Girl, Under Oath (Michael Gresham Series)

by John Ellsworth

  Also, I would like to thank Michael Gresham for setting up the meeting we had on Saturday and trying to help us settle this case. Let me ask you a question, Mr. Gresham. Am I wrong in thinking that everyone agrees there’s around seven or eight million in assets? And am I wrong in thinking that if I go to court, I will get 3 1/2 million or $4 million worth of those assets? Why isn't it simple, then, for us to settle my claim for only $1 million? Doesn't that seem like the best thing for your client? I don't know if it's you or Doctor Jennifer who doesn't want to settle, but I'm begging both of you to hear me out and settle with me for half the insurance proceeds and let me go home to take care of my little girl.

  One last thing. My mother is staying with my daughter while I'm here in America. I spoke to her this morning on the phone, and they have taken my daughter back to hospital for asthma. This breaks my heart that I can't be there for her while she's in hospital. One last time, I'm begging you people to settle this case and let me go home.

  With great love in my heart, I remain,

  Elise Ipswich

  36

  Michael

  Elise’s email fell on deaf ears, near as I could tell because Jennifer didn’t suddenly call me up and instruct me to settle.

  Crickets.

  On Wednesday morning, court began at 9 o'clock sharp. Judge Earnest Adamson was seated on the bench, and he peered through his reading glasses, presumably reading the pleadings filed in the case before things got underway. At last, he said, "Mr. Wilder, it is your petition for a restraining order, accounting and temporary orders of support, so you will go first. Please proceed."

  I watched as Frank Wilder climbed to his feet, anxious to get a running start, but instead he made a long, winding, windy, opening statement to the court, outlining the parties’ assets, their debts, their earning histories and potential, and telling the court what witnesses he would call. He ended by asking the court to restrain Jennifer from transferring assets.

  Witnesses followed. Wilder led off by calling Elise Ipswich. Elise, a pretty woman with olive skin and an ear-length bob, walked briskly up to the witness chair and turned to be sworn in. She raised her right hand, upon which she wore a plain gold ring on her middle finger. She took the oath of witness, smiling slightly, and she then arranged herself in the witness chair and leaned forward in anticipation.

  Wilder asked her the usual background questions, including her date of marriage to the decedent, Joseph Ipswich, and the date of her giving birth to Çidde Ipswich, their daughter. Wilder then asked her about her assets. Her testimony aligned with what had been discussed at the Saturday noon meeting. He then got into her need for support, and he spent a good portion of her testimony there.

  "How much, Mrs. Ipswich, do you receive each month as payment for your work as an associate agent at LVP Partners?"

  "I receive approximately four thousand euros per month.”

  "Is there any bonus at the end of the year or any other type of compensation in addition to the four thousand per month?"

  "No, that is the total pay I receive, about forty-eight thousand euros per year."

  "And what, if you know, is the average wage for French citizens as of this year?"

  "I believe it’s about sixty thousand euros per year. I might be off by about five thousand, give or take, but I think I'm pretty close."

  "Suffice it to say, your yearly income is below that of your fellow citizens by a considerable amount?"

  "Yes, it would seem so. At any rate, I know that other people my age are buying condos and apartments and have title to many other assets. At the same time, I'm in a small condo that I paid for half with my savings. I still owe half, too. Other people in my office are doing much better than me with their houses and yards.”

  "Why do you think this is?"

  "I know why this is. It's because I must spend one thousand euros per week for the medications my six-year-old daughter needs to stay alive. As you can see, I have no money per month to live on and have just about exhausted the savings that my late husband left me."

  "So, this morning, you're here to tell the judge that your circumstances are desperate?"

  "They are desperate in the least. I'm here this morning, hat in hand, to beg the judge to help me continue to buy my daughter's medication and keep a roof over our heads. It just seems unfair to me that—”

  “Objection!" I shouted out. "The witness is about to make a closing argument rather than give testimony. While the court might sympathize with her position, she is not entitled to give opinions about what's fair and unfair."

  "Sustained. The witness will provide testimony of observable facts. She should not offer opinions as to fair and unfair however deserved they may be."

  Wilder continued, "How much money are you seeking per month for the court to award you as temporary support while this case is pending in this court?"

  "I need at least ten thousand euros per month to supplement my income and allow us to live in the condition we were more or less living when my husband was alive. The other Mrs. Ipswich is living at a much higher standard of living, due in large part due to the earnings and assets of our late husband."

  Frank Wilder took a minute to go through his notes, allowing those comments to sink in with the judge. He then looked up, adjusted the reading glasses on his nose, and ran a hand through his hair. "Would it be fair to say that you are only seeking an equal standard of living to that of Jennifer Ipswich, insofar as that standard of living is made possible by the assets of Dr. Joseph Ipswich? Do you understand my question?"

  "I understand that you're asking whether I can set aside how much money Jennifer Ipswich earns and set aside how much money I earn and look at only the assets and income from those assets of our late husband. Yes, I can do that, and I can say unequivocally that this is exactly what I'm looking for, a substantial similarity in our standard of living based only on our late husband's assets and earnings. I think that's only fair." She hurried to add this last sentence, fearing another objection by me. I almost made that objection but decided against it because her commentary was really very harmless.

