Abstract
The American legal profession got its start under a cloud of public disapproval in part inherited from England, which resulted in low standards of legal education and tardiness in establishment of effective professional organizations, canons of ethics, and disciplinary procedures. Commendable progress has been made on these fronts, especially since the early years of this century, but more remains to be done. Ethical and dis ciplinary problems of lawyers today chiefly involve mishandling of funds, solicitation of legal business, and improper trial prac tices, including use of delay. Important remedial measures now needed include more adequate attention to ethics and professional responsibility in law school, further adoption of the principle of the unified state bar, revision and uniformity in the canons of ethics, and adoption of various specific meas ures against delay in court, along with more control of trials by better qualified judges and refusal of clients to request or condone sharp practices by their attorneys.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.