Though litigation may sometimes be necessary as a last civil resort, much of it is a failure of one or more lawyers to be wiser than their clients. We should explore arrangements other than the billable hour for the lawyer's compensation that will help motivate lawyers to identify the most efficient solution to a problem. If, as a business person you have been frustrated by this tendency, you should discuss with your lawyer compensation strategies that give your lawyer financial incentives to serve you more efficiently. The character of America's legal education needs to become a subject of serious national discussion. Financial and political support needs to be found for alternative law schools that better prepare young lawyers for their responsibilities.
Law schools are the training grounds for our judges as well as our lawyers.
They do not adequately providing students with the skills they need to determine facts, understand a client's situation, counsel clients wisely, negotiated solutions and recognize the most practical, economical and stress-free means of resolving a client's situation. The American legal profession and its most accomplished members have proven themselves to be among the most civilizing and progressive forces in history. American lawyers, going back at least to Thomas Jefferson, have helped to provide hope for a better life to a the world. To-help increase the chances that our American future will be as bright as its promise, we need to do what we can to encourage restoration of the model of the American lawyer as a peacemaker.