The Wake Up Call for Lawyers

Is it possible to be a fierce advocate, and at the same time not lie or be unkind, harsh, or derogatory? Not simply because of a set of rules, however compelling, but because of a commitment to the greater good?   What if we could practice a level of ethics that serves that highest possible good, and at the same time not compromise our advocacy or ferocity?

Without mindfulness, it’s easy to lose my way. I don’t pay attention to my underlying intentions, (or I kid myself that they don’t exist – but who am I kidding?). And then consequences happen and still I proclaim my innocence.   With mindfulness, I’ve got a chance. And so does everyone I bump into. I can use mindfulness to slow down and check my intentions before I open my mouth. Or, if I blow by...

when I first asked my teacher whether it was ok to talk about ethics and mindfulness, he laughed and said, all of mindfulness is ethics!  Fair. And, it’s interesting to look at the five biggies, or precepts: not causing harm, not stealing, not misusing sexuality, not communicating unwisely, not using intoxicants to cloud the mind. These can feel like big asks to me anyway, when I take a really clo...

Ordinarily, when I think of ethics they either feels legalistic, like the rules of professional conduct, or else I think of the rules I learned in Sunday school.  Mindfulness offers an invitation to consider ethics in a different way: not so much as rules but more as a way of life that feels right and has better all-around consequences.  For me, the motivation to discover that life is more motivat...

The last thing I want to say about generosity, for now, is that one of the most important acts of generosity that I know I can take, is to stand up for, and stand beside, anyone and everyone who could use my support.  To do this, I know I have to not “other” anyone. Instead, I have to remember that we are not separate. And then, I have to see my very life as a courageous, political act, The act of...

Here’s a radical question: What if we all stopped rushing, stressing, and being so grumpy, And made it a point instead just to be nice to everyone, all the time? What if we offered a kind hello every morning, and a connected goodbye each night? What if, as Pablo Neruda said, we were not so single-minded about keeping our lives moving, and for once could do nothing? Nothing but be nice to each othe...

Too many times I let the chance go by to recognize someone for who they are, or something they’ve done. Or to appreciate them. Can you relate? I want to be better at that.  What if we didn't let any chances go by? What if we recognized everyone, as often as possible, seeing, and saying (if that’s welcome), that we see their amazingness, or their pain? And appreciating them? It feels like our...

It seems to me that the most generous thing we can do for one another is to create safer, braver, spaces. I’m not sure exactly how, but what about a formula that looks like letting go of as much greediness as possible, letting go of as much aversiveness as possible, and remembering we belong to one another, even in our very adversarial profession?

All those days you wake up a few minutes early to meditate? All those times you stop, take a breath, decide on an appropriate response, and then act out of love, compassion? I feel like every one of those moments is an offering, a teaching. As we practice – as we sit, as we offer our wisdom and love to our colleagues, our staff, our communities, our friends, our families – we are all, generously,...

If generosity builds character, then what is true generosity? And can generosity heal some of the harmful elements of the law?  Maybe that depends on what we offer. Maybe it depends on how much we offer. Maybe it depends on the practice of generosity, more than the "what" or the "how much." Maybe it's a completely personal inquiry and we just know generosity when we see it...

Sometimes I think, how is it even appropriate to talk about optimism? Every day there's another shooting, tragedy, political or legal debacle.  And yet I feel like we can't give up. Or at least I can't. Maybe you feel the same way.  Studying generosity, like studying any wholesome quality of mind, is the opposite of giving up. It's a study in being optimistic.  For one thing, i...

In such a difficult moment can generosity help? Not philosophically, but the practice of generosity? Let's start with ourselves and see if it does. It might require some suspension of disbelief. It might require letting go of old, even cherished attitudes. It might mean we have to let in the good and the bad.   But at this point, what do we have to lose?