  At that point, the court interrupted. "Excuse me counsel, but I'm just now reading the latest of the pleadings, and it's just now becoming clear to me that the litigants, Mrs. Ipswich of Paris and Mrs. Ipswich of Chicago, were both married to the same man at the same time. Is this correct?"

  Wilder answered sharply, maybe revealing his annoyance with the judge’s dilatory reading of the pleadings, “That is exactly correct, your honor, and it should further be understood that neither woman knew about the other woman's marriage to Dr. Joseph Ipswich. At a minimum, my client did not know about Jennifer Ipswich's marriage to Joseph Ipswich. We are just coming to the point in her testimony where I was going to make clear to the court that she was entirely innocent when she married Dr. Ipswich.”

  “That being the case," said Judge Adamson, "consider that point made. It won't be necessary for you to go into it any further. Counsel, are there any other questions that you wish to ask of this witness before I allow the respondent to make his case?"

  "I think not," said attorney Wilder. "I think we're just about finished here, Your Honor."

  The judge looked perplexed, but then his face relaxed as if it had all become clear to him in a rush. He then said, “Counsel—both of you—I've heard all I need to hear from this witness. Please let us proceed and telescope down this hearing by allowing me to move on to the respondent, Jennifer Ipswich."

  At that point, Elise Ipswich stepped down from the witness stand and resumed her place at counsel table beside her attorney. The judge then turned his attention to me and addressed me directly.

  "Mr. Gresham, I have read your pleadings, and I have read your avowals to the court of what your witnesses would say, your summary of their testimony, and the numbers and amounts they would testify to. The court will accept your pleadings as true as if you had presented this testimony, and I'm ready to make a ruling in this case. Would
you have any objection to my proceeding in this fashion? If you do, then I will have no alternative except to make a temporary order for support at this time and continue this matter so that I can get onto my next case, a pressing criminal case."

  "Your honor," I said, "I would rather the court take as true those matters alleged in my response rather than continue this matter to another time. My client is ready to hear the court's ruling and will make every effort to comply."

  Judge Adamson sat back and contemplated the ceiling for several moments before rocking forward in his chair and fixing his gaze upon a point approximately between the two lawyers’ tables. "It is ordered that respondent Jennifer Ipswich make available to Elise Ipswich one-half of the total bank accounts presently held in her name, from whatsoever source and however earned. The court is aware that Dr. Jennifer Ipswich claims that a good portion of those proceeds is her separate property, but the court disagrees. While this is not a community property state, this is an equitable property state, and the court has some leeway in making its ruling. Based upon the petitioner’s testimony about her ill child, the cost of that child's medications, and the fact that the petitioner is still working as an associate agent and is living significantly below the average standard of living in Paris, the court makes this order to do equity between the parties. Jennifer Ipswich shall deliver a cashier's check in the amount of one-half of the value of all checking and savings accounts and CD accounts upon which her name appears, no later than five PM this afternoon. That check will be delivered to the office of Frank Wilder, attorney for Elise Ipswich. Gentlemen, is there anything further?"

  "Only to ask the date when we may come to court for a full and complete accounting," said Frank Wilder—who, I just happened to think, was always more than willing to come running back to the court if only to run up more legal fees.

  As if to make my point, Wilder then added, “And incidentally, Your Honor, we also asked in our petition for temporary attorney's fees of thirty-five-thousand dollars. Will the court care to rule on this as well? The reason I believe it's deserved is that the parties met on Saturday, at which time Jennifer Ipswich stated that she would never even consider turning over one-half of those bank account funds to Elise Ipswich. Thus, she is the reason we are here today without a settlement, and my time and hours have been provided to the court in a separate pleading, which amounts to thirty-five thousand dollars. I would ask the court to award me this amount out of the separate funds of Jennifer Ipswich."

  The court looked at me and said, "Mr. Gresham?"

  "Your Honor, the demands that counsel was making on Saturday were without basis and were outrageous. He intended to drag this matter into court to be awarded the enormous legal fee he is now claiming while pretending to make it look like it is all occasioned by my client's fault. It is only fair that Mr. Wilder's client pays him herself, at least until we can have a full-blown hearing on this matter and get into testimony on who said what on this past Saturday."

  "Yes," said Judge Adamson, "that is my inclination as well, to put off the hearing on legal fees until we can have a full hearing on the entire matter. But in the meantime, to ensure that Elise Ipswich can continue with this litigation, the court will make an order for at least partial payment of Mr. Wilder's fees. Dr. Jennifer Ipswich will pay out of her separate property ten-thousand dollars to Frank Wilder. There being nothing further, this matter stands adjourned."

  37

  Michael

  Upon leaving the courthouse and walking across to my office, I could all but feel the steam coming out of Jennifer's ears. However, she was able to keep herself collected until we arrived back inside my office and were sitting around my desk with Marcel present. She then erupted.

