Adam Mitzner graduated from Brandeis University with a B.A. and M.A. in politics and went on from there to study law at the University of Virginia. He's currently the head of the litigation department of Pavia & Harcourt LLP, which received some fame because it's the law firm where Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor practiced before she was appointed to the bench. Mitzner is the author of A Case of Redemption, a finalist for the ABA's Silver Gavel Award, and A Conflict of Interest, one of Suspense Magazine's Best Books of 2011.
Losing Faith is his latest novel, which centers on Aaron Littmann, the chairman of one of the country's most prestigious law firms. But Aaron's orderly world is turned upside down when he's offered an opportunity he can't refuse: to represent a Russian businessman accused of terrorism or else the Russian will go public with evidence the attorney had a torrid affair with Faith Nichols, a high-profile judge. Now Aaron and Faith must navigate a psychological game of power, ethics, lies, and justice if they are to salvage their reputations and their careers.
Adam Mitzner stopped by In Reference to Murder as part of his blog tour to take some "Author R&R" about how he approaches reference and research for his novels:
Author Reference and Research
by Adam Mitzner,
Author of Losing Faith
The research I do for my books falls into two categories: (1) legal issues; (2) everything else.
The legal issues are actually the easiest to research. As a practicing lawyer, I research the legal issues in my books the same way I would if I was representing a client with those issues. First, I hit the books, which these days means computerized research on the Westlaw database, looking for precedent to support the position that my fictional lawyers are going to cite to the fictional judge. If I'm uncertain about a particular area of the law, I reach out to lawyers with greater expertise – again, just as I do for my clients.
The legal issues that arise in my books usually come from putting myself in the role of defense lawyer and prosecutor and thinking through the strategies that I'd pursue if it were a real case. Sometimes the issues that come up are ones that I've actually litigated. For example, in A Case of Redemption, I dealt with a witness asserting his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination. This happened in a case I was handling years ago, and I remember being surprised that the witness' invocation is made outside the presence of the jury. The result at first seems unfair: a defendant who believes that someone else committed the crime for which he stands accused wants to question that person ala Perry Mason, and get him to admit his guilt. However, if the witness asserts his Fifth Amendment privilege because he fears that his testimony will likely incriminate him, the jury never knows about it! But then when you study the reasoning behind the rule, you see the injustice that results if the invocation of the Fifth Amendment is made in front of the jury.
Then there's the research about everything else. That's where I rely on friends and family for their particular expertise. My wife helps me with everything, but I particularly rely on her knowledge of scotch, which for some reason I like my characters to drink, but with I don't personally have any familiarity. My children fill me in on what the slang is among high schoolers, and my doctor friends correct my medical jargon. I reached out to my own doctor during my annual physical regarding an issue and he referred me to a friend of his who is a coroner in the Midwest. The question was whether the coroner's report concerning a woman killed by blunt force trauma to the head would note if the victim had pubic hair. To my surprise, I was told that it varies from medical examiner to medical examiner.
My books are set in New York City, and I try to be as accurate as possible regarding the places depicted. That usually means visiting the restaurants to get the décor right, and even studying menus to make sure that the prices are correct. It has the side benefit of allowing me to have some very nice meals in the name of research.
Finally, I rely extensively on Google. It's a running joke I have with my wife that she has to be extra careful not to become a victim of a violent crime because our computer is filled with searches about ways to kill your spouse or dispose of bodies.
© 2015 Adam Mitzner, author of Losing Faith
For more on Adam and his books, check out his website and Facebook page.
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