BALANCING LIFE AND THE LAW
Every month, Chicago personal injury lawyer Jeffrey J. Kroll contributes to the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin in his column Balancing Life and the Law.
In this month's article, "Lawyers must remain civil, courteous", Jeff discussed how attorneys can disagree with out being disagreeable. Here is an excerpt from his article:
The preamble to the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct notes that a lawyer has an "obligation zealously to protect and pursue a client's legitimate interests, within the bounds of the law, while maintaining a professional, courteous and civil attitude toward all persons involved in the legal system." Ill. Sup. Ct. R. Prof'l Conduct, Preamble [9]. Having practiced law throughout Illinois, and in other states, I know that some struggle to live up to this obligation.We have all heard the horror stories of lawyers acting uncivilly and rudely. Inappropriate personal attacks in a written motion, loud and obnoxious behavior in the courtroom, nasty letters, outrageous phone calls, even blatant disrespect of judges. The anecdotes are endless and eye-popping.
While I obviously do not condone such absurd behavior, I am more concerned about the sad state of lawyers' interactions with each other on a daily basis. Due to current economic woes, civility among lawyers seems to be devolving at a dangerously rapid pace.
I remember one particular episode in my younger days when, knowing that I could not timely file a brief, I picked up the phone and politely asked my opponent for an extra week to file. My opponent graciously extended me the courtesy. To my dismay, the very next day, he filed an emergency motion. Upon confronting him on his two-faced tactic, he decried, "It wasn't me; my client made me do it." I learned a lot from that experience. (First and foremost, document everything in a letter with certain attorneys.)
After practicing law for about two decades, I have met a lot of attorneys and worked with many firms in Chicago and around the country. My internal catalog of ungracious acts by attorneys as well as stories of out and out spite perpetrated on others is sadly larger than it should be.
Now, just by gazing at the return address on an envelope containing a new opponent's appearance in a case, I have a good idea what tone the case will take. Sometimes just the firm's name will lend a clue: I'm going to have an opponent that I can cordially work with or I'm going to send a lot of "cover my butt" letters on this one.
Like an individual attorney, a firm's reputation precedes itself and not always in a good way. A firm with a "scorched earth" policy may win cases, but the lawyers there do not make many friends or allies. It is a round world and we all need favors from time to time.
I do not hold in high esteem excuses such as "I was just zealously representing my client" or "my client made me do it." It's fine — it's great in fact — to be a tough opponent, but not to be duplicitous. Acting professionally and civilly do not equate to being a pushover, just as being a successful advocate and acting kindly are not mutually exclusive qualities. Zealousness is not a synonym for bullying.
Illinois' Rules of Professional Conduct provide one possible answer why attorneys may act so badly at times: "Virtually all difficult ethical problems arise from conflict between a lawyer's responsibilities to clients, to the legal system and to the lawyer's own interest in remaining an ethical person while earning a satisfactory living." Ill. Sup. Ct. R. Prof'l Conduct, Preamble[9]. Many lawyers today work under the edict that time is money. In my opinion, these stray arrows have most likely failed to attentively read the Rules of Professional Conduct and deny that their behavior presents an ethical problem that upsets and provokes others.
There are all kinds of lawyers in this world, some nicer than others. There will always be divisive jerks out to vex you, wear you down. (You thought you escaped the playground!) Pause before retaliating. That lawyer may win the battle, but eventually he will lose the war. The practice of law, especially litigation, is not for the thin-skinned. It can be, and often is, a battle. But, it's not a battle to the death, folks. Life and the practice of law is short. Enjoy it.
To read the entire article, click here.
Jeffrey J. Kroll has practiced personal injury law for over twenty years. He was recently a member of a roundtable discussion on civility for the Chicago Bar Association's Basic Skills Course for young lawyers. He joined an impressive panel of Chicago attorneys and judges, including Daniel Kotin, Manuel Sanchez and Hon. Kathy M. Flanagan of the Circuit Court of Cook County.
Jeff Kroll is known by his peers to be a leader in the areas of personal injury and wrongful death. As a guest columnist for the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, each month he writes about balancing the demands of the practice of law with the demands of personal life.
