“About half the practice of a decent lawyer consists in telling would-be clients that they are damned fools and should stop.” — Elihu Root, attorney and Secretary of State under President Theodore Roosevelt and Secretary of War under Presidents William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt.
Martin Van Buren Was Arguing Cases in Court Before He Was 16
Before he was 16, Martin Van Buren was already arguing cases in court—and once had to stand on a table so the jury could see him.
Why Are Lawyers Not Addressed as Doctor in the United States?
Lawyers in the U.S. earn a Juris Doctor (JD) degree, not a traditional “Doctor” title. Harvard introduced the upgrade from LLB to JD in 1902, later adopted by other law schools. Despite this, ABA initially discouraged lawyers from using the “Doctor” label, believing it lacked the same prestige as PhDs. However, ABA’s stance has evolved,…
A Tale of Two Courtrooms: The Quaint Contrasts Between American and British Legal Systems
In The Canterville Ghost, Oscar Wilde wrote: “We have really everything in common with America nowadays except, of course, language.” Perhaps Wilde should have expanded his observation to the legal system, as well. The United States owes a great deal of its political and legal customs to the United Kingdom. The USA inherited the British…
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