In His Courtroom, Enron Trial Judge Keeps a Tight Hold on the Reins

Judge Simeon T. Lake III was ranked by the local bar association as among the two most respected federal judges in the region. (By Matt Slocum -- Associated Press)

HOUSTON, Feb. 2 -- As the trial of Enron Corp.'s former leaders ends its first week, U.S. District Judge Simeon T. Lake III is turning into its most active player. Thursday, he beat back repeated defense objections, urged the government to file color-coded document lists and stepped in on occasion to pose his own questions of the prosecution's first witness.

It was quintessential Lake. He is a man in control -- of his emotions, of his fitness regimen, and, most especially, of his courtroom.

Lake is known across Houston for using a timer to inform lawyers exactly how many minutes they have left to present their cases to a jury. Now, with the most complex business fraud case in history on his docket, the judge's penchant for efficiency has been put to the test.

Thursday, the second day of testimony in the trial of former Enron chairman Kenneth L. Lay and former chief executive Jeffrey K. Skilling, the eight-woman, four-man jury listened to an April 2001 audiotape of a conference call in which Skilling called a short-selling stock analyst a profanity. As the tape played, Lay laughed, Skilling smiled and several jurors looked abashed. The jury also heard evidence from former investor relations director Mark E. Koenig, who has pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting securities fraud, about what prosecutors say were conflicting reasons Skilling and Lay gave for Skilling's abrupt departure from Enron in August 2001. Koenig will return to the witness stand for what is expected to be a grueling, detailed cross-examination on Monday.

Already, Lake, 61, has dispatched scores of motions from both sides, including impassioned requests from the defense team to move the trial away from Houston, where thousands of workers lost their jobs and retirement savings after Enron cratered in 2001.

"I can assure you I will not waste anyone's time and I will rigorously guard your time," the judge promised a pool of 96 potential jurors Monday. True to form, he announced he would spend about five minutes each questioning individual jurors, hewing tightly to his schedule and finishing at 5 o'clock sharp. Over objections from the defense, he selected a jury in little more than six hours. That is a remarkably quick turnaround, legal experts said.

Michael Ramsey, the lead lawyer for Lay, and Daniel M. Petrocelli, the chief lawyer for Skilling, have signaled they may pursue the issue on appeal. Petrocelli told reporters of jury selection, "It went efficiently, we'll put it that way."

Defense lawyers signaled in opening statements this week that they would fight tooth and nail to introduce as many transcripts, conference calls and videotapes as possible to give what Ramsey calls "a total mix" of information that was available to Enron investors. Problem is, that strategy conflicts with Lake's desire not to get bogged down in what he calls the "vehicles and the lawn mowers" when the government's case focuses on "the plumbing." He put his foot down and said entire tapes would not be played. "I'm not asking you for your thoughts," he told the lawyers. "That's my line of demarcation, and I'm making it."

Lawyers not involved in the Enron trial say a measure of discipline will be crucial to keep the case on track. "It's not at all unusual for a trial of this size and complexity to get postponed a number of times, and that hasn't happened here," said former Houston U.S. attorney Daniel K. Hedges, who has tried cases in front of Lake. "I can't imagine a better judge for this trial than him. He's not going to let them wander into rabbit holes."

An appointee of President Ronald Reagan, Lake consistently wins high marks from lawyers who practice before him. Members of the local bar association rank him among the two most respected federal judges in the region for his intellect and even temper.

His dry sense of humor was on display last week when he split the difference, Solomon style, over which set of lawyers would sit closest to the jury box. Both sides sought the advantage, in an effort to build rapport with jurors. The judge initially proposed a coin toss, an idea that drew defense protests.

"Since there is no law to guide this weighty decision, I will rely on fairness and common sense," Lake declared. For the government's case, prosecutors will be allowed to sit nearer the jury. They will switch sides during the defense case, he ruled.

"This will avoid either side suffering the punishment of banishment to the far tables," he said.

After nearly two decades on the bench, Lake is unlikely to let the overwhelming media attention surrounding Enron go to his head or to affect his legal rulings, experts say.

Nancy B. Rapoport, dean of the University of Houston Law Center, calls him the "quintessential judge." She described him as "very evenhanded, extremely smart and does not let himself get swayed very often."

Lake does not court the spotlight, friends say. He enjoys a relatively private life with his wife, staying home, reading history books and jogging in his spare time. The judge's black robes conceal a lean frame he hones with regular runs across the city's green parks. Occasionally he runs with a partner, but more often than not it is a solitary pursuit.

Discipline has long been ingrained in Lake, who graduated sixth in his class at Texas A&M University at a time when students there trained as military cadets. The judge went on to earn a law degree from the University of Texas, finishing first in his class.

"He was amazing in his ability to get to the core of the issue and bring some common sense to bear," said David J. Beck, a former law partner who recruited Lake to join Fulbright & Jaworski LLP, one of Houston's biggest firms, after his law school graduation. Lake worked at Fulbright on environmental cases and business disputes for the bulk of his career, leaving for a one-year stint in Vietnam, where he learned the language in his spare time.

Before the Enron assignment, Lake attracted national attention for a 24-year prison term he handed down for Jamie Olis, a mid-level accountant convicted of playing a key role in a $300 million revenue inflation scheme at Dynegy Inc. An appeals court overturned the sentence. Lake is awaiting briefs from the government and the defense before issuing a new sentence, a process that could take several months.

The judge has no trouble being firm. At times he has betrayed hints of impatience. Last week he rebuffed an effort by Skilling's lawyer to win more time for his two-hour closing argument. "I'm not going to give it to you," the judge said. "You have twice the amount of time the government has, and the government has the burden of proof to explain a very complex topic. You [the defense lawyers] have a total of four hours. That's the final word."

Throughout the first week of the trial, he has clashed repeatedly with Ramsey, Lay's lead defense lawyer, who is prominent in Houston legal circles. Ramsey insists that jurors hear all of audiotapes and videotapes in which Lay and Skilling appear, rather than sound bites offered by prosecutors. The folksy lawyer repeatedly stands up in the midst of government questioning and cites what is known as the legal "rule of completeness."

Lake has told him nearly half a dozen times this week to sit down. Wednesday, the judge recessed an hour early, saying of himself, "Some of us are getting a little short-tempered and probably need to reflect."

Thursday, he offered a "mea culpa" to Ramsey after realizing the defense lawyer was correct on a point of evidence. "He is right," the judge said, to applause from some of the Lay family members seated in a first row bench.

Said longtime friend Beck, who admits he has occasionally been the butt of Lake's wry humor: "You'll get a pretty good idea quickly about who's in control of the courtroom. I put my money on him."