Fixing the Lawyer Shortage
West Virginia loses a net of approximately 45 attorneys each year, and one-quarter of the private bar plans to retire in the next five years. “This is not some future problem. It is here now.”
Isaac Sponaugle, Pendleton County attorney and former House Minority Leader in the West Virginia House of Delegates, is a third-generation attorney in Franklin. The retirement of his father, George, moved Pendleton County into “legal desert” status, having less than one lawyer for every 1,000 residents.
While comedians love to use lawyers as comic fodder, there would be no United States without the concept of rule of law plus dedicated professionals practicing within it. Some of the greatest legal minds of any nation in history, men such as John Adams and John Marshall, helped to create the United States and shape its nature under the Constitution.
A community cannot run without sufficient lawyers because so much of what individuals and businesses do touches the law at some level. “A courthouse without enough lawyers is like a hospital without enough doctors. The building is open, but the help is not there,” said Sponaugle.
Sponaugle explains that “people tend to think a lawyer shortage is a problem for lawyers. It is not.” He goes on to add that “it is a problem for the family that cannot get a hearing scheduled, the farmer who cannot close on his land, and the child waiting for a courtroom that cannot find an attorney to represent her.”
This creates barriers and challenges for the most vulnerable people who turn to the law for help or need a defense. “Too often, people must drive an hour or two to find a lawyer or try to navigate the matter on their own,” Sponaugle said.
During the past year, a commission empowered by the West Virginia State Supreme Court has studied potential solutions posed at the national level. Across the United States, state supreme courts have taken the lead on wrestling with the looming lawyer shortage in many geographic areas and importantly, in court-appointed criminal defense work.
One potential solution offered involves “easing restrictions for out-of-state lawyers to practice in West Virginia.” For instance, the Mountain State has a higher bar exam pass score than most neighboring states. It also suggests lowering reciprocity requirements and fees for out-of-state attorneys to work in West Virginia.
Because individual practices and smaller firms tend to accept more court-appointed work, “the established commission recommends creating targeted opportunities for new or recent law school graduates to open small firms in rural areas.” About 40 percent of individual practices and 25 percent of smaller firms will accept child abuse and neglect related court appointments.
Also, all too often, younger attorneys do not grasp the allure of small-town law practice with its much lower cost of living and ease of building networks while providing a superior environment in which to raise a family. A little more than eight percent of younger lawyers practice in counties with smaller and more sparse populations.
The commission calls upon the West Virginia University School of Law and other statewide legal resources to create structures that encourage the creation of small town practices. This would include an “incubator” structure as well as mentorship for the early years of professional development. Only 14 percent of solo practicing state lawyers report having had this advantage.
Low interest loans for starting a practice, as well as student loan forgiveness for rural practice would create more incentives. Student loan forgiveness for teachers to work in underserved areas, for instance, has helped to bring some, if not enough, professionals in that field to these areas.
Also similar to what the field of teacher education has pioneered, the commission encourages the establishment of alternative pathways to enter the legal profession in addition to the traditional degree track.
Law school and degrees conferred serve as a modern pathway to the law, but some of the great legal minds learned differently. John Adams, one of the greatest legal minds in history, a Founding Father, and second President of the United States, “read” for the law, as they used to say.
As David McCullough writes in his biography, Adams “signed a contract with a young Worcester attorney, James Putnam, to study ‘under his inspection’ for two years.” Adams moved in with Putnam, teaching during the day and performing studies [editor: verify ‘conducted’ is intended] in the law in the evenings, powering through the 14 volumes of Thomas Wood’s work on the laws of England, Lord Coke, and other foundational texts.
“Can you imagine any drier reading?” Adams later joked to fellow Founder Dr. Benjamin Rush. Putnam also charged $100 for his tutoring in the field. In what little spare time he had, he translated Justinian’s work on Roman law and chopped a great deal of firewood.
Adams also attended court to observe “the greatest lawyers, orators, in short, the greatest men in America.” Admission to the bar came only after a thorough, several hours long interview with Jeremiah Gridley. Upon completion, Gridley urged the brilliant young man only lacking in confidence that he ought to “pursue the study of the law itself rather than the gain of it.”
In this hands-on way was birthed, alongside John Marshall, the best American legal mind. About 25 years later he shocked the world by winning acquittals for the British soldiers accused of murder in the Boston Massacre.
The commission’s closest recommendation to this comes in the suggestion for law clerk or law office centered study, as well as practice portfolios “reviewed and scored by the board of bar examiners.” Another possibility lies in limited privilege conferral to work in support of a more established professional.
The commission does outline possible expansions of WVU Law School into more remote and online learning. The commission also recognizes the limitations of resources to the flagship university at the present time.
What the commission did not recommend was a program to promote rural law practice. It analyzed the statistics of where young lawyers practice and assumed that incentives provided the main means of attracting lawyers to smaller communities, especially in a time when younger generations seek more from a career than simply a solid paycheck.
“I have never once regretted the decision to practice law where I’m from,” noted Sponaugle. He explained that the sense of connection to clients brings more to the job, saying, “My clients are not file numbers. They are people I will see at the store on Saturday. Your clients are your neighbors and the problems you help solve are their problems.”
Additionally, attorneys have more opportunity in smaller communities. “In a small town,” said Sponaugle, “a young attorney does not have to wait 10 years to get into the courtroom or handle a case that truly matters. One gets thrown in quickly to try cases, handle land transactions, and probate estates.”
While specializing is tough in a smaller community, one can enjoy the fact that “no two weeks are alike” with the broad variety of cases to engage. “You never stop learning,” he added.
“The report makes clear that the demand is there. What we need now are young people to answer it,” he concluded.
