The Moral Compass of the American Lawyer: Truth, Justice, Power, and Greed Paperback – September 5, 2000

Richard Zitrin and Carol Langford have written here a book that will not only introduce the law student to the sleazier side of law practice, but also warn the "law consumer" what to watch out for (or perhaps what to look for by way of "zealous representation").But this is not only a catalogue of egregiously unethical practices by real-world lawyers. It also contains interesting tidbits of great relevance to those who want to know what's wrong with the legal profession.(For example, here's a point libertarians will enjoy. Lawyers once tried to get around the silly practice of accounting for everything in "billable hours" by settling on standard fees for certain common legal tasks. What stopped them? Antitrust law. It seems adopting industry-standard fees is a form of collusion in restraint of trade. Thank heavens; the current system is _ever_ so much better.)Not long on solutions, this volume is still a solid overview of the sort of nonsense engendered by the adversarial system. It's also a list of good reasons to look into alternative dispute resolution the next time _you_ have a legal problem.For law students, I'd personally recommend supplementing it with any or all of the following: Mary Ann Glendon's _A Nation Under Lawyers_; Deborah Rhode's _In the Interests of Justice_; and Philip Howard's _The Death of Common Sense_.

I agree with all of what is said in the positive ratings here. I have bought 3 copies....! The first was a used copy from the local library used bookstore. It got so dog earned...I bought a hard cover here, and another soft cover to give to a friend with legal problems. it's a riveting book, I could not put down. I have constantly referred to this book, and discussed it on many occassions. It's extremely eye opening, yet sickens me how the industry of Lawyers has become....a game of who wins...and who makes the most money. Honestly, it makes me ashamed of the American legal system at times.ts really HARD not to stereotype all lawyers after reading this. There are good ones...but I was especially chilled to read how law schools train students....and morality is quite lacking. it's truly a wonder that lawyers with heart, sanity, and lack of greed do exist. I think this book should be required reading for every student....regardless of future vocation.

This book is interesting, it is like psychiatry for medical student. I urge to author to expand his work into other contemporary issue. For example, puncturing the legalese bluff used by lawyer to deceive lay people. We all engage the service of lawyer such as in mortgage loan, bank loan etc. but most of us has no idea what a contract really mean. The Lehman Brother Minibond has caused so much sufferings to bond holder especially the pensioner. One of the complaints was, nobody really understand those pages of legalese bluff drafted by lawyer.Another interesting fact is the service of process etc. I would like to see this book expanded with more contemporary issues.

Bought the book for a class on the ethics of lawyers. Book is ok, covers a lot of ground. Gives the impression that lawyers are almost above the law, outside the law, a law unto themselves, special people. Lawyer and moral compass is an oxymoron as there is no moral direction or position to the practice of law. Legal ethics and morals are different. Lawyers are not bound by morals, which to lawyers are situational and subject to personal interpretation. Ethics are written rules. They're written by each state and enforced only by the profession itself. So to the extent that this book shows the reader that lawyers are not bound by morals, it's useful.

Had to read this for class, but I was drawn in by the tumult and strain between social expectations and ethical obligations to clients by lawyers. Interesting read.

Really great book. I had to read it for class so thought it might be a little stiff but I actually ended up really enjoying it. There are a lot of great cases discussed to illustrate points the authors are trying to make and it really gave me a lot to think about. Highly recommend.

Had to get it for a college course - the first chapter was fairly interesting but the rest was a rather snooze. Then again, it was required for one of my mandatory courses so it served its purpose.

This book was a nice read. I thought that this would be a boring read, as it was a required text for one of my law classes, but it is written more like an everyday reader than a text book.