Lincoln attorney Vince Powers thought his court case was doomed before he'd made his opening argument.
Powers, a rumpled trial lawyer known for passionate courtroom speeches, was representing a woman in southwestern Nebraska who had been injured in a crash.
She did not speak English. She may or may not have been in the country illegally; Powers never asked, but prospective jurors in McCook did, time after time.
An elderly woman during jury selection finally told Powers that if his client had “stayed in Mexico where she belonged, she wouldn't have been injured.”
Doomed, he thought.
Not so.
After a closing argument in which he laid out that justice required jurors to consider his client, a restaurant dishwasher, and not his client's immigration status, Powers landed her a verdict of $444,000.
“I'm proud of that case,” Powers said. “It made me feel so good about the jury system.”
This week, Powers, 57, will be arguing on behalf of Jim Suttle in the Omaha mayor's legal challenge of recall petitions.
Powers is expected to argue that Douglas County Election Commissioner Dave Phipps did not follow state law in validating the petition signatures.
If the effort fails, Suttle faces a recall election on Jan. 25.
Powers' connections to the Nebraska Democratic Party played a part in why Suttle, a Democrat, hired him, but courtroom experience was the major factor, Powers said.
“Politics is a hobby,” he said. “From 8 to 5, I represent people. That's more important.”
Powers is well known in legal circles as someone who takes cases that others might forgo and for zealously representing his clients. During his career, he has tried more than 100 cases, and he has represented three death row inmates.
He also is a staunch Nebraska Democrat. It was Powers who came up with the idea of holding presidential caucuses in 2008.
Those caucuses garnered national attention and put Barack Obama in position to win an electoral vote in the Omaha-based 2nd Congressional District.
Powers currently is the national committeeman for the Nebraska Democratic Party and was a presidential nomination superdelegate in 2008.
“Vince will say things and do things that a lot of attorneys will not do in the courtroom. He will give a very passionate speech about America, truth and justice,” said Mark Fahleson, a fellow Lincoln attorney and the chairman of the Nebraska Republican Party. “He is very colorful in the courtroom. He's a street fighter.”
Fahleson said he and Powers may be “polar opposites politically,” but he admires Powers' fearlessness and willingness to go to court. “There are many ... who call themselves trial attorneys who work to settle out of court. Vince is willing to try cases.”
Powers has spent his career in Lincoln but still considers himself an “Omaha boy.”
He grew up in the Dundee neighborhood, the son of trial attorney John Powers, who died in 1974. He attended St. Margaret Mary School and Creighton Prep.
All five of his siblings — four brothers and one sister — also followed in their father's footsteps as lawyers.
Powers' parents were Democrats as well. His mother, Marjorie, was an ardent supporter of 2008 presidential contender Hillary Rodham Clinton and was disappointed when her son cast his lot with Obama.
“When I declared I was going to vote as a superdelegate for Barack Obama, my sister called me up and said, ‘Mom told me to tell you this. Mom says she never wanted to be wealthy, but now she regrets not being rich. She's cutting you out of the will,'” Powers said with a booming laugh.
Powers stayed in Lincoln after graduating from the University of Nebraska College of Law in 1979. His wife, Alison, was still in law school, so Powers decided to open his own office, Powers and Associates.
He said he never wanted to work for a law firm and always wanted to focus on trial work. Powers toiled by himself for years, handling divorces, criminal cases and personal injury lawsuits.
These days his office employs two more attorneys, and the bulk of his work involves personal injury lawsuits.
Of the cases he has won, Powers counts as among his proudest moments his representation of a woman who had been raped and who sued the owner of a Lincoln building, saying it provided inadequate security. Powers said it was the only verdict of its kind upheld on appeal in Nebraska.
“I really enjoy the courtroom,” Powers said. “If you try lawsuits — win or lose — clients appreciate that.”
In the 1980s, Powers got a call from a judge asking if he would represent death row inmate Steven Roy Harper. Powers thought it would be interesting, but he never anticipated the workload that would follow.
He eventually went on to represent Harold Otey, who was executed in 1994, and Robert E. Williams, who died in Nebraska's electric chair in 1997.
Powers said he opposes the death penalty but has never befriended his death row clients. His job was to give them the best defense and to try to keep them alive.
“I've always been a free agent. I can represent anyone and not worry about repercussions,” said Powers, who goes to bat this week for Omaha's mayor.
Contact the writer:
402-444-1309, robynn.tysver@owh.com
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