Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Pounding on the table

Early in my first year of law school an old saying about how to be a lawyer was circulating among our first year class (as it does about every class of lawyers I suspect). 

If you are strong on the facts, you pound on the facts.  If you are strong on the law, you pound on the law.  If you are weak on both the facts and the law you pound on the table.

It was a wry wake up to call to the fact that being a lawyer often isn't being right, it is about winning - and those are two entirely different things.  If you don't use whatever tools are available to win, if you worry to much about what is "right", many clients will go find another lawyer.  

I had a difficult time with the idea that "winning" is more important than being "right".  It is, to me, contrary to all the values I was taught in school and Sunday school as I was growing up.  Like many lawyers I drifted away from the practice of law after a few years so I wouldn't have to deal with the enormous challenge presented of trying to represent clients without acting contrary to values you believe to be important and still be economically successful.

Long after my reality check in law I still clung to the notion one could be successful in politics without letting winning trump honesty and an open mind.   

Did I say Trump?  

Boy was I naive.