Comments on: “While I know some lawyers who are happy, most aren’t.”

By: David Wilson

David Wilson — Wed, 02 Aug 2006 14:04:28 +0000

There is a lot of truth to this, but don’t forget that lawyering – even transactional work, as opposed to litigation – is inherently adversarial. Even under the best of circumstances, you’re basically engaged in gut-grinding, nerve-wracking, frantic-detail-minding warfare. Much less than days of yore, I’m sure, you cannot trust your adversary. You must always assume that he or she will pull every maneuver and take advantage of every weakness, and you must be on constant alert for that. What that does to a person psychologically can’t be all good.

I would say that the noted uptick of hostility in the legal profession (and spike in the number lawyers in America to about a million) is at least partly a reflection of the increased hostility and mistrust of a large, fractious population speaking many tongues and eyeing each other warily. The tense climate is ripe for lawsuits filed over slights that in a more homogenous society would be easily absorbed.

Japan, for instance, is not overlawyered.

By: Ima Fish

Ima Fish — Wed, 02 Aug 2006 09:35:55 +0000

This raises the question why the lawyers who hate their jobs continue to do them.

You know the old saying, “Those who can do, do. Those who can’t do, teach. And those who can neither do nor teach, sue!”

By: InRussetShadows

InRussetShadows — Wed, 02 Aug 2006 03:24:00 +0000

This raises the question why the lawyers who hate their jobs continue to do them. You’d think that the money they spend on Tums and Pepsid could be used for better things!

By: Ima Fish

Ima Fish — Tue, 01 Aug 2006 09:50:45 +0000

From my own personal experience, I believe that’s true. The old timers I know practiced before all of this litigation lunacy began. The interesting thing is that attorneys made more money back then!

One of my favorite old time stories was from my boss. Decades ago his father came into his office and asked if he’s heard about this “deposition” thing that everyone was talking about.

It was much simpler back then, you just went to trial and asked your questions then. There was no need to run up costs with discovery only deps and trial deps.

By: Todd Rogers

Todd Rogers — Tue, 01 Aug 2006 08:53:15 +0000

Nice addition. This explains why I have a BA in philosophy and work in sales. All my friends who are attorneys told me the same story: DON’T DO IT!