Professionalism - What Do We Mean?
By Dan Murdock, General Counsel
Oklahoma Bar Association
Author's Note: The filing of the annual report should always cause us to look at what we as lawyers are doing on a day to day basis. It should cause us to reflect where we are in our profession. And what better way is there than to consider the issue of professionalism and ask ourselves "Are we where we should be?"
Professionalism is a term that is used often these days. When I was much younger, I never had a problem knowing what it meant. Whenever I thought of the terms "professional" or "professionalism," it was always sports related. A name like Mantle, Maris,Reese, Musial or Clemente defined the word. Just a name inspired admiration and respect. It did not require further definition. Now, things have changed. No longer are the sports figures today admired in the way they were, and the issue of professionalism permeates our profession nationwide. But I do not hear of professional sports discussing this issue. As long as attendance is up and the television contracts are good, everything is O.K.
We in the legal profession are different. We in the legal profession are expressing concern, and that pleases me. It does not please me to think that there is a problem within our profession, but it does please me to know we are concerned about any possible or perceived problem and it is that concern that sets us apart and helps to define our role within the framework of society.
DEFINITIONS
If you check Black's Law Dictionary for a definition of "professionalism," you will not find one. You will, however, find "profession" and "professional." "Profession" is defined as a vocation or occupation requiring special,usually advanced, education, knowledge and skill. A "professional" is one engaged in one of those vocations or occupations. That does not tell us much, and we need to continue our search if we are to achieve any degree of understanding about who we are and who we should be. In high school I was taught that you look to Latin for the meaning of words and in doing so, I found that the word "profession" comes from the Latin word, professionem which means to make a public declaration. Later, it is said, the word evolved to describe those occupations that required new entrants into those occupations to take an oath professing their dedication to the ideals and practices associated with a learned calling.
Dean Roscoe Pound described "profession" as "pursuing a learned art as a common calling in the spirit of public service." The Professionalism Committee of the American Bar Association Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar adopted this definition of a professional lawyer: "A professional lawyer is an expert in law pursuing a learned art in service to clients and engaging in these pursuits as part of a common calling to promote justice and public good."
Jenkins Lloyd Jones, former editor of the Tulsa Tribune in a speech to the Tulsa County Bar Association on October 27, 1950, spoke about lawyers and referred to their work as being for "the greater good of all." It is perhaps those terms - "the greater good of all" and "in the spirit of public service" that appear strange to many lawyers but it is precisely those ideas which tell us where we need to be going in our search and it is that which sets our profession apart from others.
The American Bar Association in 1986 had the Stanley Commission Report. In 1992 the MacCrate report was issued. Each report had names too long to repeat here but the purpose of each report was to bring about changes to increase the level of professionalism. These reports listed characteristics of a professional lawyer and went on to describe additional supportive elements. As with any report, recommendations were made and many considered the work complete.
WORK CONTINUES
The work, however, is not complete. We can form committees and task forces, study the issue, and write a report with recommendations, but none of that dedicated and meaningful work is worth anything if we don"t look at ourselves and the way in which we pursue our profession. It continues each day when each member of our profession engages in our profession. It continues each day when citizens within our communities recognize us as members of the legal profession and, with that recognition, form their opinion of us and our profession. It continues each day when court appearances cause other members of our profession to see us, judge our performance and give us their grade on that performance.
The American Bar Association, the Oklahoma Bar Association and county bar associations can all talk about professionalism and issue reports with recommendations from task forces until the proverbial freeze. All that will be wasted if we, as individual members of our profession, do not do what we should be doing to demonstrate to the public that we are indeed professionals. It is perhaps then that mere names once again will be the defining thought.
Oklahoma Bar Journal Vol. 70, No. 11, March 13, 1999 Vol. 70, No. 11, March 13, 1999
