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[Mitch Margo] [Mark
Levison] [Charles Kramer] [Spencer
Farris]
Mitch Margo
Hoop Jumping and Brief Marathons
Although it appears that most Greeks do not know it, there is an Olympics going
on in Athens. Most venues are half empty, and I don’t think it sounds any
more optimistic to describe them instead as "half full." The U.S.A.
basketball team is proving that a mediocre "team" can beat a group
of one-on-one superstars, even if they are from the NBA, which now stands for
National Big-ego Association. TV ratings are way down, terrorist alerts are way
up. To read the full version click: Lawyer Olympics.
Lawyers Enter Cookbook Market
One of America’s mainstays of fund raising has been the sale of organizational
cookbooks. For instance, at my house (where gender equity means we share equally
in ordering dinner delivery) we have no less than 16 cookbooks published by charitable
or arts groups. We have the "Official St. Louis Symphony Cookbook," the "St.
Louis Cardinal Wives Cookbook," the "American Heart Association Cookbook," the
"Junior
League Cookbook," and so on. To read the full version click: Recipe
for Disaster.
"Good luck to you in your
efforts to change the Bar, the Courts, and our society.
Personally,
I believe
some people are no damn good,
but we have a chance with someone
like you working on it."
William G. Phillips
Attorney, St. Louis, Missouri
Mark Levison
Some Laws Are Harder To Live Than Others
There are laws and there are laws. In America we believe no
person stands above the law and that the law is sacred. We
believe that all people are entitled to equal treatment before
the law, but don't necessarily believe the same to be true
about the laws themselves. Not all laws are equal. For example,
we don't think twice about speeding. Virtually all Americans
treat speed limits as a "lesser" law. To read the
full version click: Some Laws.
A Man Named Anthony Robinson
I live in a big house on a little hill. I have a swimming pool
and three daughters. As a result, my house is filled with lots
of teenage girls and therefore, lots of teenage boys. Last
week, one of those boys thrilled the assembled masses by laying
forty feet of rubber on my driveway. There was a time when
I liked doing that, but it didn’t amuse me this time.
Sensing my disapproval, my daughters were quick to tell me
they felt that type of behavior was very immature. To read
the full version click: A Man.
"It is refreshing to find
people that love their profession, but aren’t afraid
to talk about its failings.
Better yet, you guys do it with
humor and grace.
Any lawyer who doesn’t
laugh at himself
and his profession at least twice a day isn’t worth hiring."
I. Nathan Shappell
Publisher, Woodbine House, Inc., Washington, D.C.
Charles Kramer
If the Cat in the Hat Were A First Year Lawyer
The job of friendly lawyer Mike,
was to find all answers right
To do this he read lots of books,
In lots of books, Mike did look
To read the full version click: If
the Cat in the Hat.
Classified Thoughts of a Two-Hatted, Two-Headed
Man
Attorneys love to classify. It may even be an inextricable
part of "thinking like a lawyer". It is thus not
surprising that attorneys across the nation are currently petitioning
for the right to further classify themselves, to label themselves
"specialists." In their rabid pursuit of descriptive
titles, however, these lawyers seem oblivious to the fact that "specialization"
is a two-edged sword. To read the full version click: Classified
Thoughts.
Once the Dust Has Settled
Sergeant Pepper filled the smokey tavern as I entered. JoJo
stood quietly behind the decaying, dented, wooden bar, surveying
the crowd. I approached, ordered a drink, then joined in
her surreptitious glances as she dutifully poured the elixir.
It had been some time since I'd joined the midnight revelry.
I wondered whether the passage of time had altered the way
I viewed my friends. To read the full version click: Once
the Dust Has Settled.
Such a Silly Game
In Stowe, Vermont, a former maid is suing a ski resort, contending
she was fired because she has no upper teeth and refuses
artificial replacements. Apparently, the resort is claiming
the right to hire only indentured servants. To read the full
version click: Such a Silly Game.
"After your column started
running, reading the paper became more than a business proposition-
it became
a welcomed break from the day-to-day routine.
Our local paper
doesn’t have anything close to you guys.
Are you ever
going to hit Maryland?"
Dean Packard
Investment Advisor, Alex Brown & Sons, Annapolis, Maryland
Spencer Farris
Hobbit Lawering - a Birthday Tangent
We had a party this week at the Levison Towers. I was touched to see the cake
with the word "anniversary" scraped off and "birthday" iced
over it. My name was at the bottom, amidst flowers and hearts. I wish Kevin
and Margaret well after their many years together. I trust they were the ones
who at the missing corner piece of cake. To read the full
version click: Hobbit Lawyering.
Auld Lang Syne
I missed a couple of days from work at the Levision Towers this week. I hate
coming back from an unexpected absence to all of the phone messages and unopened
mail. While I was gone, someone rented out my office - I think it was that
rotten Phill. Anyway, the new guy gave me back my chair when I explained to
him that I had been at a funeral. For my grandfather. To read the full
version click: Auld Lang
Syne.
Spam Spam Spam Spam Spam
Some days, I wish Phill would pay attention to the "no
personal calls" rule
at the Levison Towers. Today, while working the switchboard, he transferred
yet another call from my Aunt Lenora. I swear he did it on
purpose- Phill is a little
man who carries a big grudge, and can't forgive me for switching an Etch a
Sketch for his computer last year. It took him three days
to notice the lack of email,
and I am forever to be punished for the prank. To read the full
version click: Spam Spam.
"Judging writers is my job.
Here are some of the cleverest writers I know."
Tyler Mathisen
Senior Editor, MONEY MAGAZINE
Financial Commentator from the
nationally televised "Business This Morning" |
