on involving I'm representing the victims, have the Sandy Hook School shooting against the, a maker of the firearm, the