Am I the Last of My Kind?

• Year: 2025
• Pages: 0401
• Citation: Vol. 86 Pg. 0401

Am I the Last of My Kind?
Vol. 86 No. 1 Pg. 401

Winter 2025

By Christy Crow

A few years ago, I was talking to a partner at a large Plaintiffs' firm about a case we were working on together and he said, "Christy, I am proud of you. A lot of small-town attorneys have just given up and complain about the large firms, but not you. You've adapted." My immediate reaction was to think that I didn't know I had a choice - I have a family to support. Despite my cynical first reaction, his words stayed with me. The following weekend, my husband and I were riding dirt roads with some friends (yes, country lawyers still do that), and "Last of My Kind" by Jason Isbell came on and I thought, "Am I the last of my kind? Is the rural lawyer going the way of the dinosaur?"

In the Third Judicial Circuit where I live and have my primary office, there are four lawyers younger than me. They are all in their 40s.¹ Nationwide, there are 1.3 million lawyers, but they are mostly concentrated in cities, while many small towns and rural counties have few if any lawyers.² Though about 20 percent of our nation's population lives in rural America, only 2 percent of our nation's small law practices are located there.³ A 2020 survey from the ABA found there were 1300 counties in the United States with less than one attorney per 1,000 residents, many with no attorneys at all.⁴

In Alabama, a third of our counties have 20 or fewer lawyers. Meanwhile, more than 68 percent of private practice lawyers are concentrated in just seven counties, even though these counties make up only 47.3 percent of the state's population. Jefferson and Shelby Counties alone account for 40 percent of Alabama's lawyers but just 17.8 percent of its residents.

The American Bar Association's 2020 Profile of the Legal Profession highlights this imbalance, illustrating how Alabama's lawyers are disproportionately concentrated in urban areas. This trend is not unique to Alabama—Georgia faces a similar divide, with 65 percent of its population living outside metro Atlanta, yet only 30 percent of the state's lawyers practicing there.

A 2022 study by the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) revealed that approximately 92 percent of low-income Americans receive inadequate or no legal assistance for their civil legal problems.⁵ This problem is especially acute in rural areas, where geographic isolation compounds existing barriers to accessing legal services. The LSC survey found there are 8,000,000 people in rural areas below 125 percent of the poverty level, and 77 percent of rural households had more than one legal problem in the past year.⁶ Residents in these regions often face long travel distances to the nearest attorney, if an attorney is even available.

The problem with the dearth of lawyers, especially younger lawyers, in rural areas is not limited to what happens to the parties in the Court systems. If there are no younger lawyers living and practicing in rural areas, there are no good lawyers to become good judges or lawyer legislators. This deficiency affects everyone, no matter where we practice or reside.

The Harvesting Hope Initiative

Alabama State Bar President Tom Perry, from Demopolis, recognized this problem prior to being elected Bar President. He created the Harvesting Hope Initiative in an effort to address the issue.⁷ Once studied, the problem showed itself to be more acute than thought: actually, a dearth of lawyers exists in both rural areas and urban areas, or at least in portions of many urban counties. While the pending crisis is more pronounced in the State's rural areas, with changing demographics, the paucity of lawyers will become an issue in most, if not all, urban counties as well.

Identifying Opportunity Zones for lawyers across the State, President Perry, with the help of Tom Heflin from Sheffield, began examining other States' practices to determine how Alabama can help lawyers address the crisis and tap potential opportunities. President Perry and Heflin have identified a handful of target counties and developed an economic model to exhibit the financial viability of practicing law in rural counties. The financial model also reveals the potential for a reasonable and sustainable income for the participating lawyer. President Perry and Heflin have spoken with judges and lawyers to identify potential mentors, future employers, and shared office space or incubator programs where interested young lawyers may be placed. One of the goals of the Initiative is to empower rural leaders and professionals with the knowledge of the positive economic impact recruiting young lawyers and other professionals can have...