A lawyers' willingness to represent a pariah was once acknowledged as the paradigm of professional honour and integrity. However, times are changing, and lawyers fall to be judged not by their own character and skill, but by the clients they come to represent.
This is a slippery slope, as it lays the foundations for a system where lawyers may turn people away for fear of public pressure and the potentially devastating public association with their client.
Russell-Cooke Senior Partner John Gould comments in New Law Journal that lawyers must not be drawn into choosing cases based on their beliefs or prejudices.
The cab rank rule: To kill a mockingbird is available to read on the New Law Journal website via subscription. A full pdf of the article is also available to read here.
John is Senior Partner of Russell-Cooke. His area of particular expertise is regulation and public law. He specialises in the analysis and solution of complex regulatory problems, advising regulators, government departments, law enforcement agencies, charities and statutory and professional bodies.