  "That rotten, conniving woman! I've never been so angry in my life. I've never been so inspired to take matters into my own hands and throttle her myself. The absolute nerve of her to come to the United States and make a claim on my personal property as if she has some right to it for doing the dirty of stealing away my husband and enticing him to marry her. It is shameful, it is degrading, and I hope to hell we can keep it from being published in any legal newspapers or, even worse, the Chicago Tribune. I don't even know where to begin."

  I nodded solemnly and shifted my gaze over to Marcel.

  He spoke up first. "I've been to lots of these hearings, Doctor Ipswich, and it never ceases to amaze me how utterly random the rulings appear to be. The court today could just as easily have awarded you one half of her assets as award her one half of your assets. It seems to me to make no good legal sense. Michael?"

  "I was afraid something like this might happen. It's not good law, and it's not taking into account the proffered testimony of my experts. It is very clear, according to my experts, that the amount of thirty-five thousand dollars was the only amount that was in question as to whether or not it was joint property. The rest of the amounts at the banks and CDs, were clearly found to be the sole and separate property belonging to Jennifer. I cannot express to you how sorry I am that the court went this way, and I'm really feeling rocked back on my heels at this point. Not to mention the ten thousand that the court added on as almost a punitive damage. That certainly wasn't deserved."

  Jennifer stood and stamped her feet as if she were a child throwing a tantrum. "Isn't there some damned way we can appeal this thing before five o'clock and get another judge to look at it and overrule him?”

  "There's absolutely no alternative offered in the law that would accomplish that. Appeals take a long time. They very often amount to Solomon splitting a child in half rather than give real relief to one party or the other. No, I'm afraid you're stuck with the court's ruling, and that all we can do from here on is prepare for the full-blown hearing."

  Jennifer then raised her right hand and pointed an accusatory finger at me. She said, as if swearing an oath, “Right? Then that leaves me no option except to do what I can to make things right. I'm not going to be run over by this woman and that greedy bastard she calls her lawyer. I'm just not going to obey the court's orders. You might as well call the judge right now and tell him to send the sheriff after me because there's no way in hell I'm going to raid my bank accounts and give that bitch one-half. That just is not going to happen today. I don't care what anybody says to me."

  Now it was Marcel’s turn to look back at me. I shook my head. "That is absolutely the wrong attitude to take, I can assure you. If you persist in that, the judge will appoint a special conservator to all assets in your name and will proceed to dole those out fifty percent to the second Mrs. Ipswich. I cannot strongly encourage you enough to proceed to your banks, obtain a cashier's check, and return it to me by four PM so that I can have our runner deliver it to Frank Wilder's office before five PM. I'm terribly sorry to be so blunt, but at this point, it's the only reasonable avenue of action for you to take, Jennifer."

  Jennifer folded her arms and glared at me. "You're not hearing me. I said I would never do it. That's all I have to say to you." She then turned on her heel and stamped out of my office without another word. It left me and Marcel staring at each other in astonishment.

  "I don't think I've ever had a client talk like this before," I said. "Not in thirty-some years. I have no idea what that woman is going to do, but I don't like it one bit. I can't help but think about the psychotic episodes she experienced during med school, and I'm praying that the stress of today's hearing doesn’t send her over the edge so that she has another episode and does something crazy."

  I drummed my fingers on my desktop. Then I sighed, leaned back in my executive chair, and rubbed my eyes with my fingertips. I was absolutely worn out by then. I checked my wristwatch and found it was only 10:20 AM. All was not well. I yawned, collected myself, and then came forward in my chair.

  "You know, it might not be a bad idea for you to follow her and make sure she doesn't do something entirely off the wall, Marcel. What if you swing by her office, make sure she's there, and follow her home after work an
d then lurk around until the light goes off in her bedroom?”

  Marcel said, "I'm thinking the exact same thing. I'll call you back tonight, boss, after she's in bed."

  38

  Michael

  What follows is what we’ve pieced together.

  Just as court ended, Elise, who was planning on flying out within the hour to attend to her daughter in the Paris hospital, happened to pass by my counsel table while Frank Wilder and I were up with the judge. Jennifer Ipswich had moved over by the windows in the courtroom and was using her cell phone. Everyone's back was to Elise as she passed by my and Jennifer's table.

  While no one was looking, Elise reached down and grabbed the manila folder off the table as she passed by. She stuffed it inside her bag and kept moving, fully expecting that at any moment, a voice would cry out and demand she return the file.

  However, there was no voice with each new step, and it became clear to her that she was going to make it out of the courtroom with the new treasure.

  She had no idea what was inside the folder, but she was desperate. Whatever she might find, she hoped against hope that it would help settle the case and give her the money she wanted. Beyond that, there was no ill will, no intent to commit a crime, and no intention to embarrass Jennifer Ipswich in any manner or to take advantage of the situation as it existed.

  Instead, she hoped to use whatever was in the file to help the other side see that settlement was in everyone's best interest. If she could make that happen, she knew she could go to Paris and not return to Chicago for the full-blown trial. Nothing would please her more. Nothing would be better for her daughter than to have the money with no further delay to meet her needs.