DOES NOT MEAN APPROVING MURDER
Sometime ago, I read it and thoroughly enjoyed it.
The book is divided into three chapters namely ‘The Essence of Advocacy’, ‘The Morality of Advocacy’, and ‘The Future of Advocacy’.
Public speakers, howsoever great, are always nervous before their speech. So are lawyers, standing up in the courts. In John Grisham’s best seller novel ‘Rogue Lawyer’, the protagonist lawyer is advised by an old, experienced lawyer that:
“If the day came when I walked into courtroom and faced a jury without fear, then it was time to quit.”
In the first chapter, Pannick enlists ten principles with examples on how to overcome the fear and the nervousness.
A lawyer’s duty is towards his client: to get a favourable order for his client. He has nothing to do with the justice or injustice of his client. Those, who criticise the lawyers for taking up unpopular causes do not understand the duty, the Dharma of a lawyer. As Rumpole, a fictional barrister created by John Mortimer says in ‘Rumpole and the Fascist Beast’:
“I defend murderers. Doesn’t mean that I approve of murder”
But there are limits to his duty. In ‘Rumpole and Bubble Reputation’, Rumpole explains,
“I am old taxi, waiting on the rank, but I am not prepared to be get-away driver for a criminal conspiracy.”
Apart from it, a lawyer also has a duty towards the court. Sometimes, it trumps his duty towards his clients. Pannick explains three such duties. It is part of the second chapter.
Delay in deciding cases is everywhere, though on different scales in different countries. It is to be tackled. And Covid-2019 changed the world forever. We have to re-look into for better efficiency in case management and use of online procedure. The advocacy in future has to adjust to these changes. This is the subject matter of the third chapter.
‘Advocacy’ is a book not only for every lawyer and judge to read but also by those, who are interested in legal ethos.
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