Reynolds v. Alabama Department of Transportation

ORDER

MYRON H. THOMPSON, District Judge.

The issue presented in the midst of the lengthy nonjury trial of this long-standing lawsuit is one that, surprisingly, has been rarely addressed in the civil context: whether and, if so, when an attorney may confer with a witness during breaks in testimony. In their motion for mistrial, the defendants assert that the court has improperly prohibit ed their attorneys from conferring with witnesses during breaks in their testimony. 1 The defendants broadly contend that, “The law is clear that parties and witnesses have a right to representation by counsel,…