Professionalism, Ethics and the Legal Profession
“The good old days weren’t always good and tomorrow ain’t as bad as it seems.”
- Billy Joel “Keeping the Faith”
“”
Professionalism, ethics, and civility in the profession of law has gotten a lot of “air time” with the current generation of lawyers. My first reaction to this sentiment is to roll my eyes and give a sigh. I see a group of professionals lamenting over the loss of the “good old days.” I have, in the past, fallen into the rote responses – of course lawyers cheat and lie, of course lawyers fight dirty, there is no such thing as an ethical lawyer. After being in law school for three years, I can now honestly say that being a lawyer is entirely about being professional, being ethical, and being civil.
Professional integrity is the best and only currency that you have as a lawyer.
“”
To paraphrase from one of my favorite movies, “The American President”, being a lawyer isn’t easy. Being a lawyer is advanced citizenship. You’ve got to want it bad, because it is going to put up a fight. Being a lawyer – a professional, ethical, and civil lawyer – means that you need to be able to zealously advocate for your client. It also means that you may have to tell them, “no.” It means that you are going to have to make the decision between the billable hour and what is just and fair for your client. It means that you have to be able to fight tooth and nail for what you believe in – and realize that opposing counsel is just doing the same.
I listen to attorney Philip K. Lyon give his opinions on why the law profession has become less civil over the last few decades, and I can’t help but hear a man who finds himself squeezed by an ever more competitive professional landscape reminiscing about the “good old days.” It’s easy to take to a podium and speak with longing of a better time – a time when the profession was less crowded, when everyone was more civil, and when every day in court ended with opposing counsels sharing a few laughs together over martini’s. He addresses the “young lawyers” and tell them that they are rude, uncivil, and unprofessional. He blames the law schools for “putting out too many lawyers.” Without hesitation, I agree with Mr. Lyon that to practice in the profession of law is to practice in a profession that requires ethics and civility. What I do not and cannot agree with is his contention that those currently in the profession are neither civil nor ethical – or at least not to any degree more or less than in any previous generation.
In that respect I agree more with Professor Neil Hamilton:
Arguments by generations of lawyers who graduated prior to the 1980s that ethics were higher and lawyer conduct more civil earlier in their careers, while understandable, are subject to the charge that such an “ethical golden age” did not exist, and in fact there were serious ethical problems of scoundrels, discrimination, and lack of diversity in the earlier time period. Claims of more ethical conduct or more civility in earlier periods are difficult to test empirically.
“”
(Hamilton, Neil W., Professionalism Clearly Defined (2007). U of St. Thomas Legal Studies Research Paper No. 07-30; U of St. Thomas Legal Studies Research Paper No. 07-30. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1015396)
Don’t take my words too harshly, however. I do believe that in order to foster professionalism, ethics, and civility in each new successive generation of lawyers the dialogue must continue. It is important for us to be mindful of these important facets of our professional identity lest we be doomed to forget them. In much the same way each generation perpetuates their set of values and morals to the next generation through words and example, so too should the legal profession ensure the transfer of these values from generation to generation. In much the same way that businesses have mission statements, religions make a profession of faith, and even down to our New Year’s Resolutions, it is important to concretely synthesize what we “believe in” as a profession. The “Statement of Skills and Values” from the MacCrate Report excerpt illustrates this. Especially for the new lawyer, but even for the “old pro’s”, having, and periodically referring to, a statement of professional purpose such as the type illustrated in the MacCrate report is valuable in maintaining focus in what is often a turbulent profession.
Probably the best summation of my view on this topic was given by Rod Smolla, dean of the law school at Washington and Lee: “I think we’re probably at the beginning of some significant restructuring of the legal profession and consequently law schools. It’s a caricature and a falsehood to say modern legal education doesn’t care about ethics and the role of lawyers in society. But I think many of our structures don’t allow us to deliver to students that which we care about.”
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“The good old days weren’t always good and tomorrow ain’t as bad as it seems.”
- Billy Joel “Keeping the Faith”
“”
Professionalism, ethics, and civility in the profession of law has gotten a lot of “air time” with the current generation of lawyers. My first reaction to this sentiment is to roll my eyes and give a sigh. I see a group of professionals lamenting over the loss of the “good old days.” I have, in the past, fallen into the rote responses – of course lawyers cheat and lie, of course lawyers fight dirty, there is no such thing as an ethical lawyer. After being in law school for three years, I can now honestly say that being a lawyer is entirely about being professional, being ethical, and being civil.
Professional integrity is the best and only currency that you have as a lawyer.
“”
To paraphrase from one of my favorite movies, “The American President”, being a lawyer isn’t easy. Being a lawyer is advanced citizenship. You’ve got to want it bad, because it is going to put up a fight. Being a lawyer – a professional, ethical, and civil lawyer – means that you need to be able to zealously advocate for your client. It also means that you may have to tell them, “no.” It means that you are going to have to make the decision between the billable hour and what is just and fair for your client. It means that you have to be able to fight tooth and nail for what you believe in – and realize that opposing counsel is just doing the same.
I listen to attorney Philip K. Lyon give his opinions on why the law profession has become less civil over the last few decades, and I can’t help but hear a man who finds himself squeezed by an ever more competitive professional landscape reminiscing about the “good old days.” It’s easy to take to a podium and speak with longing of a better time – a time when the profession was less crowded, when everyone was more civil, and when every day in court ended with opposing counsels sharing a few laughs together over martini’s. He addresses the “young lawyers” and tell them that they are rude, uncivil, and unprofessional. He blames the law schools for “putting out too many lawyers.” Without hesitation, I agree with Mr. Lyon that to practice in the profession of law is to practice in a profession that requires ethics and civility. What I do not and cannot agree with is his contention that those currently in the profession are neither civil nor ethical – or at least not to any degree more or less than in any previous generation.
In that respect I agree more with Professor Neil Hamilton:
Arguments by generations of lawyers who graduated prior to the 1980s that ethics were higher and lawyer conduct more civil earlier in their careers, while understandable, are subject to the charge that such an “ethical golden age” did not exist, and in fact there were serious ethical problems of scoundrels, discrimination, and lack of diversity in the earlier time period. Claims of more ethical conduct or more civility in earlier periods are difficult to test empirically.
“”
(Hamilton, Neil W., Professionalism Clearly Defined (2007). U of St. Thomas Legal Studies Research Paper No. 07-30; U of St. Thomas Legal Studies Research Paper No. 07-30. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1015396)
Don’t take my words too harshly, however. I do believe that in order to foster professionalism, ethics, and civility in each new successive generation of lawyers the dialogue must continue. It is important for us to be mindful of these important facets of our professional identity lest we be doomed to forget them. In much the same way each generation perpetuates their set of values and morals to the next generation through words and example, so too should the legal profession ensure the transfer of these values from generation to generation. In much the same way that businesses have mission statements, religions make a profession of faith, and even down to our New Year’s Resolutions, it is important to concretely synthesize what we “believe in” as a profession. The “Statement of Skills and Values” from the MacCrate Report excerpt illustrates this. Especially for the new lawyer, but even for the “old pro’s”, having, and periodically referring to, a statement of professional purpose such as the type illustrated in the MacCrate report is valuable in maintaining focus in what is often a turbulent profession.
Probably the best summation of my view on this topic was given by Rod Smolla, dean of the law school at Washington and Lee: “I think we’re probably at the beginning of some significant restructuring of the legal profession and consequently law schools. It’s a caricature and a falsehood to say modern legal education doesn’t care about ethics and the role of lawyers in society. But I think many of our structures don’t allow us to deliver to students that which we care about.”
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