Thursday, October 14, 2010

Week 2 EOC: What do I think of lawyers?

I come from a family of lawyers and tend to sympathize with them and the bad rap they have. After all is said and done, I do respect the work that lawyers do on behalf of their clients. The flip side of my response is that I also believe that the laws we abide by govern a society that infuses inequity among its citizens; so when a lawyer goes to bat for their client, there is a very good chance that no one “wins”.
To further expound on this idea, I would assert that lawyers are known as ambulance chasers because they will sue anyone for monetary damages. Depending on their compensation percentage of the settlement awarded, usually they walk away with a lot of money. In my opinion, based on the hours a lawyer works and the risk they take, they still make too much money.

One would think that if a lawyer lived by a more strict moral code, the percentage they take as payment would be less. Could they possibly ask for a lesser percent? After all, they were not wronged by another, but simply stand up on behalf of those who aren’t “in the know” on how to defend themselves in a court of law.

Ultimately, in our society the laws need to be re-evaluated in order to help protect our citizens. What can you sue for, how much can you sue for, etc etc. Also, the amount of education one receives tends to dictate how much one can earn for an annual salary. Lawyers tend to have more hours spent at a university where they learn the law, versus (as an example) a Communication Degree that requires less than half the hours required.

The society we live in would lead you to believe that just because the lawyer spent more money and time on his/her education that they deserve more money….I disagree. The amount of money you make should not necessarily reflect your education, because ultimately everyone is not allotted the same opportunities as others.

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