Historically, one of the earliest known codified systems of laws was the 285 laws established by a Babylonian king, Hammurabi of Mesopotamia, in the 18th century. These codified laws primarily addressed issues relating to marriage, sexual offenses, criminal sanctions, punishment, and interpersonal relationships. However, as society evolved, more complex and sophisticated laws were enacted, which made interpretation and application more difficult and cumbersome, thereby demanding a legally proficient approach.
It’s against this background that those who interpret and apply laws needed to be specifically qualified through specialized training and studies. Those with this special training in laws became what we today know as lawyers. In modern-day practice, lawyers do more than the earliest orators of ancient Athens. They solve complex issues and disputes for governments, corporations, businesses, and individuals.
A lawyer’s job is to help with understanding the law and how it affects the rights of the common person as well as the government. However, some people have continued to abuse and misuse the laws to their advantage, which is a potent reason why, across many societies today, lawyers are given bad publicity and perceived as crooked, untruthful, and compromising. But this is not true of every lawyer.
It was the great playwright Shakespeare who, in Henry IV, first suggested that killing all the lawyers was the solution to society’s problems at the time. This confirms the nasty things people often say or think about lawyers. Some even habitually ask in local parlance, “wetin lawyers dey do sef” – What special things do lawyers even do?
Another reason lawyers are associated with a bad reputation is that their work often involves settling conflicts and disputes, which means balancing diverse interests and perceptions. Hence, to mitigate negative perceptions and criticisms from society, in 2001, the national director of the American Lawyers Public Image Association (ALPIA), Nader Anise, a legal marketer, established Love Your Lawyer Day to appreciate lawyers and all they do on the first Friday of November each year. The day aims to promote public support for lawyers and judges by presenting them in a more positive light.
Today’s celebration differs from International Be Kind to Lawyers Day, created in 2008 by an American public speaker, Steve Hughes, and celebrated every year on the second Tuesday of April. In recognition of lawyers’ unsung contributions to society’s development and betterment, today (first Friday of November) is set aside internationally to celebrate Love Your Lawyer Day.
There are practical ways to celebrate this year’s Love Your Lawyer Day. Primarily, lawyers yearn for kindness from society. Lawyers generally have very stressful jobs and deal with strife all day. You can organize a sporting event or outing with a lawyer and get your friends involved. Did you know that watching a good law-related movie could affect your perception of lawyers? Organize a movie night where you and your friends watch one of the many excellent lawyer movies available. If movies aren’t your thing, read a good book and discuss it with your friends.
Another important way to celebrate this year’s Love Your Lawyer Day is to stop making lawyer jokes. In order to build up the reputation of lawyers, we need to stop being negative about them. This could start with leaving off the lawyer jokes and treating any lawyer friend with respect. This should not be hard to do. Just stop the lawyer bashing or jokes for a day. It will definitely be appreciated.
Besides, make donations in celebration of lawyers today. One of the most effective ways to celebrate Love Your Lawyer Day is to donate to a charity organization that helps make the world a better place, such as a charitable legal aid foundation, in honor of these legal warriors. Above all, pay your lawyer appropriate and reasonable fees for services rendered to support their economic well-being, living standards, and practice. To demonstrate your love for your lawyer, send them a gift basket or write them a card to express how much they mean to you. If you have ever been helped by a legal practitioner, use Love Your Lawyer Day to celebrate a lawyer for all they have done.
Above all, say “thank you” to a lawyer today. For those who have benefited personally from a lawyer’s service and would like to go the extra mile, go ahead and reach out to your lawyer, or any lawyer if you don’t have one, and appreciate them for the services they render every day. Pick up your phone now and call that lawyer today. Send a mail, message, or tweet to remind them that the valuable and productive long hours and dedication to justice are never taken for granted. And I believe that since you’re just calling to say thank you, they shouldn’t send you a fee note after the call for the time spent.
You may be interested to ask, why is Love Your Lawyer Day observed? It is to help put lawyers in proper perspective. For a profession perceived to be filled with liars, compromisers, double standards, and corruption, this day helps correct the wrong assumptions about them. Many of them do a lot of good, and more people do not get to realize that.
Very close to the above is the leeway the day provides to thank and appreciate lawyers for their services and contributions to society. We get to value and appreciate lawyers for all the good work they do on this day. This will further encourage them to continue making positive contributions through their profession.
Observing this day in celebration of lawyers also helps increase our knowledge of the law. This day gives us insight into the law profession. It helps us understand legal matters and maybe learn some legal jargon during interactions with lawyers.
While the Love Your Lawyer Day celebration started in America and has since become a global celebration across various countries, it is observed that the Nigerian legal community has not really been paying attention to this day since its creation in 2001. It is therefore recommended here that the Nigerian Bar Association and other relevant stakeholders within the Nigerian legal profession should intentionally recognize and celebrate Love Your Lawyer Day every year. This celebration could be incorporated into the yearly program and activities of the legal profession in the country, aiming to repair the now-battered image of the profession and reminding people that without lawyers, citizens and indeed society would lack guidance in navigating the complex world of law.
Love Your Lawyer Day, also referred to as World Lawyers Day, is celebrated annually on the first Friday of November. It was established by the American Lawyers Public Image Association (ALPIA) in 2001 to honor lawyers and promote a positive public image of the legal profession.
Kingsley Ebimoh, Esq., is the author of The Lawyer In Embryo. He writes from Lagos State, Nigeria, and can be reached via email at ebiking2050@gmail.com, or on Facebook, X, Instagram, and TikTok as Kingsley Ebimoh.