From the President: Reflections on Law Day and the Legacy of John Adams

by Jennifer Little

Each year, members of the legal community celebrate Law Day along with national organizations, state and local bars, businesses and schools. May 1 is a special day, designated by a joint resolution of Congress in 1961, focusing on our heritage of liberty under the law. Law Day is our opportunity as a profession to examine and celebrate our commitment to the rule of law, while inspiring and advancing public understanding of the judicial system.

When reflecting upon this year’s Law Day, it is instructive to note that the American Bar Association designated it as “The Legacy of John Adams.” One of the most famous stories that come to mind when thinking about the law and how attorneys must advocate for our clients is the story of John Adams representing the British soldiers charged in the Boston Massacre.

John Adams was a prominent leader in the colonial resistance to British authority and played an integral role in this country’s development. He was a successful lawyer and patriot, constitutional theorist and political activist, and he became our nation’s second president in 1797. Interestingly, John Adams died at age 90 on the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and on the very same day as his political adversary, Thomas Jefferson.

It is particularly noteworthy that he was responsible for the phrase “a government of laws, not of men,” wording that was incorporated into the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the U.S. Supreme Court case of Marbury v. Madison, and countless other legal treatises over the years. His firmly held belief in the rule of law as the foundation for republican government and the basis for political liberty served as the cornerstone for our development of a democratic system of government.

Despite these beliefs and his opposition to British rule, Adams took the extremely unpopular position of representing the British soldiers charged with murder after that most infamous night in Boston. Six of the soldiers were acquitted and the two that were proven to have fired their weapons were found guilty of manslaughter and punished by having their thumbs branded. John Adams later wrote in his diary, “It was one of the most gallant, generous, manly and disinterested actions of my whole life and one of the best pieces of service I ever rendered my country.” This adherence to the rule of law and defense of the accused, even in the face of public controversy, has always resonated with me as an exemplary story of a lawyer doing what is right, even when it is unpopular.

Year after year, attorneys all over the world are called upon to perform the duty of representing their client regardless of their personally held beliefs regarding the case at hand. It is an issue that sprang up just the other day in Atlanta regarding a major law firm and how it wrestled on whether to represent the U.S. House of Representatives regarding the defense of a controversial law.

So this year, as we celebrate Law Day and the legacy of John Adams, let’s reflect on how we can all strive to do what is right, even if it is unpopular, controversial or may deter our future aspirations – for what we do today and for our clients is always paramount and it is what we as lawyers have taken an oath and are sworn to do.