Trouble at the Bar: An Economics Perspective on the Legal Profession and the Case for Fundamental Reform

Deregulating the legal profession will improve access to legal services and the efficacy of public policies, benefiting society as a whole. The book offers empirical support for legal reformers who are concerned about the profession's self-regulation, which raises the cost of legal education, decreases the supply of lawyers, and limits the public's access to justice. Barriers to entry that limit competition create a closed environment that inhibits valid approaches to analyzing and solving legal problems. Deregulating the profession would allow more people to provide a variety of legal services without jeopardizing their quality, reduce the cost of those services, spur competition and innovation in the private sector, and increase the quality of lawyers who pursue careers in the public sector.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 251 pages
Publication date: 30 March 2021
Publisher: Brookings Institution

Deregulating the legal profession holds the potential to bring about significant benefits to society by enhancing access to legal services and the effectiveness of public policies. The current legal system, characterized by a dominant role of lawyers, has faced criticism for its limited accessibility, particularly to the most affluent members of society. Moreover, lawyers exert a pervasive influence across various branches of government, contributing to the formulation of inefficient public policies that undermine public welfare. In the book "Trouble at the Bar," the authors employ an economic approach to provide empirical support for legal reformers who are concerned about the state of their profession. They highlight the adverse effects of the legal profession's self-regulation, which leads to increased costs of legal education, reduced supply of lawyers, and limited access to justice, resulting in a situation where only certified lawyers can execute even simple contracts. Additionally, barriers to entry that limit competition create a closed environment that hinders effective approaches to analyzing and solving legal problems, which are essential for developing effective public policies. Deregulating the legal profession, according to the authors, would allow for a wider range of individuals to provide a diverse array of legal services without compromising their quality. It would also reduce the cost of these services, foster competition and innovation in the private sector, and enhance the quality of lawyers who pursue careers in the public sector. Legal practitioners would experience more fulfilling careers, and society as a whole, particularly its most vulnerable members, would reap substantial benefits.

Weight: 354g
Dimension: 228 x 153 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780815739111