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An Opus on the Graying of the Legal Profession
If you thought issues like mandatory retirement, either for judges or at law firms, were simple or isolated, think again. Sure, mandatory retirement invokes all kinds of meaty questions, such as: How much respect and dignity do older lawyers deserve, particularly when or if such deference adversely impacts law firm profits or interferes with the advancement of a younger crop of attorneys, eager for their turn to take the reigns? But mandatory retirement is just a small piece of the larger issue of the graying of the legal profession, which in turn requires consideration of continued competence in light of physical or mental illness or loss of mental capacity. Age discrimination. Appropriate training and respect for a younger generation of lawyers. The impact of generational differences on the smooth transition of power from older to younger lawyers.
David Giacalone tackles these issues and more in comprehensive fashion in this lengthy post at f/k/a. And you're wondering why you haven't seen more on this topic in the blogosphere, Giacalone surmises it's because bloggers are disproportionately comprised of younger attorneys for whom these issues don't yet matter.
I'm not exaggerating to say that Giacalone's piece is one of the most significant and important pieces of writing to hit the blogosphere. And though there hasn't been broad discussion of age issues within the blogosphere to date, Giacalone's masterpiece is bound to get one started. To get the ball rolling, let's hear from you. As the boomer generation of lawyers age, what consequences do you foresee for the legal profession?
Posted by Carolyn Elefant on March 21, 2007 at 07:53 PM | Permalink
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