Lawyers are big on adhering to statutes and caselaw precedents, contractual provisions and the clauses of internal governance documents, employee handbook policies, and terms from codes of conduct. But what happens when there is ambiguity?
In his book, The Speed of Trust: The One Thing That Changes Everything, Stephen M. R. Covey writes of a theoretical tax that is imposed in low trust environments—what he calls the “trust tax.”
Oral argument is the most visible part of appellate practice. And while lawyers differ on whether a good argument will change the outcome of your case, we can all agree that it’s the thing your clients and colleagues are most likely to see you doing. Not to mention the thrilling proposition that there may one day be a blurry artist’s rendering of you inside the Supreme Court.
"When you lose touch with inner stillness, you lose touch with yourself. When you lose touch with yourself, you lose yourself in the world." —Eckhart Tolle
Abraham Lincoln had two careers; one as a lawyer and one as a politician—professions known for severe moral and ethical dilemmas. Given the events of the time, Lincoln faced new levels of dilemmas as he made decisions that helped start the Civil War and those that would finally end the conflict—and slavery with it.
“Losing our home with all of our possessions pales in comparison to losing my dad. But the things also matter. So many special mementos he had kept for his entire life to pass down to us—letters, photos, memories from our childhoods.”
As we examine the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., we can see Dr. King employing these three cornerstones of democracy as he challenged our nation to live up to its ideals.
Educators and students preparing to begin a new semester can make good use of lessons about leadership and purposeful service that can be gleaned from the beautiful life of former President James Earl “Jimmy” Carter. That is especially so for law school communities for at least two reasons.
We’ve all seen the headlines about AI-boosted lawyers run amok. Since ChatGPT landed, phantom cases have cropped up in court filings around the country. Judges have responded, meting out sanctions, excoriating counsel, and—more recently—even issuing a flurry of new orders and rules that regulate how litigants can use new AI-based technologies.
As we reflect on our journeys through the legal profession, one theme emerges: the power of mentorship, particularly female mentorship. The power of female mentorship cannot be overstated.
It is the final question I pose, when interviewing lawyers to write their bios, as a small part of my legal marketing, PR and communications practice. I will already have digested their standard fare: what they do, what they want to do more of, why what they do really matters and to whom.
My high school trigonometry teacher was, by his own admission, “old school.” He didn’t allow us to use calculators. Ever. Instead, all decimals had to be divided by hand, all formulas known by memory, and all square roots worked out on paper. We were unlikely to walk around with calculators when we got older, he explained, and so we had to be able to work things out with only a pencil and our brain.
Irene walked into the office of a young lawyer in a small town in Mississippi more than 40 years ago with an eviction notice and a two-page lease. Events that would follow turned the lawyer into a legal aid attorney and a believer in the power of pro bono legal work.
The legal job market is robust. And within all those professional journeys there are two types of searchers: those lawyers seeking a job change and those seeking a career change. If you’re in the market, it’s important not to conflate these two paths.
Sometimes in life we are fortunate to meet someone who dedicates everything to a higher calling. For me, this person was David Breaux. While he had few financial resources, David was, by every measure that counts, a rich man.
