MovieChat Forums > Shattered Glass (2003) Discussion > Is Stephen Glass fit to practice law?

Is Stephen Glass fit to practice law?

posted 12 years ago by WarpedRecord
8 replies | jump to latest

Stephen Glass wants to be a lawyer now, but not surprisingly, his deceptions are standing in the way of him getting a license from the California Bar.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/12/26/MNFE1M41OM .DTL

Do you think Stephen Glass is genuinely rehabilitated, or does it even matter when his reputation is so heavily tainted? Should his past deceptions be a dealbreaker in the field of law? Discuss. Extra credit for posts that avoid the obvious jokes about his lies making him more qualified to be a lawyer.

[–] 12 years ago

[deleted]

[–] MtnMan13 12 years ago

To my knowledge, he hasn't done anything criminal, so if he is able to pass the appropriate exams then there is no reason why he shouldn't be allowed to obtain a license. Whether or not anybody will want to hire him based on his reputation is another matter.

[–] denise1234 12 years ago

A person who lies and cheats can get away with that too much these days also in the 'hallowed' halls of academia, unfortunately.

"I can't stand a naked light bulb, any more than..a rude remark or a vulgar action" Blanche DuBois

[–] hodie 11 years ago

At least in NY, getting a law degree and passing the bar exam do not automatically qualify a candidate to get a law license. A candidate has to appear in person before the state bar Character Committee and be examined. Someone who has engaged in notorious acts of dishonesty may not be admitted at all. Glass first applied to the NYS bar, didn't get Character Committee approval and instead decided to apply to the California bar. He was still appealing as of 2007. Don't know what's happened to him since.

"Joey, have you ever been in a Turkish prison?"

[–] eastcoastguyz 12 years ago

It's a good question. A know a fellow who went to law school, passed the bar, honest guy and hard worker, even with all of that it took a year almost to the day for him to secure a job as an attorney. No one was bending over backwards to give him a break to find a job, yet there are people giving Glass a chance. Who knows why, perhaps for the novelty of it. There are too many good and sometimes great people out of work who need the chance, and it's a pity to waste it on Glass who has already proven he isn't trustworthy.

[–] hodie 11 years ago

Agreed. And the market for first-year lawyers has sucked for the past several years. Some law grads have sued their law schools for allegedly misstating average salary and employment information.

[–] ceth26 12 years ago

Considering his... erm... flexible relationship with concepts such as truth and ethics, Glass would undoubtedly be a real gain to the legal profession.

[–] firstwinsgop 9 years ago

Yes. The amount of control that state bar associations wield in terms of denying entry in to the field is ridiculous. But of course that sort of Big Government paternalism is exactly the sort of thing Stephen and his New Republic friends advocated for in every edition of their magazine. So while what is happening to him is definitely wrong, he has little room to complain.