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July 31, 2008
Lawyer professionalism is still a crock.
And it must die. First, see the more PC version of our view which passed muster with the overly-polite San Diego media in our 2005 article, "Professionalism Revisited: What About the Client?" But here's the shorter and more honest executive summary: Like work-life balance, lawyer "professionalism" as touted and practiced in the U.S., is an anti-client, lawyer-centric ruse which needs to die before it can be re-born. It is disingenuous and a crock. It's a license for mediocrity, cooked up and maintained by lawyers who think law is a special club for special people. It has one or two redeeming features (i.e., when civility actually helps to get things done), which are generally outweighed by its abuses and sheer silliness.
Hint: what does your client/GC want and need? Start there.
(Photo: The WAC? purple monkey on another rant.)
Posted by Holden Oliver at July 31, 2008 12:00 AM