Really, Did You Practice Law?
Yep, I really did practice law, folks. Now, I have not practiced law for over twenty years. And I am a far happier person because of that.
Not My Cup of Tea
I recognize that many people have had very satisfying legal careers, and that’s great for them.
I was just never adversarial enough, I suppose. But it’s better to know yourself, than to continue slogging through a thoroughly inappropriate career.
And, let’s face it, if I were to still practice law, not only would I be making myself (and probably also my family) miserable, I’d also, potentially, be jeopardizing my clients’ livelihoods.
I practiced civil, not criminal law, so at least my misery wouldn’t have translated into jail time for anyone.
Oh yeah, civil. Or, rather, civility and the lack thereof.
While that was not, specifically, the reason I quit the practice of law, eventually going into IT and then, much more recently into social media, it was one of the many straws on that poor, overloaded camel’s back.
And that lack of civility has recently come back up to the fore.
In Part, I No Longer Practice Law Due to the Appalling Lack of Civility in the Industry
The ABA Journal recently reported on an email exchange between attorneys that was so egregious that it resulted in sanctions. Essentially what happened is, two Florida attorneys got into a heated exchange which included such juvenalia as calling each other “retard” and “scum-sucking loser”.
This bit of charm was perpetrated by this guy and this other guy. Now, call me silly, but the two are, at least, way over twenty-one years of age. At some point, as they say, you put away childish things. And you stop acting like an idiot, because it’s undignified, it turns off your clients, it makes you look bad and it’s just plain stupid.
People ask me, on occasion, why I would ever want to leave the exciting world of practicing law.
This is one of the reasons why.
In 2023, I Still Don’t Practice Law
In June, it will be 33 years since I stopped practicing. And I do not miss it, not one iota.
And, if anything, our world has gotten considerably more civil. In a way, the above issue looks almost quaint. Because calling someone names is at least a better activity than shooting them.
The people of 2011 (the original go-live date for this blog post) would be appalled by us now. Hell, I still am.