81,000 Lawyers in Illinois; Who Speaks for Them?
Why do 81,000 lawyers in Illinois allow a small handful -- about 3% -- to brand them?Most of the lawyers in our state probably have not asked themselves that question -- but it is a valid question. The image of lawyers in Illinois is painted by the television advertising and media self-promotion of the personal injury trial lawyers -- the plaintiffs' lawyers who attract the big attention with their big lawsuits and big settlements or awards.
But 97 percent of the lawyers in Illinois don't deserve the tarnish that is applied to them by the plaintiffs' trial lawyers. The Illinois Trial Lawyers Association (ITLA) claims a membership of more than 2,000. According to the ITLA Web site:
"The Illinois Trial Lawyers Association is a statewide organization whose members specialize in representing injured consumers and workers. Founded in 1952, the organization currently has over 2,000 members."And last month, the Illinois State Bar Association launched an advertising campaign costing nearly $300,000 to fix the image of all lawyers in Illinois -- an image tarnished primarily by the plaintiffs' lawyers of ITLA.
There is no doubt that ISBA is heavily dominated by ITLA. In Springfield, it's hard -- virtually impossible -- to tell them apart.
When Illinois businesses -- and Illinois citizens -- think of lawyers in Illinois they are reminded of the advertising they see on television, heavily dominated by personal injury lawyers. They are reminded of the hostile, anti-business and anti-doctor and anti-hospital messages conveyed by ITLA on it's Web site and in testimony in Springfield.
Nearly 800 new lawyers were sworn-in last week and if the percentages hold up, about three percent -- or 24 of them -- will become plaintiffs' lawyers. We suspect the number will be higher than that because that's where the money is but whatever the number, the vast majority will have to deal with the image of lawyers created by a small minority.
And the prospects for change don't seem promising when the other big lawyer story of the weekend is the election of ISBA's new third vice president is another ITLA member from Southern Illinois. Under ISBA's secession rules, Mark D. Hassakis will become president in 2010.
Cross-posted by Ed Murnane at Illinois Justice Blog.
Technorati Tags: Illinois State Bar Association, Illinois lawsuit abuse, trial lawyer, tort reform, Illinois Civil Justice League
1 comments:
Was that an April Fool's Joke, Ed?
You're a little late.
It's not ITLA that's tarnishing the reputation of lawyers, it's the Illinois Civil Justice League, with the uncounted adds you're running attacking trial lawyers.
In fact, you not only attack trial lawyers, you attack judges, juries, and our state's entire civil justice system.
It seems your out-of-state financiers are so used to getting their way all of the time, any time they aren't able to steamroll over a lawyer, a jury, a judge, or a law, they just by t.v. time and demonize them all.
Meanwhile, Equal sues Splenda claiming the ad slogan "Tastes like sugar because its made from sugar" is deceptive, and asking for tens of millions of dollars in damages.
Never mind that Equal tastes like a rancid sweat sock compared to Splenda.
BTW, the Big Business opponents of so-called "deep pockets" legislation decided to settle.
Post a Comment