I am an attorney by profession. Primarilly, I practice as a civil litigator, which means that I represent people who are involved in lawsuits. Usually, I represent defendants, which means that someone is asking the court to require my client to pay money to them.
As a Christian, who happens to also work as an attorney, I try to practice law in a way that brings God’s new way of life (what Jesus would call “the Kingdom of God”) to the people and institutions that I encounter. This works out pretty well sometimes, and not-so-well other times. But thats okay. I still consider myself a learner.
My main responsibilty is to give a voice to my clients. I’m not arrogant enough to think that my clients are always the ones that are completely in the right, but I am charitable enough to think that – regardless of who is at fault – my clients ought to be fully heard by the judges and juries that consider their cases. When their viewpoint of the dispute – their side of the “story” – has been fully heard, I feel like I’ve done my job.
Beyond that, as much as possible, I want my clients foremost, and everyone else thereafter, to experience shalom – a type of peace that is only possible when God is present. This may sound strange to some of you – but it is possible to have a trial of a lawsuit involving a lot of money where shalom is, nevertheless, present to some degree. When that happens in a place where you would otherwise expect only anger and bitterness to be present, I consider that a sign that God’s new world is present.
I don’t write about the practice of law frequently because my clients expect me to keep their affairs confidential, and because judges don’t like me talking about the cases that I handle outside of the courtroom. Also, most of the people who read this blog aren’t lawyers. However, if you are a civil litigator who is interested in conversing about how the whole Jesus/law thing works, I hope you’ll send me an email.
I have also written a series of posts on my journey in Christian lawyering. I’m pretty sure it is rather dull stuff for a lot of folks, but if you’re a young or aspring lawyer, or interested in one believer’s perspective on the civil litigation system, you can find the series at the following links: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8.
Running With the Lion 
I watched John Adams last night, just part 1. It showed him representing the british in court. If you haven’t seen it, you may really enjoy it.
Being an attorney, you must realize the evil side is constantly bombarding those that do good, which is commendable, on your part. For every prayer, or good deed, as has been my experience, I’m tested a little bit, & I’m happy for it!
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