Busy managing partner pumps out the commentary in a prolific stream of articles … While many journalists are desperate to get into law we find a lawyer who’s bursting to write
He used to have a weekly column on politics and society in The Drum, the ABC’s online commentary venue, until Michelle Guthrie did her old boss Rupert Murdoch an unexpected favour and canned the site.
Now Bradley is prolifically published in Crikey where offerings, this year alone, include:
On January 28 in The Saturday Paper he had a big comment piece about why we should stop celebrating terra nullius on Australia Day.
In November Justinian’s editor was approached by a PR muffin acting for a conference organisation and invited to interview Marque’s managing partner for The Saturday Paper – specially for his thoughts on lawyers “as socially active agents for change … in the face of Pauline Hanson and Trump’s policies”.
The paper’s editor decided not to run with it. This was followed by an invitation to hear Bradley speak at an event called “Purpose“, described as Australia’s annual gathering of the “conscious capitalism community”. He was part of a panel discussion on the Purpose Paradox, looking at the “evolution of the purpose of the corporation”.
How does he do it? – quite frequently pumping out opinions a couple of time a week in a gruelling amalgam of law firm management and journalism.
Bradley gave Justinian an insight into how he goes about his writing.
“There’s no real pattern to when I write, but it’s most commonly late at night. Sometimes during the day in the office, though, partly it depends on the urgency of the topic.
I do pretty much all my own research, but occasionally get a bit of help from one of the lawyers or paralegals at work on legal questions. The writing is all mine.
The ideas come from either me or Crikey’s editor. Often she’ll ask if I can write on a specific issue, otherwise I’ll suggest an idea and we discuss it …
I follow the news pretty closely and admit I’m a Twitter addict. Most days there’s something going on which I think could do with an explanation or closer analysis and which I haven’t yet seen anyone else do. It’s an expression of my own curiosity and desire to understand. I enjoy trying to reduce a complex legal concept or issue to something readable.”
Asked whether his writing is a useful way to promote the firm, he says:
“My partners and I think that it’s important for our firm to have a voice and opinions on issues of importance, especially where the law is involved. We recognise also that there’s risk in being outspoken. We’ve always been clear about differentiating ourselves as non-cynical, non-mercenary lawyers, which we see as a good thing. So this is just part of that attitude. Overall I think it has a positive effect on our business, even more obviously if you measure success not just in clients and dollars.”
Bradley was idling during his daughter’s piano lesson when our questions arrived by email. We also wanted to know whether he thought more lawyers should be picking up the pen and making public contributions:
“I feel strongly that lawyers need to be more outspoken than ever. We are the keepers of the law, which is society’s glue. The rule of law is under really grave threat now, not just because of Trump.
The trend has been marked for a long time, here as elsewhere. If lawyers do not speak up in defence of the law, not just to protect it but to advance it, then who will?
We’re the ones with the knowledge and language to take on that role. Writing, specifically, is a powerful medium for lawyers to use for influencing debate, because it allows time and space to cut through the doublespeak.
Apart from all that, I love writing. I feel lucky whenever anyone publishes my stuff. It’s a buzz.”
He added he had his fingers crossed Justinian would say nice things, “but I’ll look forward to it either way”.
The bio for Michael on Marque Lawyer’s website describes him as a “shameless self-promoter … who is regarded by some as the idiot savant of the legal profession”.
Lawyers are notoriously nervous about expressing an opinion in public, so if this description translates into a lawyer picking up a pen and making a contribution then we can see little wrong with being “shameless”.