I've always been proud to be a lawyer - ours is truly a grand profession. From the first day, and even back in law school, I knew what we did was important and could make a difference, especially for people without any special access or privilege or influence. And it is these folks that a justice system worthy of the name is intended to protect. There have always been powerful interests in our country who don't really care about justice for the little guy, even for people who are victims of others' negligence and malfeasance. My responsibility - our responsibility - is to use our legal system to level the playing field, giving everyone a fair chance. So our firm - and I mean everyone who works here - has core values and a sense of purpose that emphasizes service to our clients, even after the verdict is won or the settlement is achieved.

We are not just a collection of individual lawyers all vying for his or her own interests. We are a real, honest to goodness law firm: collaborating, sharing ideas, contributing to the cases and toasting the successes of each other. We make it a point for every available lawyer in the firm to meet every Thursday morning to catch up on new cases, to discuss strategy and tactics, and to generally learn from one another. Our cases belong not to individual lawyers but to the firm and especially to the clients who are depending on us. To have the opportunity to potentially change a client's life for the better is an awesome responsibility, but a challenge we welcome. Our people, I think, really do love coming to work every day.

I often meet with young people who are in law school or considering the profession, and I always tell them this: If you're not passionate about becoming a lawyer, maybe it's not the profession for you. I don't see that passion so often these days, but it's the only way to really make a difference, and to really experience the reward. And the law is truly a jealous mistress, so recognize as well that to become skilled at your craft and respected by your peers, you will work very, very hard. I've been fortunate to have had a lot of great mentors, all of whom when I look back still loom large in my life and career. Stanley Greenberg, Arthur Raynes, John McCarty, Dave Binder and so many others were role models and inspirations. And my partners and colleagues here at Feldman Shepherd, who are the best lawyers I know, make me look good just by my being in their company. The real secret of my success is surrounding myself with brilliant, capable, compassionate people who are a joy to work with.

Our profession has fought tort reform since at least the 1980's, and I don't think those challenges will ever go away. But the effort by industry and insurance lobbyists to limit people's access to justice is fundamentally misguided and ultimately threatening to our democracy. I will not defend case results that are manifestly improper, but the system catches them, and they are in any event rare. Unfortunately, distorted examples of large financial awards are used to impugn and discredit a noble system that really works, and to attack the concept of trial by jury that consistently produces fair and just results. I've seen our justice system work from the inside for a long time, and while there may be occasional flaws and blemishes, there is nothing like it, nothing better anywhere in the world.

When I served as Chancellor of the Philadelphia Bar, I was constantly aware of the need to make justice accessible to all. I felt that we in the legal community, who enjoy such good fortune, needed to work harder to ensure that access for our neighbors in trouble. My proposal was a program which we called "Raising the Bar." We called on law firms to contribute $300 per lawyer to support the fantastic organizations providing legal services to the indigent, and I'm delighted that most of the Bar in our city has answered the call. We can still do better, but we've made an important beginning.