Lesson Five: Starting Hands

Poker is a game of probabilities where those probabilities are the same for all players. There is no such thing as a lucky player who always gets better cards; rather, good players win because they play their cards better. Good starting hands usually remain strong throughout the game, and this comes down to simple mathematics.

Evaluating Starting Hands in Poker and Legal Practice

In poker, weak players might become attached to hands that seem strong at the start, but those hands do not always lead to victory. Similarly, lawyers might place too much faith in their pre-designed strategies and fail to adapt their approach when needed.

For instance, imagine during a witness cross-examination, a lawyer aims to discredit the witness by highlighting inconsistencies in their statements. The witness initially reported that the attacker was tall with long hair, but in court, the defendant has a medium height and short hair. The lawyer, relying on this contradiction, tries to undermine the witness’s credibility. However, if the witness provides convincing explanations about the attacker’s change in appearance or their own viewing angle, continuing to press this line of questioning could backfire, reinforcing the witness’s credibility instead.