Brian Tannebaum, who is the current President of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, writes about four hours of his life spent listening to a lawyer who has been practicing for 64 years. He chose not to name the lawyer, though most readers know who he’s talking about.
Yesterday I spent 4 hours at the home of a lawyer who’s been practicing law for 64 years. I became friends with him when he’d only been practicing 48 years, and have had the opportunity to learn from him and even work on good case together. We talked about law, lawyers, legal stuff, court, clients, and judges. The only time the word “computer” came up was when he told me his hands are having a hard time typing these days.
When I look around the internet, and see the lawyers who frequent this place, I wonder from where other lawyers get their advice, tips, mentors, and philosophies.
Let’s stop here and ponder, for a moment, what Brian’s doing. Brian’s an experienced criminal defense lawyer. He’s got 15 years of practice under his belt, and he’s sufficiently respected by his peers to be elected the President of the state association. This is no small feat in Florida, with its extremely active and vibrant members. And they elected Brian.
Brian’s been trying long and hard to make some points to others, often newer, less experienced lawyers. In return, some tell him that he’s a clueless idiot, that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. These lawyers, with experience in the practice of law between 12 minutes and a few years, know it all. They write blog posts instructing others how to be lawyers, to try cases, about their vision of ethics and responsibility. They write of the miracles of technology, how it “changes everything,” and of their entitlement to work/life balance. There was even a law student who was so bizarrely arrogant as to believe that she knew better than Brian. Yes, they know enough to teach others.
Brian, on the other hand, spends his time with a lawyer with 64 years experience. He knows that this lawyer has stories and experiences that Brian needs to hear, needs to understand. He may be a big macher on his own, yet he’s never such a big shot that he can’t learn from a lawyer whose experience dwarfs his own.
Why is it that Brian, with all he’s accomplished, still listens to this lawyer with 64 years experience? Why is it that so many inexperienced lawyers in the blawgosphere listen to no one?
None of you have come anywhere near the level of professional accomplishment that Brian has. You haven’t tried the cases and gotten the verdicts, whether guilty or not (as in his latest jury acquittal). You haven’t won the respect of judges or your peers. You’re like tin soldiers, pretending you’re battle-hardened on the internet. Brian offers you the benefit of his experience and you jeer because his words don’t comport with what you want to do. You want to be internet heroes. You want to enjoy the benefits of the law without the hard work. You want to be the equal of the accomplished lawyer without have achieved any accomplishments.
For his part, Brian turns to a lawyer with 64 years experience to learn about the law. You turn to each other for comfort and support, so you can indulge in a circle jerk of unaccomplished, inexperienced lawyers who will praise and comfort each other, sending links back and forth about how special you are. You try to create a reality on the internet that you haven’t earned in the courtroom.
The lawyer with 64 years experience is one whose accomplishments are legendary. With neither Google nor faux online friends to bolster a manufactured reputation, this lawyer earned his bones in the trenches, year after year, decade after decade. No, he probably wouldn’t spend four hours of his life with you, because his time is valuable and he’s unlikely to waste it one some inexperienced lawyer who disdains experience in favor of pagerank. But he is willing to give of his time to Brian Tannebaum. That’s because Brian has earned his respect, proven the worthiness of taking up four hours of the life of a lawyer with 64 years of experience.
And you inexperienced, unaccomplished lawyers eschew what Brian has to teach you? Because you know it all already.
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Yeah, but isn’t 64 years of experience really just 60 years of worthwhile experience and then four years of the same thing over and over again?
I suspect the newbies will view it just the opposite, four years of worthwhile experience and 60 years of the same thing over and over.
Which is why I started a food blog instead of a blawg. I’m a very young lawyer, only a year and a half out of law school. Luckily, I grew up in a family full of experienced lawyers (and some CDL’s), so I like to think that I know my place at the bottom of the totem pole.
Scott, I think you’re hatred (might be too strong of a word) for many young lawyers is colored by the fact that the most arrogant among us are also the most outspoken (and have their own blogs). There are so many young lawyers just trying to make it through the day, find/keep a job who would leap at any mentoring opportunity or even just plain good advice. But yeah, there’s also a ton who have an overwhelming feeling of entitlement and are so far up their own ass that they wouldn’t know a good lesson if it hit them in the face.
But still, the opportunities for mentoring are so limited these days, with so few new lawyers willing to learn and more experienced lawyers, who, because of a variety of factors, are simply unwilling to teach. It’s really been a failure from all sides.
Let me be clear, I don’t “hate” young lawyers at all, though I can understand why young lawyers might see it that way. They are so used to being coddled that when someone gives them a smack, the interpret it as hatred. But that’s part of the problem, as they can’t stand anything other than coddling, praise and a trophy. This is mentoring, and I do it not because I hate young or inexperienced lawyers at all, but because there is no way to tell them the truth, that lawyering is hard work, often unpleasant work and seldom convenient work. They may not want to hear it, but that’s how it goes.
“Why is it that Brian, with all he’s accomplished, still listens to this lawyer with 64 years experience?”
There’s a chicken here, and an egg. No CDL who wouldn’t eagerly listen for four hours to this 64-year lawyer is ever going to accomplish a fraction of what Tannebaum has.
p.s. You’ve ascribed lots to “them” without actually attributing anything to anyone. I am obligated to point this out, or Koehler will whine.
Those who only want to be coddled have no business being lawyers. As for me, I’d love for someone to give me a constructive smack every once in awhile.
This post isn’t directed at any particular person (though Koehler may think it’s all about him as is his wont), which is why no one is named and no specific comment is quoted. I’ve point out these problems far too many times to feel compelled to offer proof of the obvious. This does to every lawyer (and law student) who thinks they know better and that experience means nothing. They know who they are.
That would cut down the number of lawyers by about 75%. A good start.
I think that Dan’s comment was a little tongue in cheek!
I love this post. The only thing I would say in defense of Those Who Know Who They Are is this: This generation of young lawyers is likely to have very few opportunities to get a chance to spend quality time with old lawyers who can teach them, share ware stories or just rub off a little of their experience and wisdom. Even 15 or 20 years ago it was realistic to expect some opportunity to be an apprentice somewhere, from someone, and get that chance slowly to season, to learn, to grow.
Now they have little hope of ever working. Not only that, they are terrified in this environment of what will happen if they don’t “bring in business” almost immediately — even if they really have no right to represent anyone in connection with anything.
And “bringing in business,” as they understand, is something you do the same way you do everything else in life — get educated, acquire food, clothing and shelter, date, make love, socialize: On the Internet.
You mean they’re likely to take very few opportunities. The opportunities are there, same as they ever were.
The greats didn’t become great by being stingy with their wisdom. That TWKWTA won’t seek out that wisdom, if they won’t, isn’t anyone’s fault but TWKWTA’s.
CDLs aren’t expected to “bring in the business” and the old-timers are sitting there in the courtrooms or the diners or the bar or the PDs office, BEGGING for someone to sit down and soak up their war stories. They love teaching as much as I love learning.
That was really thoughtless of Brian to post that article and not even link to the lawyer’s site and share the Google love.
(Attn. idiots: I’m kidding.)