ABSTRACT
A strategic response to the landmark indictment was not long in coming from Ford headquarters; the plan was to avert a jury trial at all costs. To this end, Ford spared no expense; the company immediately retained Mayer, Brown, and Platt-a 185-member law firm with its principal offices in Chicago-to develop a legal strategy by which to quash the indictment. Roger Barrett headed a team of about 10 attorneys charged with primary responsibility for the case. Soon afterward, Ford added the prestigious national law firm of Hughes, Hubbard, and Reed to its legal stable. Philip Lacovara, who had
served as a Watergate prosecutor while based in the firm’s Washington office, was among the lawyers from that firm who worked on the Pinto indictment. It is not unusual for a corporate giant to employ outside counsel, often called “hired guns,” for such specialized cases. As we shall see, this was only the first of many displays of the tremendous resources at Ford’s disposal. The pretrial legal obstacle course, which would take the prosecution almost a year to complete, had begun.
