Several years ago an American developer set out to build a gated community that was open to all ages, religions, races and professions … except lawyers.
He argued that lawyers were particularly ill-suited to community living because they would threaten to sue anyone and everyone who didn’t do exactly as they pleased.
A lawyer, who didn’t even want to buy into the community, sued for discrimination. The developer said: “See!”
A recurring theme of emails to this column concerns disputes with lawyer neighbours who demand to have their way because a) they know the law, b) they have the resources of their firm behind them and c) anyone who goes up against a lawyer in a court of law is on a hiding to nothing.
In fact, lawyers who haven’t specifically studied strata law often have little idea of its complexities, least of all spoiled brats with an exaggerated sense of entitlement based on having squeaked through uni by the skin of their too-perfect teeth.
Secondly, unless daddy (or mummy) owns the practice, very few law firms are going to saddle up and lead the charge all the way to the Supreme Court because one of their juniors wants to park their bicycle on their balcony.
And finally if you do get to court, with an experienced strata lawyer on your side, it’s pretty much a fair fight (apart from the fact that your brief knows what they’re talking about).
All that said, lawyers can be brilliant neighbours. For a start, there’s a better than average chance that they will have read and understood your by-laws before they moved in. How many new residents do that?
Everybody who participates on an executive committee should, in theory, give up their time, energy, experience and expertise for the greater good of the community. If you have a lawyer on yours, you’re getting free advice and valuable contacts for the price of a glass of wine and a Jatz once a month.
And you don’t have to be a lawyer to be a litigious pain in the bum. Anyone can issue writs and threats if they don’t get their way.
So, no, lawyers aren’t the worst neighbours. When you look across complaints about neighbours across all professions you’ll find that the real problem is with self important, inconsiderate bullies with no regard for community living – whether they are lawyers or not.