Paul Lipton talks mentorship, mindset, and the modern legal landscape on the latest On Civility
In the latest episode of On Civility, Paul Lipton, an author and attorney with a career spanning more than 50 years, discusses with podcast host Magie Ozarowski the value and process of defining oneself and developing a personal code, as well as his thoughts about how to live “agelessly.”
A South Florida trial attorney and shareholder with Greenberg Traurig for over 40 years, Lipton moved “out of the active practice of law” in 2012 to become a writer.
“I don’t consider myself as retired and I think when people say that, they’re cheating themselves. I think we just go to different chapters in our life,” said Lipton. “We are the authors of our own life story.”
Lipton started out as an assistant district attorney in New York before moving to Florida and transitioning to complex commercial litigation, real estate and land use litigation, and probate and estate litigation.
Paul Lipton
One of his last cases for Greenberg led to his current role as director of professionalism, career, and skill development for Rumberger Kirk, where he mentors associates, helping them to find balance, avoid the pitfalls of the profession, and sharpen their business development skills.
He says practicing law can be exciting and fulfilling, but it also demands skills and composure that take time and experience to develop. Yet, new lawyers are often “thrown right into it” and expected to know more than they’ve had a chance to learn — which can be discouraging.
Lipton also gives his perspective on the challenges lawyers face “in feeling isolated and alone” within the current landscape of the practice, which is made more difficult by the frequent use of a virtual format.
Maintaining fidelity to one’s own principles when facing opposing counsel, or even a client, who behaves unethically can be a challenge, he says.
“So many lawyers think they just argue and fight with the other side. I disagree.” says Lipton. “Your argument should take the day, not degrade someone.”
Lipton and Ozarowski discuss the pitfalls of framing one’s approach to the profession around concepts of “soft power” and “hard power,” and defining the practice of law as inherently adversarial.
They talk about how attorneys can get lost in the profession unless they define their personal success beyond the monetary rewards, and the Bar has a role in helping members to activate the process of self-definition.
Lipton says his first book, Hour of the Wolf: An Experiment in Ageless Living, asks his readers “to re-enter the unknown, to go back to the adventure that life can be” instead of robotically doing the same thing day after day. He has also written two other books, In These Five Breaths: A Novel and The House on Genesis Road: A Never-Ending Love Story.
On Civility is produced by The Florida Bar Center for Professionalism. The goal is to have conversations about the state of civility in the law and to give attorneys practical advice on how to be civil and professional.
This podcast has been approved by The Florida Bar Continuing Legal Education Department for one hour of General/Professionalism CLE credit (course #9223).
