King of the Courtroom

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The article (like the photograph) is 'by' Christine Smith:

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Develop a plan. Seize power. Exploit your adversary's weaknesses. Sound familiar? It does to Walter L. Gerash, one of our nation's most prominent trial lawyers. Known for his eccentric courtroom style and for obtaining acquittals in some of Colorado's most sensational murder trials, Gerash isn't just a king in court; he loves chess!

"Both chess and law are reproductions of life," he says. "Namely, since life is a struggle, chess is a struggle, and law is a struggle. Chess is adversarial. Law is adversarial, at least trial law. You have conflicting parties going for each other's throats."

A formidable opponent in court or on the chessboard, Gerash's logic, strategy, and tactics are superbly utilized in both arenas. With two landmark U.S. Supreme Court wins, several seven and eight figure verdicts and settlements in tort and product cases, and scores of high profile homocide cases, Gerash's legal career is proof of his analytical chess-minded thinking. A former tournament player, and life member of the U.S. Chess Federation, his highest rating was about 1790.

"In the struggle for a client's interest, my concentration, research, will to win, and passion is unbounded. In chess I try to do novel, risky, or innovative things. To experiment. I am not a defensive player. I'm an aggressive player. If you lose in chess nobody goes to jail and nobody loses any money (boom) so it pays to be innovative and daring because you're not representing anybody elses interests except your own."

"However," he adds, "when I played tournament chess I became less aggressive and paid attention to defensive mechanisms with a view of quickly getting my men out and planning an attack."

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