I have this theory I formed based upon years of not-so-scientific observation: I postulate that doctors, lawyers and undertakers will always have work.
Think about it. Someone will always need physical healing, someone will always need legal wrangling, and someone is always going to need burying. It’s just the way of things. Doctors, lawyers and undertakers will always have waiting rooms.
If you don’t already know it, I was actually in my early 30s when I felt led to go from full time ministry to law school, so I got all of the jokes about going over to the dark side.
“Hey Phil, what’s the difference between a lawyer and a vampire… .a vampire only sucks blood at night!”... ha ha… Or what about this one: “Phil, Phil… what's the difference between a lawyer and a liar… just the pronunciation!”... Ok, that one got no obligatory fake laugh… Last one: “Phil, how many lawyer jokes are there?... Just three. The rest are all true stories!”... Grimace.
But all kidding aside, I’ve developed a love for the law. Not in a legalistic Pharisee kind of way, just a love for the concepts, the premises and the fact that we are a nation of laws. I’ve seen societies that barely function with no respect for the rule of law, and it is not a pretty sight. I’ve seen firsthand what happens when a nation has no embedded constitutional rights, no sense of the individual in the midst of the lawmaking, and therefore no answer for injustice. There are places in this world that still exist where the individual is subservient, in the truest and legal sense, to the government, with no rights to due process, or to own property, or to speak freely. We may have encroachments, but the truth is that is all that they are: encroachments.
You cannot encroach on something that doesn’t exist, and the pain we sometimes feel due to crime or governmental overreach are based in large part on the fact that we know what is supposed to happen and what is supposed to be preserved. Lawyers worth their salt know that in the face of oppression or injustice, they have a chance to make that situation right.
Recently, I went to trial to help a sweet lady who found out that after having purchased and improved a property and then living on it for seven years that someone else had up and claimed a right to half of her land. It took three years to get her a day in court, but we fought that fight before the judge.
In another case, I went to court to defend the interests of a wonderful elderly woman whose adult children were trying to drain her resources. As her advocate, I was shocked to find 50-something-year-old adults refusing to get a job and living off their 88-year-old mother for all of their daily needs, cashing her checks, eating her groceries, using her credit cards, driving her car. Someone had to be there for her.
So many times, I’ve had the opportunity to do the paperwork to help someone start a new business or to conduct the real estate closing for a young couple buying their first house. Opportunities like that are a blessing and such an honor to be a part of.
In truth, I didn’t leave full-time ministry; I just found a new way to do it.
But there are other opportunities that an understanding and appreciation of the law has created. Many times I found that being an attorney was invaluable to me while serving in the legislature in Montgomery. When one is tasked with making the laws, it is immensely helpful to understand the application of the laws that one is making.
Sometimes it was semantics, like understanding the true import of what it would mean if a mere sentence in a 30-page bill contained the word “may” versus “shall.” I was able to personally craft legislation that made adoptions easier and others that made it possible to preserve life. I worked on legislation that made it possible to not be forced into a union and bills that made it possible grow a business. I’ve been able to see the fruits of those pieces of legislation in the lives of others firsthand.
At other times it was having a deeper appreciation for why laws should not be passed at all. I was able to confidently debate a bill’s lack of value or its redundancy in light of other law or the fact that a bill would set an evil precedent with second and third order effects.
A love of the law taught me that not every bill is a good bill and that not every good bill needs to be passed.
I will never forget one time I saw it all come together as I was dealing with an especially testy lawyer on an employment law issue. He tried to bluster his way against my position and had the audacity to say, “You must not understand this part of the law.” I was able to calmly reply, “Actually I understand it quite well. I helped write it. I’ll be glad to show you the award I received from the Alabama Law Institute for getting it passed. Anything else?” We settled that matter soon thereafter.
But in saying all of that, I go back to my point that doctors, lawyers and undertakers will always have work. I suppose if they didn’t it would mean that Jesus already came back and no one was sick, mad or dying. But we ain’t there yet. So I suspect that every doctor's office, law firm and funeral home will still be in business for a bit longer.
Meanwhile, lawyers will continue to get all of the ribbing. “Hey Phil, What are lawyers good for?... They make used car salesmen look good!” Sure, sure, sure; very funny.
But yes, I truly love the law and what it means to be a nation of laws. And I know for a fact that it doesn’t take a law degree to know and love the fact that a well-ordered society must by its nature have metes and bounds, processes and protections; that social construct in which people are able to thrive and live with a sense that there is a layer of protection and process called the law that is designed not to oppress but to protect from oppression. A society in which liberty can be truly preserved.
A society like that needs a delicate balance of law and order and the ability to protect that order while still keeping the ledger clean and clear of crime and overreach. To establish and maintain that balance we need lawyers… and patriots.
And, apparently, we also need doctors and undertakers… Just sayin.’
Phil Williams is a former State Senator, retired Army Colonel and combat veteran, and a practicing Attorney. He has served with the leadership of the Alabama Policy Institute and currently hosts Rightside Radio M-F 2-5 pm on WVNN. His column appears every Monday in 1819 News. To contact Phil or request him for a speaking engagement go to www.rightsideradio.org The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News. To comment, please send an email with your name and contact information to Commentary@1819News.com.
