In Loco Parentis

Next reading assignment for Civil Procedure: Zealous Advocacy and Ethical Considerations

An exchange between two Chicago trial lawyers as described by Judge Marvin Aspen, U.S. District Judge in the Northern Distirct of Illinois:

"Attorney V had just asked Attorney A for a copy of a document he was using to question the witness:

Mr. V: Please don't throw it at me.
Mr. A: Take it.
Mr. V: Don't throw it at me.
Mr. A: Don't be a child, Mr. V. You look like a slob the way you're dressed,
but you don't have to act like a slob...You deny I've given you a copy of
every document?
Mr. V: You just refused to give it to me.
Mr. A: Do you deny it?
Mr. V: Eventually you threw it at me.
Mr. A: Oh, Mr. V, you're about as childish as you can get. You look like a
slob, you act like a slob."

These were two lawyers working on a multi-billion dollar case. A follow-up question in our reading: "What effect is your legal education having on your civility in law school or in daily life?"

Ideally, education is the refinement of your mind and spirit. In reality, it may be just gaining a few skills. But law school might be the unique exception where the skills you gain are questionable and you just become more of a schmuck in the process.

Perhaps the adversarial nature of the legal process is to blame. Whereas competition in business isn't zero sum (your winning doesn't mean that I lose), competition in the law usually is: when one party wins a claim, the other must lose. There's less of an incentive to work together unless you have a vague sense of working for justice even if it hurts your client.