I was so impressed at the coordination of care and the seamless treatment.  I know they’ve done these surgeries hundreds of times, but from my perspective, it all went so well.  The surgery was a success and I am recovering well.

So, what’s wrong with lawyers?

I thought of many other professions: dental, engineering, architecture, accounting, and construction where teams of people work together to solve a problem or accomplish a goal.  In law, the lawyers work against each other—in an effort to solve a problem.  What’s wrong with lawyers?

In some areas like criminal law, where the government is threatening your to take away your freedom, it is vital that we have an adversarial process to protect us as citizens from an over-reaching government.  But in almost all other areas, the adversarial process seems like such a waste of time, a huge cost, and very inefficient.  Lawyers are the only professionals that work against each other to solve problems.  Doesn’t this sound crazy??

Luckily, in the past twenty years, many advocacy groups and courts have worked to create mediation panels and arbitrators who are often trained as lawyers, but approach the case more like an engineer or doctor would and try to get both sides to cooperate and settle their differences in a reasonable and cheaper way.

The good news is that more cases than ever are going into mediation today.  I think everyone understands the waste of time and money that occurs when the lawyers get their hands on something.  Even lawyers can agree on what’s wrong with lawyers!

What are your thoughts?

The post What’s Wrong with Lawyers? appeared first on Colin T. Nelson.

What ethical rules apply to lawyers?

Each state has written ethical rules for the direction of lawyers.  In Minnesota where I practice, they’re called the Minnesota Rules of Professional Conduct.  When a new lawyer is sworn-in to practice law, the lawyer is automatically subject to the ethical rules and if he fails to obey them, he may be disciplined accordingly.

The rules cover the attorney-client relationship, the duties of a lawyer to the courts and other lawyers, and the duties to the public.  Probably, the most common ethical problems are:

1.  Chemical dependency issues.  Obviously, if a lawyer is using, it’s possible for him to screw-up many things.  The lawyer may forget to file papers on time, come to court high, miss court appearances, and fail to fully counsel and advise a client about all the aspects of their case.

2.  Miss-use of funds belonging to the client.  The rules state that any money the lawyer receives from a client must go into a designated bank account called a “trust fund.”  The lawyer cannot use the money for personal things or any other purpose except when directed by the client.

Many ethical complaints are filed against lawyers because they dipped into those funds.  Sometimes, it happens because the lawyer is short of cash and just wants to “borrow” from the trust fund with the intention of paying it back.  Even if it’s paid back, it’s still an ethical violation.  Or, if chemical dependency is a problem, the lawyer may take the money out to pay for other expenses or personal use.  Miss-use of trust fund money constitutes one of the most common complaints.

If the lawyer has violated the ethical rules, what can happen to him?

Once a complaint is filed with the State Board of Professional Responsibility, an investigation begins.  Evidence is obtained from all parties involved.  The conclusions of the investigator are reported to the Board and all parties.  The lawyer can agree that he violated the rules or, if he disagrees, has a right to an administrative hearing before the Board.  The hearing is similar to a trial.

If the lawyer agrees to the accusations or it is determined after a hearing that he violated the rules, the Board has several disciplinary options:

1.  The lawyer may be disbarred and prevented from ever practicing law in the state again is the offense is serious enough

2.  The lawyer’s license may be suspended for a period of time, with the possibility of regaining it

3.  The Board may require the lawyer to take remedial actions before getting the law license returned.  For instance, he may be required to pay-back trust fund money, complete chemical dependency treatment, attend educational classes to learn how to avoid future problems, etc.

One of the strangest violations that occurred in Minnesota involved a lawyer who had sex with a client.  The ethical rules prohibit this.  Not only did the offending lawyer have sex, he billed the client for the time they had sex!  That takes guts.  Of course, the ethical rules also allow a lawyer to charge extra for skills in which he has a special expertise. . .

The post Ethical Lawyers?? appeared first on Colin T. Nelson.

In the century after the Civil War, lawyers created a boom industry.  How?

Of course, at the centers of major cities and capitals, there was always work for lawyers involved with the government or any businesses that are regulated by government.  To the newly-developing west, lawyers were employed by eastern investors to be their counselors and local people to watch-out for their interests.   In Lincoln’s case, it was railroads and patents.

Starting before the Civil War the railroads pushed west all over the country.  There was a need to settle real estate claims, injury claims, and other details about the new industry.  Lincoln, like many lawyers, worked both for and against the railroads, depending on the client.  The railroads also created new machines and inventions that needed patents that had to be protected.  Lincoln also worked on those cases.

But even after the Civil War, as the economy expanded, lawyers multiplied by the thousands.

When the United States became a world power in the early 20th century, our economy continued to expand which increased the need for lawyers.  The New Deal and the creation of new federal laws and agencies really gave a boost to lawyers and added to their numbers.

When Lincoln became a lawyer, most people learned law by working for an established lawyer.  By the late 1800’s new rules required that people start getting more formal education and law schools began to grow.  Then attorney bar associations required that people had to pass a bar exam before they could be admitted to practice law.  It made the business of law a monopoly.

Still, the numbers didn’t explode until the late 2oth century.  In 1960, there was a lawyer for every 627 people.  By 1988  there was a lawyer for every 399 people.  By 2010, there was a lawyer for every 200 people.  Projections show that if the law schools keep churning-out lawyers, by 2023 there will be more lawyers in the U.S. than people!

Since the Great Recession of 2008, the job market for lawyers has crashed.  Will it revive?  I’m doubtful and really think we’ve reached a saturation point for the number of lawyers in our country.

If you’re interested, there is a scholarly article from the Fordham Law Review that explores this phenomenon at:  http://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3010&context=flr

The tragedy is that the law schools still keep the lawyers coming–all those young people with huge debts and no jobs!  What will they do and when will they realize the business of law has probably stopped growing?

The post Lincoln–Beginning of Too Many Lawyers? appeared first on Colin T. Nelson.