Brown, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Silent Litigation Revolution

Abstract

Brown v. Board of Education had two collateral effects on the legal profession. First, it created a new set of professional heroes - plaintiffs' lawyers pursuing social reform through litigation. Second, it began the gradual deregulation of the bar, particularly the plaintiffs' bar. Both changes reached well beyond the original civil rights arena and both continue to shape the legal profession and the economics of civil litigation.

Keywords: Brown, plaintiffs' bar, deregulation, legal ethics

JEL Classification: K22, K41