I Am Not a Lawyer

First, here’s an article on the movie Michael Clayton and its criticisms of law-firm life. The thing is, pointing out that large law firms make their employees miserable and sometimes have to turn a blind eye to their clients’ ethical excesses is such a cliche that I’m almost embarrassed by my urge to blog about it. But it’s true, in my experience. Which is why I wish I had written this article. (And why I am sometimes glad I am not a lawyer.) Mad props to the guy who did write it.

Here’s a blog post in a similar vein from another member of the legal media who I could envy — Jordan Furlong, editor-in-chief of National magazine, which is put out by the Canadian Bar Association. (Despite his nationality, or maybe because his country and mine are so similar, he seems to blog frequently about issues at large U.S. law firms.) In this post and others, he takes law firms to task for focusing more on money and numbers than on client satisfaction, using the $2 billion revenues at Certain New York And LA Firms as a springboard. (Rees Morrison makes the same criticism in passing.) Something he either didn’t mention or didn’t see is that law firms and legal publications both really love lists. They’re profitable for the publications (AFAICT), they allow competitive lawyers to compete, and they’re easier for editors with resources to put together than a set of well-thought-out feature articles. Not that I disagree with Furlong. The law is unique among large business sectors in that the culture doesn’t necessarily prioritize client satisfaction. Clients are where the money is coming from, guys!

By the way, this blog is migrating to my Web site, most likely this weekend because that’s when I’ll have the time. Watch this space if you care.