Why do people binge-watch lawyer shows on television, but will do anything to avoid lawyers in real life?
For attorneys who know better, however, there is another painful truth about the popular drama. It features an alcoholic attorney.
Alcoholic Attorney
But “Billy McBride” wrestles with another demon, which makes him a compelling character to watch. Hollywood Reporter says the show is “quite watchable” because Thorton’s “gift at taking predictably quirky characters and making the beats of that quirkiness slightly off-kilter is close to unmatched.”
Alcoholism among lawyers is not the stuff of fiction, however. It’s a case of truth-stranger-than-fiction because the law business enables it.
According to studies, one-third of attorneys drink too much. Many of them do it at the office with approval.
After the Show
At the end of the day, “Goliath” is a tale like most successful legal dramas. It is first fiction, second fact.
Adam Banner, writing for the ABA Journal, says it is the right mix to suspend disbelief just long enough for a lawyer to escape the monotony of real law. In one scene last season, McBride tells off a judge and survives – something every attorney would like to do at least once.
“There was just enough law to keep me grounded in the ridiculousness of the fiction … and I loved it,” Banner wrote.
And it’s better than escaping reality in a bottle of booze.
Related Resources:
You Don’t Have To Solve This on Your Own – Get a Lawyer’s Help
Civil Rights
Block on Trump’s Asylum Ban Upheld by Supreme Court
Criminal
Judges Can Release Secret Grand Jury Records
Politicians Can’t Block Voters on Facebook, Court Rules
