{"id":7588,"date":"2007-05-07T17:46:06","date_gmt":"2007-05-07T22:46:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.law.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/2007\/05\/07\/older-wiser-llp\/"},"modified":"2011-08-05T14:53:48","modified_gmt":"2011-08-05T18:53:48","slug":"older-wiser-llp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/2007\/05\/07\/older-wiser-llp\/","title":{"rendered":"Older & Wiser, LLP?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"RumpoleG\"\u00a0<\/font>\u00a0After yet<\/a> another<\/a> week writing about the perils ahead for\u00a0our graying<\/a> legal profession,\u00a0I almost\u00a0decided to pass\u00a0over two pieces in yesterday’s New York Times Magazine<\/em>\u00a0(May 6, 2007) that dealt with\u00a0issues of old age.\u00a0 I’m\u00a0glad I didn’t.\u00a0\u00a0Although I’m still focused on aging and the legal profession, the two articles are interesting whether you care about old lawyers or not.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In “The Older-and-Wiser Hypothesis<\/a>,” Stephen S. Hall shows us how difficult it has been to define “wisdom,” and discusses the purported connection between being old and being wise.\u00a0 In “A Longer, Better Life<\/a>,” Sara Davidson interviews\u00a0MIT biologist Lenny Guarente and Robert N. Butler, M.D., who won the 1976 Pulitzer Prize for \u201cWhy Survive? Being Old in America,<\/em>\u201d and now heads the International Longevity Center, on whether we can expect longer, better lives.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Stephens gives a brief tour of academic projects that have tried to define wisdom and devine who might be wise.\u00a0\u00a0There is no consensus. Here are some highlights in the Stephens’ piece:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \u00a0\u00a0 “From the outset, it\u2019s easier to define what wisdom isn\u2019t. First of all, it isn\u2019t necessarily or intrinsically a product of old age, although reaching an advanced age increases the odds of acquiring the kinds of life experiences and emotional maturity that cultivate wisdom, which is why aspects of wisdom are increasingly attracting the attention of gerontological psychologists.”<\/li>\n
  2. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 “[I]f you think you\u2019re wise, you\u2019re probably not.” \u00a0\"Gandhi1931\"<\/li>\n
  3. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 “Indeed, a general thread running through modern wisdom research is that wise people tend to be humble and \u201cother-centered\u201d as opposed to self-centered.”<\/li>\n
  4. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The\u00a0so-called Berlin Wisdom Paradigm<\/em> emphasizes several complementary qualities: expert knowledge of both the \u201cfacts\u201d of human nature and the \u201chow\u201d of dealing with decisions and dilemmas; an appreciation of one\u2019s historical, cultural and biological circumstances during the arc of a life span; an understanding of the \u201crelativism\u201d of values and priorities; and an acknowledgment, at the level of both thought and action, of uncertainty.<\/li>\n
  5. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Sociologist Monika Ardelt\u00a0looked at the trait of\u00a0\u201cresilience\u201d (bouncing back from advesity). “In Ardelt\u2019s working definition, wisdom integrated three separate but interconnected ways of dealing with the world: cognitive, reflective and emotional.\u00a0. .\u00a0<\/li>\n
  6. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 In Ardelt’s analysis, the cognitive aspect “included the ability to understand human nature, perceive a situation clearly and make decisions despite ambiguity and uncertainty. The reflective sphere dealt with a person\u2019s ability to examine an event from multiple perspectives . . .And the emotional aspect primarily involved feeling compassion toward others as well as an ability to remain positive in the face of adversity.”<\/li>\n
  7. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Psychologist Laura Carstensen of Stanford University says older people \u201cdisattend\u201d negative information.\u00a0 In 1890, philosopher William James\u00a0had a similar insight:\u00a0\u201cThe art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.\u201d\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \"checkedBoxS\"\u00a0 According to Stephens, the\u00a0Berlin Group\u00a0“were among the first to reach what is now a widespread conclusion: There\u2019s not a lot of wisdom around.”\u00a0 The Germans also:<\/p>\n

    “punctured one conceit about growing old when they found no evidence, in four different studies, that wisdom, as they defined it, necessarily increases with age. Rather, they identified a ‘plateau’ of wisdom-related performance through much of middle and old age; a separate study by the group has indicated that wisdom begins, on average, to diminish around age 75, probably hand in hand with cognitive decline.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    The Berlin group reported that the roots of wisdom can be traced, in some cases, to adolescence.\u00a0Others have\u00a0also pointed out that many people we consider to be wise have been \u201cvaccinated\u201d earlier in life by adversity.<\/p>\n

