By politicised, I don't just mean engaged lawyering—fair enough I think for there to be e.g. lawyers trying as part of their work to improve workers' rights. I mean legal advice that is subordinated to the service of a partisan or political cause and distorted by that commitment.
I don't think this is a key point really. People's legal opinions can persuade or be criticised on their merits, and if they want to express opinions outside their specialism, fair enough. I think that's a very different thing from giving politicised legal advice.
Today my dad and I took part in the London Legal Walk, which he helped establish in 2005. Over 10,000 walkers walked 10km to raise money for free legal advice for people living in poverty. He is 88 and I have Long Covid so we are both feeling a sense of achievement (and some aching limbs)!
Unsurprising indeed. I think he always had a rightwing populist mindset rather than a conservative one.
Are we really behind them on this? I have the impression some Americans are near absolutist on free speech as against the government, but not much interested in free speech otherwise, for instance in employment relationships.
A very different case, I think. What annoyed me about him was that he accused practically every other lawyer of being politically motivated while claiming to be apolitical himself, all the time being the most politicised lawyer out there.
Other lawyers may agree or disagree with his analysis but I don't think there's anything wrong with this. Fine for lawyers to have political views and be politically active, and entirely compatible with professional standards—like say Starmer, or Grieve.
There is a "why".
It's been a tough day but enormously cheered by this Reddit thread of a guy demanding Tesco treat bananas as berries for the purpose of getting extra club card points. www.reddit.com/r/LegalAdvic...