DUES CLUES - It looks like you’ll have to continue paying those bar dues, counselor—at least if what’s going on in Oregon is any indication. As Angela Morris reports, a federal judge there has found that the Oregon State Bar has sovereign immunity, undercutting the argument that requiring bar dues is unconstitutional. In lawsuits in Oregon, Oklahoma, North Dakota and Texas, attorneys allege that last year’s Janus SCOTUS decision means that they don’t have to pay mandatory bar membership and compulsory dues.
ALONE - As part of our Minds Over Matters project, Lizzy McLellan reports on the pain point of loneliness in the legal profession. Factors specific to the legal profession that can enhance isolation are a lack of civility in a line of work that’s adversarial by nature; decreasing connections between lawyers and their firms as lateral movement increases; and a primary focus on billing hours, often a solitary task, to bring in revenue and boost profits.