    Red Rock Canyon:
    \nmy whoop comes back
    \nsounding older<\/p>\n

    \u00a0<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    one more friend buried
    \nI shorten my list
    \nof priorities<\/p>\n

    ………………. by George Swede<\/a>, from Modern Haiku<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    Meanwhile, the Davidson interview with Guarente and Butler in\u00a0A Longer, Better Life<\/a>,” has some interesting things to say about the science of aging.\u00a0 But, it\u00a0doesn’t suggest we’re about to make major breakthroughs that will help assure the mental acuity and emotional maturity needed to increase our society’s wisdom quotient.\u00a0 \u00a0On the macro level, our society doesn’t seem, despite how rapidly it is aging,\u00a0to be putting its resources where they are needed:<\/p>\n

    BUTLER: Why does 50 percent of all cancer occur after 65? Why does 80 percent occur after age 50? As we age, there are changes at the cellular molecular level that predispose us to disease and disability. But so far, no government, no foundation, no corporation anywhere in the world has fully embraced the importance of longevity science. If we could target aging, that would have an impact on diseases.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    America has also failed so far to recognize Alzheimer\u2019s as a health crisis. Why is it a crisis?<\/p>\n

    BUTLER: It afflicts about four and a half million people now. As baby boomers grow older and live longer, there could be 14 million afflicted \u2014 about triple what it is now \u2014 by 2030 if we don\u2019t find a means of prevention and treatment.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    Finally, Davidson asks a question we all care about: “There\u2019s a lot of advice given about how to maintain a healthy body, but do we know how to maintain a healthy brain and prevent dementia?”<\/p>\n

    \"checkedBoxS\"\u00a0 BUTLER: I\u2019m afraid there\u2019s a lot of romance in the literature suggesting that we can stop Alzheimer\u2019s disease by cognitive exercises.<\/p>\n

    Davidson: Like doing crossword puzzles? My mother has done them all her life, but she lost her memory anyway.<\/p>\n

    BUTLER: Just as exercise keeps the body in optimal shape, exercise \u2014 both physical and mental \u2014 can keep the brain in optimal shape in terms of thinking clearly, making judgments and solving problems. But having a healthy body doesn\u2019t prevent you from getting cancer. Similarly, maintaining a healthy brain doesn\u2019t prevent you from having memory loss or getting Alzheimer\u2019s.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    old tombstone
    \nlosing its name
    \nfaint first star<\/p>\n

    ………….. by George Swede – The Heron’s Nest<\/em>\u00a0<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    With this information in mind, I’m wondering whether\u00a0we can expect declining mental acuity suffered by lawyers as they age to be offset by increases in widsom.\u00a0 See, for example,\u00a0Stephanie West Allen’s posting\u00a0at Idealawg<\/em><\/a>\u00a0(April 9, 2007):\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

    “The head beneath the grey hair often holds much wisdom; perhaps the aging heart represents the glue in a firm’s culture and values. I hope we will appreciate what greying lawyers have to give, no matter what form those gifts may take.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    My own initial response is in the negative.\u00a0 Although many of us\u00a0— and it is especially males who seem to need it — do get a bit more mature in our mid-to-late 30s (e.g.<\/em>, less reckless and full of ourselves), I’ve simply seen\u00a0no evidence that individual lawyers get appreciably wiser as they age, much less that the ones who stick around the\u00a0 longest are the wisest.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Regardless of the meaning of wisdom<\/a>, if you’re going to be a mensch<\/a> or an old soul<\/a>, you’ve almost always grown into that role or demonstrated the characteristics long before your late 60’s or 70’s.\u00a0 Furthermore, no matter what my own mediator predilections might be, I’m fairly sure that many<\/em> partners would be most displeased to find out that the Wise Old Counsellor is recommending fewer lawsuits and less adversarial approaches to solving legal problems, and I’m not at all sure that many clients are seeking (much less expecting) wisdom in a lawyer.<\/p>\n

