On my first day of practice, I bought a leather armchair that I fully intended to use forever. Retirement was something that happened to senior partners, disgruntled lawyers or cranky old judges. Years later, I realized Shakespeare had already mapped it out.
I spend my days thinking about talent. Not in the abstract and not as a talking point but in the very real sense of who gets hired, who advances, who quietly exits and why. Over the years, I have watched law firms wrestle with the same questions again and again: how to identify excellence, how to remain competitive, and how to adapt to a workforce that looks and thinks differently from what it was even a decade ago.
From as early on as I can remember, my mother told my three sisters and me that we could be anything we wanted—except lawyers. She should have known better.
This year’s Major League Baseball opener is an upcoming Wednesday night game between the New York Yankees and the Giants in San Francisco. That game marks 150 years since the first official opening day, when the Boston Red Stockings defeated the Philadelphia Athletics on April 22, 1876. A great deal of major league history followed, both on and off the field.
We were in a small conference room—just me and the sixth-year associate. He was explaining an edit to the undisclosed liabilities representation clause of a merger agreement. I could hear his words, but all I could see was blurred black ink on the page.
A couple of months ago, I had an unexpected exchange with my 15-year-old daughter that perfectly captured some of my hopes for the future. “Act chalant,” she said to her friend. My ears perked up.
Embodying the notions of professionalism is important to long-term success. Be formal but not unfriendly. Friendly but not informal. Efficient but also effective. Zealous but also reasonable. Inquisitive but not annoying. Confident but also humble. Driven but not fanatical. Autonomous but also collaborative. Firm but also flexible.
Why do legal writers resist or dismiss plain language? I addressed that question in my book Writing for Dollars, Writing to Please: “You can point to an assortment of reasons ... but ... they come down to ... lack of will, lack of skill and lack of time.” I’ve explored each of these three reasons in more detail in the book.
The ABA Journal wants to host and facilitate conversations among lawyers about their profession. We are now accepting thoughtful, non-promotional articles and commentary by unpaid contributors.
