Law V. Life: What Lawyers Are Afraid to Say about the Legal Profession

by Walt Bachman

With wisdom, humor, and unflinching candor, Walt Bachman takes readers inside the American legal profession and recounts the facts of life for a practicing lawyer. His vivid testimony will change the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0962765988
• ISBN13: 9780962765988
• Release Date: January 1995
• Publisher: Four Directions PR
• Length: 140 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.8" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Startlingly honest portrait of life as a lawyer

I've never practiced law, but I still know a good book when I see one. This is no less than an excellent, detailed examination of what it's like to be a lawyer (in 1995, anyway). Author Walt Bachman focuses mostly on the negative aspects of the profession, but I never caught any unfair / invalid generalizations, or got the sense of a guy grinding an axe. The maladies he points out are well-reasoned and substantial, and definitely worth contemplating for aspiring law students. The book is quick to dispel the glamorized image of lawyers in the media. Bachman claims the nature of the job to be highly stressful, in part because of excessive hours but even more because of the burden of being responsible for the fate of another. There's a vivid parable about a science experiment with several pairs of monkeys, in which only one of them had the ability to stop a painful electrical shock that affected them both. At one point, the scientists took away the control but the sense of responsibility remained, eventually causing all the "control" monkeys to die from stress. Another major lesson is that morals, as defined by most of the population, have no place in the world of law. Your role is that of a moral mercenary, representing any client that comes your way no matter how reprehensible. Worse, arguing strategy is less about the battle of truths, and more about discrediting and attacking your opponent, humiliating and exploiting witnesses, or in some cases, simply prolonging the process so that the other side won't bother to fight. He also warns that the effects of all this often spill over into a lawyer's personal life, often jeopardizing personal relationships. Finally, he makes a precise claim that more than 40% of clients are complete "assholes" -- and since they usually seek like-minded lawyers, it drives the demand for regular, balanced lawyers even further. Other complaints: the work is far more boring that it seems. Supposedly, most lawyers spend most of their days working out the minutiae in boring paperwork, and it's rare to see a trial room. Billable hours have become the dominating priority, even higher in importance than quality of work. Also, a disproportionate rise in the number of lawyers since the 70s means there are roughly 1,000,000 lawyers out there today -- way more than the market needs. He tells stories of many un- and under-employed new grads, and tells of the desperation to pay off crippling student debts. I could go on, but why not just read it for yourself? Heck, it's only 140 pages.

Should be required reading for all aspiring lawyers

A seasoned attorney gave me this book when I was in my third year of law school. Eight years later I remain very grateful that I received this gift, because it is the most poignant, blunt, and accurate synopsis of the legal profession I have ever come across. The point of this book is not to deter people from being lawyers or scare the daylights out of them. Rather, it aims to prepare aspiring lawyers for what lies ahead of them in the real world of the law. If you're in law school or thinking about going to law school this book will open your eyes to the practice of law, but even if you're already a practicing attorney there is plenty in here that you'll recognize and appreciate.

Excellent source for lawyers wannabe!

This book is mind opening for those who want to be lawyers. It presents the reality in the life of the lawyer within himself, family, work and society. It also presents the truth that lawyers are afraid to say when working for a firm. After reading it you might learn that the time and money spent might not be worthy. It is an insight in the career for those who know nothing about what they will be facing.

Honest, well conceived, and to the point...

In nine quick and easily accessible chapters, Bachman outlines many striking truths about what an aspiring lawyer can expect to encounter in contemporary practice. This text is an absolute must read for anyone pondering law school.Bachman reveals some brutal truths, such as "Lesson Seven: 10% of a lawyer's soul dies for every 100 billable hours worked in excess of 1,500 per year" (p.107). I appreciated his earnest approach to quantify, as scientifically as possible, his ideas about problems in the law.As for others criticisms of this book- that he outlines only the problems and does not present possible solutions- well, that's just too bad. The very fact that he chooses not to is a direct reflection of the severity and fixed nature of these problems.

The whole truth in less than 200 pages

This is a dead-on description of law practice today. I can't speak too highly of this book. It disillusions would-be lawyers and validates the second thoughts of practicing attorneys. All this in a well-written, mercifully concise format. I practiced litigation in fairly large New Jersey firms for five years. I didn't read this book until I had been out for a year. I wish I could have read it during my transition out of law practice; it would have saved me a lot of self-doubt, anguish and guilt. Now I recommend it to law students, "pre-law" undergrads, and lawyers. I also assigned it to an upper-level undergrad class I taught recently on law and legal studies.Buy this book. Read it. Then lend it to someone who needs it.