4 ms·

I'm not a lawyer, but this seems far too narrow, and focused on trial lawyers. For instance, what about corporate lawyers writing up merger agreements? Or esta

I'm not a lawyer, but this seems far too narrow, and focused on trial lawyers. For instance, what about corporate lawyers writing up merger agreements? Or estate lawyers helping to plan for after death? Or family lawyers helping people through divorce? Statutes obviously matter in those cases, in the sense that they always matter, but often aren't the main focus. Even criminal stuff doesn't usually go to trial, and it's not because of some amazing insight in reading statutes. It's because often, the criminal is obviously guilty (or has no capacity to express why they are innocent) and it's just a negotiation over the terms of a guilty plea. Part of that is knowing the statute, but most is just knowing what other plea deals have been reached in similar cases recently.

torstenvl 4y ago
You and I appear to be understanding the OP in entirely different ways. The value of a lawyer is not in understanding statutes. It is in understanding the system, and being able to make predictions based on that understanding. From the article: >> Sure, lawyers are (sometimes) good communicators who are (sometimes) well-prepared, but the real value proposition they offer is prediction. Prediction matters in M&A, it matters in estate plans, it matters in divorce litigation. How can you properly prepare a merger without anticipating the things that might go wrong? How can you negotiate a cost-effective divorce settlement if you have no idea how the case will go? How can you plan for, well, what happens after your death, if you can't predict how the financials will play out?