These statistics , ranging from the distressing to the uplifting , paint a curious picture : Few lawyers would declare 2024 to be the “ golden age ” of law , but it is undoubtedly a time of change . Young attorneys , law students , and those who they touch in their practice and in their lives are changing the noble profession in ways once thought unimaginable . The leisure Angert speaks of is not ( yet ) to be found in attorneys practicing any less , but rather in the “ way ” they practice , on a level that goes to the relationship attorneys have both with the law and with each other . From here , the utility of the statistics is limited . It is instead about the capacity and willingness of each lawyer and judge to consider their relationship to the law and what it means to be an attorney .
IN THE PROFESSION
We know Angert ’ s answer . He acknowledged he was a heretic among lawyers even in 1927 before proclaiming , “ I advocate less work and more leisure – not leisure reserved for some far-off day of retirement , but leisure distributed throughout our daily lives .” These words were eerily prescient . Angert himself would pass away just two years later at the age of 51 . His obituary makes no mention of his law practice . Instead , he is hailed as the founder of the St . Louis Horticultural Society and is praised “ for his devotion not only to flowers , but to people .” www . atlantabar . org THE ATLANTA LAWYER 15