    sunrise
    \nI forget my side
    \nof the argument<\/p>\n

    ……………….. by George Swede<\/a>, from Almost Unseen<\/em>\u00a0<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    On the other hand, I’ve seen quite a few Overtimer Lawyers stuck in monumental emotional ruts and intellectual deadends (and traffic circles).\u00a0 Which reminds me.\u00a0 While writing about the graying bar last week:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. I came across an estimate by medical researchers that there may be 8000 physicians<\/em> with dementia who are still actively treating patients. \u201cCognitive Impairment in Older Physicians May Be Widespread<\/a>,\u201d Medscape Medical News<\/em> (free registration may be required), by Richard Hyler, discussing the work of Greg A. Sachs, M.D. and Caroline N. Harada, M.D.\u00a0 I had estimated a couple months ago that there might be 10 to 15 thousand lawyers with dementia.\u00a0 The physician number is pretty scary.\u00a0 Also,<\/li>\n
    2. I was reminded that there are\u00a0a quarter million practicing lawyers in American who are already over the age of 55 (with that number expected to triple in the next two decades); that 12% of practicing lawyers are over 65; and that 48% of private practitioners are in solo practices, with another 15% in firms having 2 to 5 lawyers.\u00a0(See American Bar Association, \u201cLawyer Demographics 2006<\/a>\u201d)\u00a0Both logic and studies suggest<\/a> that it\u00a0is the solo and small-firm lawyer who is most likely to postpone retirement, while having no plan for the handling of their practice if they become incapacited.\u00a0 They are also most likely to have Main Street practices with the least sophisticated clients.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      \u00a0Mohandis Gandhi<\/a> and Abe Lincoln are probably the best-known historic figures who had been practicing lawyers and are widely thought of as having possessed wisdom.\u00a0 Most other “wise” (as opposed to merely smart) lawyers that readily come to mind are fictional characters.\u00a0<\/p>\n

      \u00a0Leo McKern<\/a> as Rumpole<\/em><\/a>\u00a0 \"RumpoleLeoMcKern\"<\/p>\n

      \u00a0<\/p>\n

      at the height
      \nof the argument\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 the old couple
      \npour each other tea<\/p>\n

      …………………………. by George Swede<\/a>\u00a0from Almost Unseen<\/em><\/a> (2000)
      \n\u00a0<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

      \"GriffithAsMatlock\"\u00a0Andy Griffith as <\/font>Matlock<\/font><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

      someone else\u2019s affair
      \nyou think\u2026
      \nlanterns for the dead
      \n\u00a0
      \n……………………………… by Kobayashi Issa, translated by David G. Lanoue\u00a0<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

      Of course, literature and popular culture are far more likely to portray lawyers who are a bit shy<\/em> of wise or are wiseguys.\u00a0 For example, see OldRuin<\/a>\u00a0and HeadofChambers in BabyBarista<\/em><\/a>‘s weblog\u00a0serial.\u00a0\u00a0 But, I don’t want to close on a negative note.\u00a0 Please let\u00a0us know about elderly lawyers you have encountered who bring a lifetime of accumulated wisdom to the practice of law.\u00a0 If you’ve got an especially useful definition or test for wisdom, share it with us, too.<\/p>\n

      \u00a0<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

      \"MockingbirdPeck\"\u00a0 Atticus Finch from <\/font>to kill\u00a0a mockingbird<\/strong><\/em><\/font><\/a>\u00a0 <\/font><\/p>\n

      \u00a0<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

      Divorce proceedings over
      \nwet leaves stick
      \nto my shoes<\/p>\n

      \u00a0<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

      putting holes
      \nin my argument
      \nthe woodpecker<\/p>\n

      \u00a0<\/p>\n

      thick fog lifts
      \nunfortunately, I am where
      \nI thought I was<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

      ……………….. by George Swede from Almost Unseen<\/em><\/p>\n

      \"KingsfieldPaperChase\"\u00a0 For some readers, Prof. Kingsfield from Paper Chase<\/em><\/a>\u00a0may be an example of professorial wisdom (or at least tough love).\u00a0 His ghost is filling in for Prof. Bainbridge<\/a> today at\u00a0Blawg Review<\/em> #107<\/a>, using what passes for the Socratic Method at many law schools to help\u00a0illuminate the\u00a0ideal lawyer weblogging (or, at least, the best thereof over the past week). \u00a0<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

      \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      \u00a0\u00a0After yet another week writing about the perils ahead for\u00a0our graying legal profession,\u00a0I almost\u00a0decided to pass\u00a0over two pieces in yesterday’s New York Times Magazine\u00a0(May 6, 2007) that dealt with\u00a0issues of old age.\u00a0 I’m\u00a0glad I didn’t.\u00a0\u00a0Although I’m still focused on aging and the legal profession, the two articles are interesting whether you care about old lawyers […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":94,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[555,900],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7588","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-haiku-or-senryu","category-viewpoint"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6kP1R-1Yo","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7588","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/94"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7588"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7588\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12545,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7588\/revisions\/12545"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7588"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7588"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archive.blogs.harvard.edu\/ethicalesq\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7588"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}