HOW TO MAKE LAWYERS POPULAR

Although public perception of lawyers, fueled by media stereotypes, is broadly negative, but there are positive steps the profession can take to rehabilitate its public image.  Indeed, if life is just a popularity contest, lawyers seem to be losing.  One survey carried out by the Legal Services Consumer Panel revealed that only 43% of the public trust lawyers.  This is down from 47% in 2011.

Media stereotypes propagate an image of lawyers as either Dickensian figures, out of touch with reality, profit hungry or port sodden Rum-pole of the bailey type characters.  The rise of the compensation culture can also be linked to a decline in the image of lawyers.  Another survey recently found that the profession topped the list of people respondents would least like to sit next to at a dinner party, in front of Big Brother reality television contestants and Victoria Beckham.  And, with reports of some 30 million jokes a day about lawyers on the internet, there seems to be a real issue around how lawyers are perceived on the public stage.

But, according to Davies, it is not a question of better publicity.  "When was the last time you saw a news story about something good happening in a hospital?"  She said, referring to the widespread popularity of the medical profession.  "The media is a red herring that can really lead to complacency.  There are tangible actions that are within the control of the profession and the regulators that will change public perception."

Among tips offered to build public confidence in lawyers was to embrace regulation which is independent of the profession and operates transparently.  Making efforts to welcome competition and abandon protectionism was another suggestion.  Other tips were to provide excellent customer service, deal effectively and properly with complains and improve the diversity of workforce.  Davies also suggested modernizing education and training regimes, writing codes of conduct in a language which consumers can understand and involving the public more in the development of regulations.

According to Olasupo Shasore of Ajumobobia & Okeke Barristers & Solicitors in Nigeria, the consequences of poor perception of lawyers in society can be dire, if the profession has a bad reputation, enrolment in the law as a profession will diminish.  "The consequences of this are not just the trivia of our profession, they are the soul and fabric of our society", added the Nigerian lawyer.

When the patronage of a profession is low and perception is poor, the result is that people have very low trust in institutions that are associated with the profession, said Shasore, listing the courts and law enforcement mechanism as examples.  This could result in a low level of trust in the rule of law, which itself could lead to the breakdown of law and order and social upheaval.

Adapted from IBA Daily News.