Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
The Lincoln Lawyer in the land of Friday Night Lights, where a freewheeling, small-town Texas patent attorney takes on the trial of the decade when his new client is accused of murder. In the East Texas town of Marshall sits the federal courthouse of the Eastern District of Texas, a place revered by patent lawyers for the court's adherence to speedy jury trails and massive punitive payouts. Marshall is flooded with patent lawyers, all of whom find work being the local voice for the big-city lawyers that need to sway a small-town jury. One of the best is James Euchre.
Euchre's new client is Amir Zawar, a firebrand CEO forced to defend his life's work against a software patent infringement. In a heated moment during the preliminary hearing, Zawar threatens the judge in court. Later that night, Judge Gardner is found murdered in the courthouse parking lot. All signs point to Zawar--he publicly threatened the judge, he was staying at a house near the courthouse, he has no alibi. Moreover, he is an outsider, a wealthy Pakistani-American businessman, the son of immigrants, who stands accused of killing a powerful federal judge in a small Texas town.
Zawar claims his innocence, and demands that Euchre defend him. It's the last thing Euchre wants--Judge Gardner was his good friend and mentor--but he reluctantly agrees. With the help of a former prosecutor and a local PI, Euchre must navigate the byzantine world of criminal defense law in a town where everyone knows everyone, and bad blood has a long history. The deeper he digs, the more he fears that he'll either send an innocent man to death row, or worse, set a murderer free.
Joey Hartstone is a new, resonant voice in commercial fiction, and his debut is a small-town legal thriller as big in scope as Texas. The Local crackles with tension, high stakes gambits, and a gangbuster narrative that races to the final, shocking verdict.
Synopsis
A freewheeling, small-town attorney takes on a national murder trial when an out-of-town client is accused of killing a federal judge in Texas. In the town of Marshall sits the Federal courthouse of the Eastern District of Texas, a place revered by patent lawyers for its speedy jury trails and massive punitive payouts. Marshall is flooded with patent lawyers, all of whom find work being the local voice for the big-city legal teams that need to sway a small-town jury. One of the best is James Euchre.
Euchre's new client is Amir Zawar, a firebrand CEO forced to defend his life's work against a software patent infringement. Late one night, after a heated confrontation in a preliminary hearing, Judge Gardner is found murdered in the courthouse parking lot. All signs point to Zawar--he has motive, he has opportunity, and he has no alibi. Moreover, he is an outsider, a wealthy Pakistani-American businessman, the son of immigrants, who stands accused of killing a beloved hometown hero.
Zawar claims his innocence, and demands that Euchre defend him. It's the last thing Euchre wants--Judge Gardner was his good friend and mentor--but the only way he can get definitive answers is to take the case. With the help of a former prosecutor and a local PI, Euchre must navigate the byzantine world of criminal defense law in a town where everyone knows everyone, and bad blood has a long history. The deeper he digs, the more he fears that he'll either send an innocent man to death row or set a murderer free.
The Local is a small-town legal thriller as big in scope as Texas. It crackles with courtroom tension and high stakes gambits on every page to the final, shocking verdict.
Joey Hartstone is a film and television writer. He has written two feature films, LBJ (2016) and Shock and Awe (2017), which were both directed by Rob Reiner. He wrote on the first two seasons of the legal drama The Good Fight. He is currently a writer on the Showtime series Your Honor. Joey lives in Los Angeles with his family.
Synopsis
A freewheeling, small-town attorney takes on a national murder trial when an out-of-town client is accused of killing a federal judge in Texas. "A spectacular courtroom thriller that kept me turning pages like the best of Grisham or Turow. --Michelle King, co-creator of The Good Wife, The Good Fight, and Evil
In the town of Marshall sits the Federal courthouse of the Eastern District of Texas, a place revered by patent lawyers for its speedy jury trails and massive punitive payouts. Marshall is flooded with patent lawyers, all of whom find work being the local voice for the big-city legal teams that need to sway a small-town jury. One of the best is James Euchre.
Euchre's new client is Amir Zawar, a firebrand CEO forced to defend his life's work against a software patent infringement. Late one night, after a heated confrontation in a preliminary hearing, Judge Gardner is found murdered in the courthouse parking lot. All signs point to Zawar--he has motive, he has opportunity, and he has no alibi. Moreover, he is an outsider, a wealthy Pakistani-American businessman, the son of immigrants, who stands accused of killing a beloved hometown hero.
Zawar claims his innocence, and demands that Euchre defend him. It's the last thing Euchre wants--Judge Gardner was his good friend and mentor--but the only way he can get definitive answers is to take the case. With the help of a former prosecutor and a local PI, Euchre must navigate the byzantine world of criminal defense law in a town where everyone knows everyone, and bad blood has a long history. The deeper he digs, the more he fears that he'll either send an innocent man to death row or set a murderer free.
The Local is a small-town legal thriller as big in scope as Texas. It crackles with courtroom tension and high stakes gambits on every page to the final, shocking verdict.
Synopsis
A freewheeling, small-town attorney takes on a national murder trial when an out-of-town client is accused of killing a federal judge in Texas. "A spectacular courtroom thriller that kept me turning pages like the best of Grisham or Turow." --Michelle King, co-creator of The Good Wife, The Good Fight, and Evil
The town of Marshall, Texas, is the epicenter of intellectual property law in the US--renowned for its speedy trials and massive payouts. One of its best lawyers is James Euchre. His newest client, Amir Zawar, is a CEO forced to defend his life's work against a patent infringement claim. But when a beloved hometown hero is murdered, all signs point to Zawar, an outsider with no alibi. With the help of a former federal prosecutor and a local PI, Euchre hopes to uncover the truth. In his first criminal case, the stakes couldn't be higher. Euchre fears either an innocent man will be sent to death row, or he'll help set a murderer free. The Local is a small-town thriller crackling with courtroom tension right up to the final verdict.