Quotes

"The price we pay for [unrestrained advocacy], the atmosphere of contention over trifles, the unwillingness to concede what ought to be conceded, and to proceed to the things which matter. Courts have fallen out of repute; many of you avoid them whenever you can, and rightly. About trial hangs a suspicion of trickery and a sense of result depending upon cajolery or worse. I wish I could say that it was all unmerited. After now some dozen years of experience, I must say that as a litigant I should dread a law suit beyond almost anything else short of sickness and death."
Judge Learned Hand,"The Deficiencies of Trials to Reach the Heart of the Matter," Address to the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, 1921

"A common result of litigation even when judges and juries make wise decisions and the parties survive the ordeal, is that the parties are angry with each other, often more angry than they were before they were subjected to adversarial lawyers. Their relationships have been made worse in "the administration of justice." Lose5rs in court are likely to feel that they have been cheated. Winners are likely angry that they had to pay so much to get what the state has determined they deserved all along." Shaffer, Thomas. Lawyers, Clients, And Moral Responsibility. West Publishing. St. Paul, Minn. 1994.

"Discourage litigation. Persuade neighbors to compromise whenever you can. Point out to them how the nominal winner is often the real loser -- in fees, expenses, and a waste of time. As a peacemaker the lawyer has a superior opportunity of becoming a good [person]."
Abraham Lincoln, Notes for a law lecture, July 1, 1850

I Corinthians 1:5: "I say this to shame you. Can it be that there is not one among you wise enough to be able to settle a case between brothers?"

"The courts of this country should not be the places where resolution of disputes begins. They should be the places where the disputes end after alternative methods of resolving disputes have been considered and tried."
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor

"If your only tool is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail."
Abraham Maslow, psychologist