As we approach Law Day, bar associations across the nation will be heard
congratulating themselves on all they do to promote justice and protect the public.
(see our post) At this weblog, “we” think such self-aggrandizement should be
avoided in favor of a bit of soul-searching. Most bar groups spend much of
their time acting like guilds — promoting the interests of their members, and
“protecting” the public from competition, information, innovation and choice. Maybe
Law Day 2005 (May 1st) can be an occasion to re-align our priorities and become
public service organizations, improving the profession for the sake of our clients,
the justice system and the entire public.
In this piece, I focus on bar groups from Massachusetts, but I hope
you’ll ask how your local bar & guild compares. . . .
“tinyredcheck” Click here to continue reading this post, which includes
numerous examples of guild-like activities, and an extended look at
the recent proposals from a Massachusetts Bar Association task force
called “Protecting the Public: Reforming the Disciplinary Process.”
getting drunk
on my arm
the tavern mosquitos
the killer’s hands
fold a paper
crane
mirrors, mirrors,
drinking
with my bald spot
potluck
Well, time for some whining of our own: It seems that the proud home of
ethicalEsq did not make it onto the newest list of “high-quality [legal] ethics sites
on the web,” despite lamentation over the dearth of such sites. Our response: try
a lot harder from now on, or learn zen-Buddha indifference. Right now, I’m hoping for
the wisdom of indifference. (via Legal Ethics [we]Blog)
over the past 24 hours:
national hair stylist appreciation day 2005> — coming in #1 and #2 of
1540 results in a Yahoo Search, thanks to our post about unappreciated lawyers.
By the way, you should honor your hair stylist on April 30th.
self-aggrandize> — coming in #1 of 29,800 results in a Yahoo Search, due to
our discussion of the disbarment of Jonathan A. Weinstein. This result inspired us
to use the term again in today’s post above.