Ann Israel is the legal profession's Dear Abby. A New York legal recruiter since 1979, Ann is a past president of the National Association of Legal Search Consultants. Advice for the Lawlorn is updated every week.

Q: In [a previous] column, you addressed the following question:

While I agree that the lawyer has to protect his best interest in finding a new position, I do not agree with your answer. It is time for the honest to acquire the backbone to stand up to the liars in the industry. By not voicing their claims and substantiating them to the Bar, they are themselves, lying. You are asking them to continue a situation that should be corrected.

It is no wonder that the public has a mistrust of lawyers. Answering a lie with a lie is no answer; it is fraud.

Dear George Washington: You are absolutely correct -- answering a lie with a lie is no answer, it is fraud. But I am not clear as to what that has to do with my answer to the associate searching for a new job.

As I recall, I absolutely did not tell him/her to lie on an interview if asked why s/he was looking for a new job. I would never tell someone to do such a thing. In fact, if you have read any of my past columns then you would know that I am an advocate of always being honest and never telling a lie.

However, I also believe in certain classic and standard rules of interviewing, and I discussed that in my answer as well. I wrote about what is called the "Eleventh Commandment" which is "thou shall never speak negatively about one's past employer."

I know how I feel when I am interviewing someone and they start telling me all the things that are wrong with their partner or their firm. It may be fun for some people to hear the gossip for a moment or two, but I have to tell you that I don't find it appealing. I really don't want to hear it -- all I see in front of me from then on is a disgruntled employee.

What I advised this particular job hunter to do was to get the point across about the firm's less-than-ethical position by indicating that s/he was looking for a firm that would be a better fit in terms of "legal skills and a chance to learn more than where" s/he was currently employed.

To start listing chapter and verse about the lies being told to clients at this associate's firm, to an interviewer, would be absolutely inappropriate. By the way, the person interviewing this associate could very well know some of the attorneys over at this other firm and not find these tales out of school to be very suitable for this meeting. In fact, how do we know for certain that this associate's interpretation is correct? I hate to think about where some of these accusations could lead if the word got around.

Whatever the case may be, it isn't appropriate to be badmouthing the firm where you currently work when you are sitting in an interview. This isn't a lie; it's just proper interviewing etiquette.

Of course, what you pointed out is valid ... if you suspect something unethical or illegal is going on at your firm, why aren't you voicing your claims and substantiating them to the state bar? That is the appropriate outlet, by the way, certainly not in an interview for a new job. I hope you now understand why I advised our hapless candidate in the manner I did and that you are assured in the fact that I would never advise someone to lie. Best wishes.

Sincerely,
Ann M. Israel
President, Ann Israel & Associates