1530/Lawyer up!

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Lawyer up!
Date of Scene: 05 May 2020
Location: Mock trial room, Stark Industries
Synopsis: Pepper gets a chance to chat with SI's premiere attorney, giving him a quick heads-up as to what may be coming down the pike.
Cast of Characters: Leonard Sibelius, Pepper Potts




Leonard Sibelius has posed:
Doctor Strange has his Sanctum Sanctorum. Superman has (had) the Fortress of Solitude. Batman has the Batcave.

Leonard "Shark" Sibelius has his own private courtroom in the Legal Department of Stark industries. He petitioned for the space as his own private arena for working on jury trials.

He spared no expense in setting up this place. The floor tiles came from a Supreme Court courtroom where they had sat for 50 years. The old-looking chair had a right to look old - Clarence Darrow had sat in it during the Scopes Monkey Trial. The table and chairs in the jury room in the rear came from the original set of 12 ANGRY MEN, the jury box came from the original TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD set...even the lamp on the judge's bench sat on Judge Ito's bench during the O.J. trial.

With the furniture came the technology. Voice analysis software from the FBI's Behavioral Science Division at Quantico. Facial-analysis equipment from The Lightman Group.

The Shark left nothing to chance. Every time he worked on his client's defense, it was created, honed, and polished to a mirror shine in this room.
And today, he was preparing to verbally eviscrate Blevins in this room.

"...What Paul Blevins did was not merely some idle power play. He was a serial killer of jobs, of dreams. Each person he picked out for occupational slaughter was destroyed, and buried in a special database he called...his GRAVEYARD. And, mostly fifteen times a day, he would VISIT this graveyard, access his notes...and gloat over them. We will SHOW he did this repeatedly, every DAY! Is he insane? No. What he did was not an act of INSANITY, but of EVIL. He SAVORED his graveyard. He ENJOYED having destroyed so many people."

He paused. "Well, now...the dead will speak. And they will all prove that he is guilty of ruining lives...for his own pleasure."

Pepper Potts has posed:
There aren't any places where Miss Pepper Potts //can't// go within Stark Industries, but there are places where she won't go without good cause. Offices are fair game, certainly, as are labs. This private-ish haven that the Industries' Head Lawyer has set up, however, is a haven, and she treats it as such.

It seems like forever since Tony announced his candidacy for //President//, with a capital P, and since then, Pepper has been working to be sure assets don't cross inappropriately.

The door in the back is open a crack, and the business suited PA opens it just a little more before she leans on the door jamb, waiting for a chance to interrupt. She's caught him at the end of his opening statement, and the moment she sees her opportunity, Pepper first clears her throat before speaking,

"Mr Sibelius? A moment of your time, if I may?" She smiles soon after; both of their minutes are costly, as she's very aware. "It sounded good, by the way.. what I caught. Very, very real."

Leonard Sibelius has posed:
Lenny turns, regards Pepper, then smiles. "Step into my office, Miss Potts." He always calls her 'Miss Potts,' never 'Pepper,' in spite of how well they know each other. He looks to the empty jury box, then sighs. "I intend feature Mister Parker in my closing. I swear, Peter Pollyanna Parker may be so clean he SQUEAKS. He's a walking cliche. But laying out what Blevins did to him should swing the jury vote. I show them his picture, he is going to be EVERY eager young man they've known." He chuckles. "I gotta tell you, by the time I'm done with this jury, the only way that rat Blevins will leave prison is feet-first."

Pepper Potts has posed:
"Oh, then it's a good thing you're on our side," is responded in a hint of a lilt. Pepper actually //likes// the man and when he writes up a report, she reads it in full as it's usually chock full of information in a concise package. Mutual respect? Absolutely.

"He's pretty wholesome, I'll give him that. Working to make the world a better place," Pepper takes the first steps into the 'office', or rather, that sanctuary that could be considered as 'holy' as Tony's lab. "If he could find an old lady to help walk across the street, I think he would." She shakes her head ruefully after, however, "I'm glad he's with us. Full of ideas, but.. I think he's going to be a full time assignment to the patent office." She pauses, and adds with a grin, "Feel like pitching in for that assignment?" Probably not.

"If not, I need to ask your help on another matter."

Leonard Sibelius has posed:
Lenny nods, saves the recording of his closing to a file, then leans against the jury box. "I am ever at your beck and call. But don't ask me to go for coffee or do windows."

