The Appeal

The Appeal is the latest courtroom drama by John Grisham. I thoroughly enjoyed The Appeal and am glad that Grisham went back to the old school courtroom dramas that his readers love. As with any Grisham novel, there is secondary story in the background. It all starts with a lawsuit where $41 million in damages is awarded to the plaintiff. The attorneys for the plaintiff are Wes and Mary Grace Payton, who have risked bankruptcy to keep the fight going against Krane Chemicals Corporation. Krane Chemicals, owned by Carl Trudeau immediately sets out the appeal the judgement. With the help of a consultant firm, Trudeau can see that the Mississippi Supreme Court will rule in favor of the verdict, unless a change is made to at least one of the justices.

My hiring the consultant firm, Mr. Trudeau is almost guaranteed that there will be a new justice before the case makes it to the Supreme Court. All for the right to keep his money, not caring how many people he has hurt or might have died from his greed, Trudeau sets in motion a plan to change the Supreme Court of the state of Mississippi. A young lawyer, Ron Fisk, is convinced that he is the man for the job and he will be able to change the legal system.

Although much of the legal stuff happens outside the courtroom, Grisham give the reader that enjoys legal drama a great read.