Theresa L. F. Levings
Badger & Levings, L.C.
Kansas City
The air was warm and the sky was bright on the October day my uncle was buried. He had been a Missouri lawyer for more than 40 years.
At the service, friends and family spoke to the assembled about what had been important to him in his life – his service to his country as a fighter pilot and POW in Korea, his marriage, his daughter and son, his public service as a prosecutor and school board member, and his profession. One of the things my Uncle Vance loved about being a lawyer was the bond of friendship and professional pride he shared with other lawyers. Even death does not break that bond in Adair County, where he practiced his entire career. When one of their own passes on, the bar there honors the departed in at least two ways.
If the family wishes, a local bar member will speak on behalf of the profession at the service, sharing what being a lawyer meant to the departed and what his or her contribution meant to the profession.
After the service, bar members gather in one of their offices for a lawyer's wake of sorts, with warm memories, tall tales, good cheer and libations flowing easily. I was included in this event for my uncle, thought I hadn't lived in this town for almost 30 years and had never practiced law there. I was welcomed and made to feel I belonged because we all shared the same calling. Around a big table, I learned a lot about the life my uncle had shared with these men and women – the cases, the clients, the stories and the laughs. At times they had fought hard against one another over clients' disputes, but in the end his professional friends and adversaries came to honor my uncle because of a shared love of profession. They understood that the disputes were never personal. He and they had the privilege of speaking for others who needed help. He was a fallen brother, not a vanquished foe.
When the time comes for each of us, will the lawyers we oppose today come forward to mourn our passing and honor our contribution to the profession? Will they note our role as a respected community leader who guided others to act honorably, behave respectfully and do the right thing? This last question may sound familiar; I used those same words in my last column in this space. I asked you to tell me why you continue to practice law for a living, whether you care about our profession, and if and how you are willing to help. Some of you have answered the call. Where are the rest of you? Do you think we still are a profession? Is there an idea, a feeling or a purpose that binds all lawyers together?
I am interested in your answers to these questions. They are among the questions a small committee is asking as it reviews the past and the future of the Annual Meeting of The Missouri Bar. To me, caring about and valuing the profession seems to be one of our common bonds. I still want to hear what you think. Start thinking, start writing, start calling. Take a lawyer to lunch and see what he or she has to say. I am still waiting to find out: Do you care?