| Ah. So tomorrow I'm going to go to a deposition regarding a malpractice suit on a case that I had seen while an intern fresh out of medical school. I won't have really much to add. "No sir, I didn't know jack at the time, so I can't tell you whether I thought he was doing the right thing or not." The whole thing makes me grit my teeth. See, I have this baseline negative feeling about lawyers and law in general. Maybe it's because of my exposures over my lifetime - the way professors in medical school talked about lawyers; the way one law-student friend of mine talked about his environment; stories of not-so-Christ-like pastors suing their congregations, the countless ambulance-chasing TV ads I've seen over time. And the fact that this case I'm involved in happened more than two years ago, and the lawsuit is still not resolved. I guess someone's making a living from it... In case people don't know the definition of ambulance chaser... ambulance chaser (plural ambulance chasers) - (derogatory) An unethical attorney who solicits business at the scenes of accidents or in hospitals, in exchange for a percentage of the damages that will be recovered in the case.[2]
- 2004, Richard Lacayo, "Court and Spark: Edwards' Legal Career," Time, 19 July,
- Republicans have tried to cast him as a millionaire ambulance chaser, the kind of man who forces doctors and businesses to pay ever higher liability-insurance costs.
- (by extension) An attorney who engages in unethical behavior.
- (derogatory) An unethical funeral director or person who engages in the unlicensed sale of preneeds or other services to those who do not yet need them in an attempt to increase business.[3]
Though I will say that my feelings changed about lawyers for awhile after hearing a lawyer speak about International Justice Mission... hearing him actually made me want to be a lawyer... But maybe it's the whole principle of the law system. I feel that it's a large, expensive, complicated, inefficient way of really showing people who and what's right in a given situation, because they can't figure it out for themselves. If there were no malicious, selfish, ungodly people in this world, we wouldn't need lawyers. Actually, we wouldn't need weapons, law enforcement, or armies too... though guns can be used for other good purposes... ;p I'll end with this passage from the Bible, about how Christians have no excuse for ever being in court against another fellow Christian. 1 Corinthians 6Lawsuits Among Believers 1If any of you has a dispute with another, dare he take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the saints? 2Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? 3Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! 4Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, appoint as judges even men of little account in the church! 5I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers? 6But instead, one brother goes to law against another—and this in front of unbelievers! 7The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? 8Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers. 9Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders 10nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. |
