When I started getting into the practice of law in 1970, the lawyer was revered as a professional, almost equal a doctor. He did not save people from dying, but he saved their personal lives in many cases.
I use the pronoun he as there were so very few women practicing law in 1970. Those who did were often excellent attorneys such as Eva Minor. But my law school class started with 155 freshmen of which only four were female.
A major point I think led to the loss of respect is the abundant advertising by lawyers looking only for accident cases and a one-third compensation. It was totally unprofessional to advertise in any form when I started to practice. Then in 1974, an Arizona case ruled that a lawyer has the right to advertise as part of his or her First Amendment rights of free speech.
And look what happened. Every billboard, most TV channels and radio stations proclaim that some attorney is the one to call. The right to advertise has nothing to do with the actual quality of that attorney’s skills.
The old way of finding an attorney was asking a friend or going to Martindale Law Book which rated all attorneys based upon the opinion of other lawyers. To get an A rating was the top goal. Then came magazines who rated attorneys based upon the recommendations of fellow attorneys.
With the ads came some interesting claims. One national firm uses the phrase “size matters.” Will being represented by one lawyer from a huge quality law firm have any guarantee that the lawyer they give you is really good or just one of the thousands in the firm?
Certainly not all practicing Illinois attorneys are a good choice. This week, our Supreme Court suspended eight attorneys from practicing. The reasons for these suspensions ranged from lying to the court or police, or being arrested for sexual assault. One suspension was for failing to serve a summons to the defendant doctors accused of malpractice even though the lawsuit was properly filed.
This neglect resulted in the case being dismissed as there was no service of notice of the filing within the two-year statute of limitations. Another was convicted of five years of wire fraud regarding cryptocurrency, and another for placing tracking devices on a woman’s car. Fortunately for Kankakee, none were from here.
As a result, the loss of prestige for the position of an attorney has led to a reduction of those who want to really practice law. Many now go to law school for the knowledge and perhaps the JD degree, not intending to practice, but to succeed in other areas of business and finance.
I have recently read and heard of the lack of practicing lawyers in our own state. There is one downstate county that has only one lawyer, and he is the state’s attorney!
Going back again, Iroquois County had no public defender in 1970. If there was a defendant who could not afford a lawyer, the Chief Judge would appoint a local lawyer to defend the person. Most lawyers hated being selected as often their specialty was not criminal law. To get a bit more trial experience, I volunteered to take some cases although I was from Kankakee County at the time. I remember that Judge being in awe that I would volunteer.
When it came time to actually have an official public defender for Iroquois County, I was the only attorney who applied. My pay was $7,500 a year plus expenses of $250 a month. Today that PD, by state law, makes 90% of what the state’s attorney makes.
Quite an increase, yet I read that the entire system of public defenders in Illinois is experiencing a serious shortage of PDs to the point that a bill has been introduced in Springfield to bolster that position.
The United States Supreme Court declared in 1963 in the famous case of Gideon v. Wainwright that every person has a constitutional right to free legal representation in criminal cases, including poor people who are unable to afford a private attorney. Thus rose the position of a public defender.
Now, a bill known as the FAIR Act, Funded Advocacy & Independent Representation bill, was introduced by Democratic Senate President, Don Harmon, of Oak Park. The bill also seeks to address disparities between a PD office and the state’s attorney’s office.
The bill also is largely for the benefit of some of the rural counties in southern Illinois where there are few lawyers let alone public defenders. One of the examples was that in one of these counties if there were to be a 15-person drug bust there is but one PD in the whole county.
Think about how one lawyer could fairly represent all of them, especially if there is disagreement among them over facts or fiction or one wants to make a deal in exchange for his testimony. The bill would allow a state wide collection of PDs who could step in and help in such situations.
But there is also the fear by any public defenders of retribution from the sitting judges for an “outsider” stepping in the case. Remember many judges were former prosecutors, but rarely former public defenders. Need I say more?
A tough situation for having the lack of lawyers, and then a lack of lawyers who want to defend clients with no money. Good representation of a client in many cases leads to a career-long relationship if the client was happy with the result of the matter. Not so with PD cases. Many times, the case results in a jail sentence for the client, not something that leads to a happy long-term relationship.
The need for lawyers will continue to grow, but it would appear that the American student is choosing a much different career path. I have seen many lawyers over the years who have bright children, but they never seem to pursue dad or mom’s legal career.
None of my four ever thought of law school. And I loved it for 50 years. I wish I had an answer. Perhaps limiting all this advertising might improve the image a bit. But I doubt if that will even happen. Many lawyers can escape having a good reputation with good advertising, and the ad industry loves it.