Last night, a phone call came in from California.  It was Dan Hull of What About Clients? fame, who got a few minutes off from practicing for Dancing with the Stars.  He told me that his office was running low on teletubbies, following a spate of paper cuts and a tragic flip-flop accident.  

Hull asked what I thought about importing some new ones from the Big Apple.  I didn’t think it was a great idea.  More expensive, more self-important, no better work ethic.  It was like recruiting from Above The Law’s commentariot, a fate worse than death for real lawyers.

But the real problem for lawyers who seek to raise the next generation of fighters and thinkers isn’t whether a change of venue will solve their problem, but that the Anti-Slackoisie aren’t sitting in their mommy’s basement whining on JD Underground about the misery of the profession.  They’re going out and being lawyers.

Wajahat Ali, in one lengthy but heartfelt story, proved that he’s got the stuff to be a lawyer.  Recognized by Walter Olson, Brian Tannebaum and Mark Bennett, Ali was too busy to bemoan the fate of Biglaw opportunities because he was busy representing a client.  He hit walls, and he pushed through. He had his doubts, and he pushed through.  As it happened, his persistence paid off, but even if it hadn’t, he demonstrated the fortitude that makes for a real lawyer.  No time for whining when you have a client to represent.

And Brian Tannebaum found another one, Brett Luskin, who decided that he wasn’t satisfied with leaving a permanent butt imprint in his parents’ couch.  Instead, he established a practice defending against traffic tickets.  While not the sexiest niche, he showed his stuff beating the City of Aventura, Florida, on the legality of red light cameras.  Not too shabby.

Even as I tap at the little keys, I can hear the smart alecks at ATL and JD Underground sneer at Ali and Luskin. How de classe to wallow in such low-life endeavors, such crap-law, when they have dreams of a partnership in Mergers & Acquisitions, a million dollar salary and a pair of matching Ferraris in the six car garage.  There’s plenty of time to dream while waiting for someone to praise your comment on the internet.  It’s so much more honorable to hold true to your belief that some law firm will appreciate your unique genius and snatch you off the couch and plant you in the corner office.  Just keep sitting there, and pray the Doritos don’t run out.

The problem Dan Hull faces in trying to find new lawyers who want to work, want to serve clients, want to be real lawyers, isn’t one of location.  They are out there, likely in every city across the country.  The problem is that they aren’t waiting for the phone to ring, or sending out their one millionth resume.  When opportunity didn’t plop in their lap, they went out and found it.  They created their own success.

The Slackoisie hate being told that they’re miserable failures.  Nothing is their fault.  They are entitled to fabulous lives, and it’s all because of their evil elders that they’ve been denied their birthright.  The anti-Slackoisie, like Ali and Luskin, aren’t worrying about it.  They’re too busy being lawyers.