The Profession, the Market, and the State: Reimagining Professional Independence for a VUCA World

Traditional ideals of professional independence were conceived for a world where most lawyers were solo or small‑firm practitioners in a self‑regulating bar, operating within a state‑granted monopoly with norms of expertise and deference that largely insulated practitioners from bureaucratic control, external competition, and the reach of state power. Today, that world no longer exists.

Most lawyers now work in organizations of increasing size and scope in markets where practitioners are subject to intense supervision, both internally from managers and externally by clients, and face fierce competition in a new legal services “ecosystem” rapidly being reshaped by “alternative” providers, “artificial intelligence,” and “blurring boundaries” between law and other professional services to address problems that are increasingly “legalized” yet extend far beyond law. And if the last year has shown us anything, it is that the legal profession is now squarely in the sights of government actors in the US and around the world who recognize its potential as an instrument of state power. Which is precisely why professional ideals, such as independent judgment, evidence-backed expertise, fiduciary duty, and a commitment to access to justice and the rule of law are more important than ever.

In this webinar, we will begin a difficult and much‑needed conversation about what it will take to make these ideals meaningful in a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world where lawyers will have to reimagine professional independence without the insulation and market protection that allowed these ideals to flourish in the past.

This is part of the AALS Teach-In Webinar Series on Professional Independence and the Legal Profession.