Lawyers really get a raw deal. As a profession, they hold some of the highest rates in both “problem drinking,” suicide and divorce rates. Yes, that’s bad. They also get to compel witnesses to say such things as “you can’t handle the truth” and all drive BMWs, Of course, lawyer jokes hurt but what really hurts are the morons that make their client’s causes and cases so personal that they cannot represent them objectively and diligently. Do you really think that if your lawyer yells at the other lawyer that you will achieve a tactical, let alone a strategic, advantage? All that is accomplished is to have angered the other lawyer such that it is likely that his or her heels will be dug in more firmly (for right or wrong). Of course, there are the instances in which a passive personality may shrink under the scrutiny of an aggressive attorney but that is the exception (or the result of bad facts and bad law).

Then, come the bad apples. A couple of attorneys in Florida apparently failed kindergarten and, as a result, were disciplined by the Florida Sate Bar. As noted by my colleague, Andrew Biondi, St. Petersburg Times reported on the matter, including e-mail exchanges between the attorneys which involved the following choice comments...