President's Message
| Publication year | 1989 |
| Pages | 5 |
| Citation | Vol. 2 No. 8 Pg. 5 |
"Pick More Daisies..."
Hans Q. Chamberlain, J.
Most likely each one of us asks ourselves at least three or four times each year, "Do I want to continue to practice law the rest of my working years?" Each of us has our own reason for asking this question, but undoubtedly at the top of most lists is the "stress factor, " or perhaps better termed, the "distress factor."
A few months ago I attended a meeting with other State Bar officers where the subject of stress among Bar members was one of the topics for a breakout session. The room was literally overflowing and it was readily apparent that everyone attended this session to the exclusion of other offered subjects. This affirmed to me that the issue of stress on Bar members is a matter that should be addressed on a regular basis. At this meeting, the panel discussed the results of a recent survey in Maryland where 207 attorneys were interviewed in depth by 21 graduate students to determine current attitudes about the practice of law. Sixty percent of the lawyers reported that they were mostly satisfied with their professional life, 30 percent were clearly dissatisfied and 94 percent felt that the practice of the law was less of a profession and more of a business. Only 36 percent stated without qualification that they would like to remain in the practice of law for the rest of their career. Comments made by the interviewed attorneys also indicated that they were concerned that the public view of lawyers was becoming more unfavorable, the pressure to specialize increasing, partners and associates are becoming less loyal to their firms and moving to other firms quite readily, and clients retain counsel more frequently on a project basis rather than on a continuing basis. The survey also indicated that complaints voiced were not isolated to large or small firms and ' that lawyers see too many other lawyers as : having the "type A personality." Finally, a common complaint from lawyers interviewed was that they were working more hours than they wanted and many felt they were receiving pressure to bill more hours in a year than was reasonable. As you will recall, Past President Kent Kasting addressed the issue of excessive billable hours in his President's Message in the April 1989 Bar Journal.
The Maryland survey, as well as other recent data, provides some other useful information:
1. Most lawyers are proud of the...
To continue reading
Request your trial