Being Bogart: Professional Identity after Michael Clayton

Denvir, John

doi:10.2139/ssrn.1777210

Abstract

Download This Paper | Share | Email |Add to Briefcase | Purchase Bound Hard Copy

Being Bogart: Professional Identity after Michael Clayton

John Denvir

University of San Francisco - School of Law

March 4, 2011

Univ. of San Francisco Law Research Paper No. 2012-18

Abstract:
The best movies are more than entertainment; they also can teach us lessons we need to learn. Movies can offer us both critical insights about how the world really works and also hints of a better future. In this essay I suggest the George Clooney character in "Michael Clayton" performs the first function and the Humphrey Bogart character in the "The Maltese Falcon" the second. Young lawyers might find that “being Bogart” might be the answer to the riddle of how to be a good lawyer in a bad world.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 34

Keywords: popular culture, legal profession, legal ethics, law and society

working papers series

Download This Paper

Date posted: March 7, 2011 ; Last revised: September 26, 2012

Suggested Citation

Denvir, John, Being Bogart: Professional Identity after Michael Clayton (March 4, 2011). Univ. of San Francisco Law Research Paper No. 2012-18. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1777210 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1777210

Contact Information

John Denvir (Contact Author)

University of San Francisco - School of Law ( email )

2130 Fulton Street
San Francisco, CA 94117
United States