To aspire to the unattainable, and imagine the impossible, in a sense we're making a deal with ourselves.  We're agreeing that no matter how dedicated we are to cultivating wholesome qualities of mind and heart, no matter how committed we are to saving the world, or at least our own small corner of the world, in our lifetime we will not succeed.  And yet we still do it. We still dedicate...

Imagination. It's not the first world that comes to mind when I think of the law. But what if it were? What if we could reimagine ourselves and in doing that, reimagine the law? And what if, in reimagining the law, we could reimagine our world?  Maybe our failure to solve the intractable, systemic issues of our times is less about political will and more about a failure of imagination. If it...

I've told this story so often, about how, after I'd stopped practicing law for quite a while, my partner, seeing how frantically I was working, said, "Really? I didn't know you'd given it up." I was one of those lawyers who worked all the time, at all hours, squeezing stuff in late at night, early in the morning, on weekends. And I still do it, teaching mindfulness. O...

Is it my imagination or is there a general sense in the law that if we're kind, to ourselves or anyone else, we'll be perceived as weak? Or not just perceived, but that we'll actually be weak? In terms of how we treat ourselves, I hear it from my students in the form of, "I had to be hard on myself to get as far as I have." I hear it from my colleagues, too - the supposed...

Mindful lawyering: it's not complicated but it's also not easy. Because it's not easy to pay attention with in tention, to be kind and friendly all the time, to show restraint and not conceit, to be insightful. It is a good aspiration, though - not a better one than becoming skillful at litigation or drafting or negotiating, but a complimentary one: the aspiration to cultivating the...

I'm about as American as it gets - 4th generation San Franciscan on one side and on the other, descended from Jews who fled Europe to Canada first, then quietly made their way down into Nebraska with what they could carry, which our family is pretty sure didn't include anything fancy or legal, like immigration papers. I was raised to believe in the pursuit of happiness and that when the...

When I'm attacked, my impulse is to attack back.  I know it's my legal training, and maybe it's also my nature. At the very least it's a lifelong habit. Can you relate, or are you in the "flight" more than "fight" camp? Either way, what if the more effective thing to do is to learn to endure the attack? Not to give anything up or fail to be zealous, but also...

I have a mind that tends to run away with me. Not in a romantic way like taking a beautiful drive down the coast, but in a way where it spins out of control and suddenly I'm stuck in a skipping record of worry, fear, anger, or something worse. In mindfulness parlance this is a "hell realm." It's a place I know all too well. Maybe you do, too.  The antidotes are remembering it&a...

How much mindfulness is enough? Is moment-to-moment attention (the classical definition of secular mindfulness) just a suggestion for when we decide to give it a try? Or does it mean, moment-to-moment attention all day long? I'm not saying we can do it (or I can do it), but I think it might mean "all day long." It's a big aspiration. But then again, it's a feedback loop.

It's the middle of the first MLTT 2022 Intensive and another intense moment in the world. It feels like a good time to bring in G.R.O.U.N.D., a practice I began working with last year. Please join me to practice and to contemplate President Zelensky's invitation to be a leader of peace. Maybe he was talking to all of us. I hope so.

If you were heading down the street and someone tried to mug you, what would you do? Maybe instinct would kick in and you'd run, or turn and try to fight them off. Maybe you'd have an instantaneous mindfulness check-in and think, "non-harming, non-harming" - I shouldn't go after them. Maybe - just maybe - you'd whack them over the head with your umbrella. From a mindf...

The world seems to be coming together around Ukraine. It did that to manufacture a Covid vaccine as well. What if it's a trend? Don't be silly, right? There's not enough mindfulness in the world just yet, is there? There's not enough insight. Not enough of us vowing to save all beings, to take the biggest, most compassionate approach. Is there? I'm not saying we're se...

I used to think if I sat on my meditation cushion, did some yoga, and generally paid attention, I was doing my part. That still feels important. But now, for me anyway, it also feels like it's not enough. The ancient texts say we should practice as if our hair is on fire or there's a snake in our lap. And I guess that's what feels important for me these days: to remember my hair is...