You Will Lose: Why You Need to be Realistic in the Courtroom 

By Ripples Turquand

We live in a world of reaching new heights, accepting failures, and aiming for success. Especially in the legal world, lawyers focus on wins over losses, obviously, but that doesn’t mean we can’t learn from a trial not going our way.

In a short interview with David Urteago, partner at The Pettit Law Firm, I gained insight into his inner mechanics of how to deal with losing a case. 

When lawyers or clients ask you for advice on trials, what do you tell them?

You will lose. 

Maybe there are outliers – those rare attorneys who claim perfect records – but for the vast majority of us, defeat is inevitable at some point. If someone tells you they’ve never lost a case, they have not tried enough cases. If you have tried many cases, you will eventually lose. 

Relying on wins to learn rarely offers real comfort or practical help when staring at a loss. You need to get comfortable accepting triumphs, but also learning from failure.

How does this apply to your practice?

Telling someone they ought to learn from failure doesn’t ease the sting or provide a roadmap for the next case. It’s empty consolation. That’s why my go-to phrase is simple: Failure is always an option. 

I say it partly because it’s funny, but mostly, I say it because it’s true. It cuts through the bravado of trial law that plagues high-stakes litigation. People convince themselves that if something matters enough, then sheer willpower, preparation, or the universe’s sense of narrative fairness will tip the scales. 

Emphatically, that’s not how the world works. We all know it deep down. Failure remains on the table even when you’ve done everything right: researched every precedent, crafted airtight arguments, anticipated every counterpoint. The judge might rule against you. The jury might view the evidence differently. 

So, what does that mean for lawyers in the trenches?

I’m not sure if I have an exact answer that fits everything. 

You could go to church, you could study philosophy, but what does that actually mean at the end of day? A worthwhile observation that all of the stuff you do, and all of the brilliant things you argue, very well might not be enough at the end of the day.

Deal with losses however you need to. Be realistic and acknowledge the possibility of losing upfront, and it loses some of its power to devastate you. Failure is always an option, and that’s okay.

It’s called the “practice” of law for a season. Just like sports practice, you need to practice so you perform well, win or lose. True trial lawyers are surely anxious for their next battle and case after every trial. 

After enduring any big loss, I have also learned to pump myself up. Theodore Roosevelt has a wonderful poem called “The Man in the Arena.” It fires me back up to go to trial again.