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Are pop cultures unethical, incompetent, crooked lawyers examples of art imitating life?
(V.O.)
Coming this fall: Justice is blind. Which is for the best, since it means she can't see what the lawyers at Wynn, Bigg & Bragg are up to. There's the criminal lawyer who only remembers the "criminal" part of his education. There's the win-at-all-costs bare-knuckle brawler who considers ethics rules to be mere suggestions. There's the incompetent ambulance chaser who runs faster than Usain Bolt whenever he hears that sweet siren. They believe that the best defense is a great offense-especially if that offense has the other team's signals and plays and has paid off the refs. The Fixers-coming soon to a streaming platform near you. The road to justice has never been this crooked.
he above might not be for a real show, but it very well could be. When it comes to pop culture, it can be good to be bad. Thats especially true for lawyers in movies, television shows, books and plays. Pop culture is full of tropes, archetypes and caricatures that show lawyers in the worst possible light.
Not only are these characters entertaining, but they also can mean big business. Several films featuring characters who are less than competent and/or utilize underhanded or even illegal tactics have gone on to become box-office hits, most notably Liar Liar (1997), which grossed over $300 million worldwide.
Other hit films such as Presumed Innocent (1990), Legally Blonde (2001) and The Lincoln Lawyer (2011) have proved to be enduringly popular, so much so that they have been or are in the process of being remade for different forms of media. Meanwhile, TV shows such as L.A. Law, The Practice, Boston Legal, Better Call Saul and those in the Law & Order franchise not only have racked up ratings and awards but also have spawned legions of imitators. Even authors have made hay out of bad lawyers, with some, most notably John Grisham and Scott Turow-both of whom hold law degrees-writing and optioning numerous bestsellers.
Some of these bad lawyers are so popular and beloved, they end up becoming heroes. For instance, when the ABA Journal picked the 25 Greatest Fictional Lawyers (Who Are Not Atticus Finch) in 2010, the list...