Shakespeare was right but not in the way we may have thought..

Lawyers often get a bad rap – and the quote from Shakespeare, “The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers” if often cited by those who disparage the profession. What you may not know is the context around this quote. In 1985, Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens wrote: “As a careful reading of that text will reveal, Shakespeare insightfully realized that disposing of lawyers is a step in the direction of a totalitarian form of government”.

I have many attorney and legal firms as clients (am a big fan of shows like Suits and The Lincoln Lawyer), and have always had an interest in the law (it was one of the professions I considered going into in college). Of course there are those in the profession who are controversial, but that’s true of any profession. But the attorney’s I know/have worked with are good people, many with families, and are passionate/dedicated to what they do.

So when Alexander, who just joined one of my client’s firms (Cohn & Dussi), I was excited to work with him. He practices commercial finance, real estate, and corporate law and also does litigation. We shot a number of different looks, expressions to dial in just the right balance of approachability, confidence, and experience.  Often times my clients choose a different favorite than one I would choose – and not only is that OK, I encourage it. How I perceive a person, their persona, and the look I like is just that – my preference. My goal is to provide looks that my clients like – my goal is to provide a range of high quality looks that amplify their branding and how they want to be perceived. It’s not about me, it’s about them.

The image below is my favorite – and it’s different from the image he chose, which has slightly less of a smile (we’re talking very slight difference). I’m not showing his selection because the point is not which each of us chose, it’s that is his (and my) choice and while it’s my work, it’s an image of him and his choice for his profile.

The background color/brightness is also different from what will appear on their website. And again, that’s ok! The background color for the website is designed to go well with overall color scheme and branding of that website and their firm.

Either way, Justice Stevens is spot on – we need lawyers, and people like Alexander in their profession. And congrats on your new position Alexander – great working with you!