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BONUS

Celebrate with the Curmudgeon

By The Editors

Heading into the Thanksgiving holiday, we’re reflecting on this, our first full year as Attorney at Work. We’ve made some great new friends, learned just a ton and thoroughly enjoyed bringing the enterprising way to lawyers everywhere. (And we mean everywhere! Did you know we’re read in 150 different countries?) Everyone has their ideal dinner companion. Ours is Otto Sorts. Yes, he is a bit of a curmudgeon, but man does he have some good stories to tell. So we’re setting a place for him at our virtual Thanksgiving table.

Otto Sorts’ Biggest Hits 

Why don’t you join us and catch up on his most popular—and controversial—posts.

Curmudgeon’s Perspective: Technology Isnt’ Everything The other day, I took one of our new aggressive associates with me to meet my oldest client, who was bringing along his 20-something son. Over lunch, the talk turned to Twitter and Facebook, and the two kids discussed how far behind the technology curve the old fogies were. “Dinosaurs,” I think they said … more

Curmudgeon’s Perspective: The Sounds of Silence “It’s the silence that gets me most,” he said. We were sitting in his small office in a 1950’s building just off the main drag. His name was stenciled on the frosted glass door. He looked at the silent phone and absent-mindedly checked his e-mail, again. There were no calls and no e-mail, no mail (except a few bills) and no work … more

Curmudgeon’s Perspective: Fear of Phoning When I was an associate, the most prominent item on my desk was a big, black, ugly toad that sat on the front corner and stared at me expectantly all day, every day. Occasionally it would ring and I would be jerked from the safe haven of legal research and thrust into the paralyzing world of human interaction … more

Curmudgeon’s Perspective: Decisions, Decisions Fred sat at the end of the table, sweating and looking at the six of us as we waited expectantly for his decision. He hemmed, he hawed. And he asked to go over the options yet one more time. “It’s easy, Fred. Settle or sue. We’ve been here over an hour, now make the call.”… more

Curmudgeon’s Perspective: Civil Matters As I entered my firm’s building the other day, I held the outer door open for several of our young attorneys. When a young woman then turned to hold the inside door open for us, one of the men made a bit of a scene (partly for my benefit, no doubt) by making her go ahead while he took over the manly door-holding duty. He seemed more than a little pleased with himself. She seemed somewhat irritated—and I thought it revealed a lack of manners … more

Curmudgeon’s Perspective: Late … Again? For most of us, being late is an accident, a mistake or an occasional oversight. But there are people like Rebecca for whom being late is a bad habit, like picking your nose or adjusting your private parts in public. (Usually, only professional baseball players can pull this off acceptably) … more

Otto Sorts has been reading law since before Martindale met Hubbell. Of Counsel at a large corporate firm that prefers to remain anonymous, Otto is a respected attorney and champion of the grand tradition of the law. He is, however, suspicious of “new-fangled” management ideas and anyone who calls the profession the legal “industry.” When he gets really cranky about something he blogs at Attorney at Work.

Categories: Curmudgeon's Perspective, Daily Dispatch
Originally published November 22, 2011
Last updated April 28, 2018
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