My wife and I love Friday Night Lights. The fact that NBC has won't commit to bringing it back for a another season frustrates us to no end. I like the show because the mese en scene feels so familiar. It takes me back to my high school days in Kannapolis, except to be honest in the world of FNL I would probably play a band-geek without any dialogue.
If you ask my lovely wife why I watch it, she'll say in a faux Texas drawl, "Ron just wants to stare at Tammy Taaaylor!"
While I do find the lovely Connie Britton's portayal of Coach Taylor's wife mesmerizing, today I want to tell you about an episode last season that captured the essence of my life as an attorney so perfectly that it changed the way I talk to clients forever.
In the show Mrs. Taylor, the Dillon High School principal, got into some hot water when she advised a young student on her options for handling an unplanned pregnancy, including the option to abort it. Things went public and the ensuing controvery threatened Tammy's job to the point she sought legal advice from a local attorney. The consultation scene in the lawyer's office was the most realistic depiction of lawyer/client relationships I have ever seen on TV.
Incensed by the politicization of her job, Tammy asks whether she can sue the school board for wrongul termination. She was also concered about the defamation of her character in the media. The attorney advises her (correctly) that yes, she could sue the school board and the community leaders who are lambasting her on local radio and TV, and she may even win.
Then the attorney, with full sympathy in his eyes, lowers the boom and says, "Mrs. Taylor, there's law and then there's life." Yes, you might win in court, but if it comes at the cost of your ability to find a job at any other school, what have you really won?
The "there's law and then there's life" line is now a staple in my domestic consults, because it fits so many common divorce problems:
- What if I move out and my spouse doesn't pay the mortgage which is in both our names?
- What if my children start taking my spouses side?
- What if I want to date someone before this god-forsaken case ends?
Each of these are problems for which the law provides no remedy, or a painfully inadquate and expensive remedy. The bank can foreclose and ruin your credit regardless of whether you've had time to seek property division from the courts. No one is going to monitor your spouse's every conversation with your children; your own time with your kids is often the best and only way to defend against parental alienation. No one can stop you from dating, but your spouse has every right to probe that relationship as it may relate to alimony or child custody.
Every client must at some point start to look at the services I provide in the context of a bigger tapestry interwoven with legal, social, financial, and emotional questions. I can answer some questions, and I will do my best to advise you on the others. At the end of the day, you're the star and I just play the role of your the faithful sidekick in this mellodrama.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
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