The Bar Association Public Relations Program
| Publication year | 1990 |
| Pages | 1299 |
| Citation | Vol. 19 No. 7 Pg. 1299 |
1990, July, Pg. 1299. The Bar Association Public Relations Program
Two grizzled attorneys (past presidents or something) strode menacingly into my office a few weeks back. "What," they wondered, "ever happened to that PR survey we had done?"
We thought everybody knew. (Haven't heard as many lawyer jokes, have you?) But perhaps it's time to tell you again what's going on in the area of public relations at the bar association.
Some background: In 1984, DBA President Ed Kahn appointed Garth Grissom to chair a "Public Image Committee" to look into the public's perception of lawyers and the judicial system. By 1985, it was renamed the "Task Force to Assess the Legal System" and was made a joint CBA-DBA committee. After talking with several public relations firms, the committee decided to have a statewide survey done to assess the situation before any "plan" would be formed. Ben Aisenberg chaired the committee which chose a firm from Texas (Tar-rance, Hill, Newport & Ryan). This firm talked with 600 adults in the state, using fairly lengthy phone interviews, during the summer of 1986.
Few people were surprised by the results of the survey. Leniency in the criminal justice system was seen as a problem by 31 percent, delay and overcrowding of prisons by 22 percent, the image of lawyers and judges was seen as a big problem by 12 percent and "unfairness" in the courts was a problem to 8 percent. The researchers said that this confirmed previously studied national data: "The major complaint about the present legal system by private citizens is a perceived leniency in the system."
The legal system in general got a 71 percent "very" or "somewhat favorable" reaction. That rating dropped to 55 percent when those interviewed were asked about attorneys. When asked, "What characteristics come to mind when you think about the type of person in Colorado today who becomes a lawyer?", the highest percentage said "money hungry." After that, they responded: honest, wealthy, generally favorable, fair, etc.
The interviewers also isolated three major problem areas that the public perceived with the Colorado legal system: too many lawyers (91 percent); rich/powerful get better treatment (78 percent); and plea bargaining is wrong (63 percent).
Okay, we said to these high-paid...
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