The County Courthouse No Longer Looms Over the Community

The title of this Article may be mysterious, but only because it is ametaphor. The subject of my Article is actually professionalismand professional ethics in the practice of law. My theme is thatour contemporary concepts of professionalism and professional ethics arebased upon an obsolete image of society, one that contrasts with the socialcontext in which the practice of law is now conducted. This obsoleteimage is widely shared by senior members of the profession, who mayhave actually experienced the old style of practice, and by many youngerones. Enraptured by this image, we keep harking back to earlier timesfor solutions, or at least amelioration of, what we describe as the erosionof professionalism, particularly civility. I do not dispute that there hasbeen change of the relationships referred to by the term civility. However,the important question is the nature of that change. My purpose isto direct attention to the social condition in which professionalism must now be nurtured. The modern condition is an impersonal, highlycompetitive environment