Pepper Potts has posed:
"Hmmmm.. I thought that was my line. Check your notes on that one," Pepper teases, her eyes narrowing slightly in the humor.

A few more steps in, and she approaches the defendant's table before stopping and leaning against a corner. Taking a deep breath, she continues. "We are going to be under a great deal of scrutiny, thanks to the budding presidential campaign of Mr Stark. So, this trial that is coming up has to be done, unfortunately, with a little less fanfare. That, and, well.. I have no doubt that there will be many, many frivolous lawsuits attempted against him and against Stark Industries. So.." Pepper shakes her head, that hint of ruefulness rising again, "This is when the past comes back to haunt us. It may come from individuals, from former contractors.. who knows?"

Leonard Sibelius has posed:
Lenny chuckles and wags a finger once at Pepper in a You Got It motion. "Already being handles. Legally, we have made Paul liable as his actions go against Stark's hiring policies. I brought the other HR boys from the other companies in line by telling them that, although what they did was in a grey area, they can either come clean or be prosecuted as accomplices in over 150 charges against Blevins." He grins. "GUESS which avenue they picked?"

Pepper Potts has posed:
Pepper laughs and bobs her head in an appreciative nod, "Three guesses and two don't count. Perfect." The smile remains behind and another 'definitive' nod is given. "Perfect. There are a couple of directions that things might come from." She doesn't carry papers, but the belief is that she really doesn't have to at this stage. "I've given HOMER instructions to gather a list of potentials based upon certain... criteria, and he should have a list for you by end of business day tomorrow." There's a brief pause before, "End of business day for normal people, that is.

"Which, by the way," Pepper continues, her hands in her lap, green eyes echoing the good humor in her tones, "is a hint that you can go home at some point."

Leonard Sibelius has posed:
Lenny shakes his head. "Can't. I've got two helpers running errands for me. In one hour, I'll know who's representing Paul, so I can get my file on him."

Because the Shark keeps a file on every judge and lawyer in town. It's a big file cabinet, but he has every solicitor's strengths and weaknesses at his fingertips.

"Also, I am also trying to find out which bailiff is handling the courtroom. I hope it's Forbes. He has a weakness for cheese fries."

Pepper Potts has posed:
"Who doesn't?"

Pepper bounces forward and stands on two high-heeled feet fully once more. "But okay. You should get all the information by tomorrow, as I said. I am going to need your attention on it. They may not be overt about it, but a challenge here and a cross submission there.. you know how that goes." Nothing Stark Industries hasn't done. All's fair in love and business.

"I appreciate all you're doing, by the way. And I know Mr. Stark does too. Peter's a good kid and he just needs that base. So do the others, so you will probably come out of that as a hero." Pepper's teasing again, but it's between a pair of people who have worked professionally together for.. a reasonable amount of time. "I'll be keeping an eye on the news. If I see anything that looks like it's going to backfire, I'll be taking interviews. For that, I'll need your prompts."

Leonard Sibelius has posed:
Lenny smiles. "Miss Potts, if ANYTHING shows up in the news, it's because WE will allow it to. Remember Matthews? He was one of Paul's 'plants,' to let him know if I was pursuing any action against him. Little bastard was going to warn Paul." He rubs his head. "Canned his scrawny ass toot-sweet first. Don't worry about the other Zombies from the Graveyard. All the ones that didn't get job offers got GLOWING letters of reference. I'm cleaning up Paul's slime trail, don't you worry about that."

Pepper Potts has posed:
"Mmhmm. As I said, 'hero'." Pepper takes a step away from the defendant's table now and looks ready to depart. "I apologize in advance how the campaign will be affecting your department, but I have full faith in your ability to perform miracles on this one."

Now, a couple more steps are taken towards the door, and with a pause, the redhead turns to face him, back to the door. "After the campaign, you can decide if you want to join the President's side or stay closer to home." Assuming Tony wins, which, well.. why wouldn't he?

Leonard Sibelius has posed:
Lenny smiles. "Give up all this? Miss Potts, I'm a trial lawyer. I'm not angling for some Supreme Court post or anything like that. Besides..." He grins. "It's probably better for him that I stick to protecting his company. I would probably be a liability to him in any presidential campaign." He winks. "He WILL get my vote, though. As they say...vote early, vote often."