There is an adage that those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it. This essentially means that if you do not learn the lessons of history, you may face a similar problem in the future and make mistakes that could have been avoided if you had had better knowledge. This definitely applies to the legal profession since lawyers have made missteps and faced challenges that can be instructive for future attorneys. However, legal history is not widely studied, and many lawyers may not be aware of even recent events in the legal industry.
History has always been one of my passions. I completed a master’s degree in American history during my senior year of college, and while I was in law school, I took several legal history courses. Those classes gave me a greater appreciation for how modern law firms evolved and why the legal profession operates the way it does. Many lawyers also seem to appreciate legal history and apply the lessons learned to their own situations.
When the financial crisis hit in 2008 and 2009, many large law firms responded with massive layoffs. Those layoffs undoubtedly helped firms reduce expenses during an extraordinarily difficult economic period, but they also carried significant long-term costs. Beyond the obvious emotional toll of terminating colleagues and friends, many firms discovered years later that they had created a “missing generation” of lawyers. Entire classes of associates disappeared, leaving firms short of experienced midlevel attorneys who would ordinarily have been supervising matters, mentoring junior lawyers, and eventually becoming partners. That institutional gap created operational challenges that lingered long after the economy recovered.
When the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the legal industry more than a decade later, many firms took a different approach. Although some firms reduced compensation or delayed raises, widespread associate layoffs were far less common than they had been during the Great Recession. Of course, the unprecedented nature of the pandemic and the uncertainty surrounding its duration influenced those decisions. But I also suspect many firm leaders remembered what happened after 2009. They had seen firsthand the long-term damage caused by eliminating large portions of the associate pipeline and were understandably reluctant to repeat that experience. The legal profession benefited from remembering its own history.
The same principle applies beyond staffing decisions. Over the past several months, I have spoken with younger lawyers who were unfamiliar with events that profoundly shaped today’s legal market, including the collapse of Dewey & LeBoeuf, the breakup of several storied firms, and the mergers that transformed others. Those events were not merely interesting pieces of legal trivia. They changed compensation structures, partnership expectations, conflicts practices, recruiting strategies, and the competitive landscape of Biglaw. Understanding why those firms succeeded or failed provides valuable lessons for lawyers and law firm leaders today.
Of course, lawyers already have plenty to keep up with. They must stay current on changes in the law, emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, evolving ethical obligations, and the ever-changing expectations of clients. But that does not mean the profession should ignore its own history.
Lawyers spend their careers studying precedent because they understand that past decisions help guide future outcomes. The same logic applies to the legal profession itself. The firms, business models, and personalities may change, but many of the underlying challenges remain remarkably similar from one generation to the next.
Studying legal history will not prevent every mistake. But it can help lawyers recognize familiar patterns, avoid repeating costly errors, and make more informed decisions when the next crisis inevitably arrives.
Jordan Rothman is a partner of The Rothman Law Firm, a full-service New York and New Jersey law firm. He is also the founder of Student Debt Diaries, a website discussing how he paid off his student loans. You can reach Jordan through email at jordan@rothman.law.
The post Lawyers Should Spend More Time Studying Legal History appeared first on Above the Law.
There is an adage that those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it. This essentially means that if you do not learn the lessons of history, you may face a similar problem in the future and make mistakes that could have been avoided if you had had better knowledge. This definitely applies to the legal profession since lawyers have made missteps and faced challenges that can be instructive for future attorneys. However, legal history is not widely studied, and many lawyers may not be aware of even recent events in the legal industry.
History has always been one of my passions. I completed a master’s degree in American history during my senior year of college, and while I was in law school, I took several legal history courses. Those classes gave me a greater appreciation for how modern law firms evolved and why the legal profession operates the way it does. Many lawyers also seem to appreciate legal history and apply the lessons learned to their own situations.
When the financial crisis hit in 2008 and 2009, many large law firms responded with massive layoffs. Those layoffs undoubtedly helped firms reduce expenses during an extraordinarily difficult economic period, but they also carried significant long-term costs. Beyond the obvious emotional toll of terminating colleagues and friends, many firms discovered years later that they had created a “missing generation” of lawyers. Entire classes of associates disappeared, leaving firms short of experienced midlevel attorneys who would ordinarily have been supervising matters, mentoring junior lawyers, and eventually becoming partners. That institutional gap created operational challenges that lingered long after the economy recovered.
When the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the legal industry more than a decade later, many firms took a different approach. Although some firms reduced compensation or delayed raises, widespread associate layoffs were far less common than they had been during the Great Recession. Of course, the unprecedented nature of the pandemic and the uncertainty surrounding its duration influenced those decisions. But I also suspect many firm leaders remembered what happened after 2009. They had seen firsthand the long-term damage caused by eliminating large portions of the associate pipeline and were understandably reluctant to repeat that experience. The legal profession benefited from remembering its own history.
The same principle applies beyond staffing decisions. Over the past several months, I have spoken with younger lawyers who were unfamiliar with events that profoundly shaped today’s legal market, including the collapse of Dewey & LeBoeuf, the breakup of several storied firms, and the mergers that transformed others. Those events were not merely interesting pieces of legal trivia. They changed compensation structures, partnership expectations, conflicts practices, recruiting strategies, and the competitive landscape of Biglaw. Understanding why those firms succeeded or failed provides valuable lessons for lawyers and law firm leaders today.
Of course, lawyers already have plenty to keep up with. They must stay current on changes in the law, emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, evolving ethical obligations, and the ever-changing expectations of clients. But that does not mean the profession should ignore its own history.
Lawyers spend their careers studying precedent because they understand that past decisions help guide future outcomes. The same logic applies to the legal profession itself. The firms, business models, and personalities may change, but many of the underlying challenges remain remarkably similar from one generation to the next.
Studying legal history will not prevent every mistake. But it can help lawyers recognize familiar patterns, avoid repeating costly errors, and make more informed decisions when the next crisis inevitably arrives.
Jordan Rothman is a partner of The Rothman Law Firm, a full-service New York and New Jersey law firm. He is also the founder of Student Debt Diaries, a website discussing how he paid off his student loans. You can reach Jordan through email at jordan@rothman.law.
