We lawyers can be our own worst enemies.

Working in an arena based on adversarial contests does not lend itself to cooperation. Commanded to public service but forced to confront economic realities, lawyers are held to the highest standards. When one lawyer famously fails to meet these standards, popular view of the profession drops another notch.

Frustrated, we accept the premise of business consultants that lawyers can't be more efficient. We agree with technologists who argue that the practice of law lacks coherence.

We should know better.

The processes of lawyers are not incoherent, and lawyers have no inherent defect preventing them from establishing a sensible workflow. The problem is that lawyers do not have the time to reconsider this orthodoxy.

When the take the time, they immediately understand the certitude of the new argument.