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Practical Moral Philosophy for Lawyers Mr. Roberts Wants to Disinherit His Daughter You have represented William Roberts over the past fifteen years in various matters involving Mr. Roberts' hardware store. Roberts is 68 years old. The community in which you practice is a small one and you know Roberts to be a decent man and respected member of the community. Your records indicate that it was eight years ago that you prepared a will for Roberts. Mr. Roberts is now in your office for the purpose of revising his will. Roberts is upset. His 24-year-old daughter Lisa, recently divorced, has decided to move to Scotland and live in a "New Age" community called Findhorn. Roberts has grown attached to his granddaughter Tricia, who is three and a half. Roberts is upset about Lisa's decision and about being cut off from his granddaughter. Roberts has told Lisa he will write her out of his will if she moves to Scotland. During the course of the conversation about the new will, it becomes evident that Roberts is disdainful of Lisa's continued "idealism" and the "ridiculous notion" that his daughter plans to raise his granddaughter in a "commune." Roberts feels that Lisa should settle down, get a job, support her daughter, and remain where she will have the love and support of an extended family. In fact, Roberts has offered to help Lisa by supporting her while she finishes her degree in education, which she could do in three semesters. During the conversation with Mr. Roberts, you recall having read a Time magazine article on modern utopian communities. Time described Findhorn as a successful "New Age" community. The article makes clear that Findhorn is not a "cult" but a group of diverse people from around the world who by their talents and willingness to work together built a viable community. The reporter for the Time article found it significant that Findhorn did not attempt to interfere with its members' relationships in the outside world, emphasized sexual monogamy and did not require or encourage its members to turn over their financial assets to the Findhorn community. Mr. Roberts, obviously upset with his daughter, asks you to rewrite his will to disinherit his daughter. Does carrying out Mr. Roberts wishes present a moral/ethical problem for you? Evaluate the following stances a lawyer might take: Write the will. "It's my job to do what the client wants me to do. Clients' have rights (interests), and so long as they are legal, as this one is, then lawyers have no reason to look beyond the client's expression of the nature and purposes of how these rights are to be realized." Talk it over. "I want to make sure he knows what he is doing. But ultimately, it is the client's decision to make. It just doesn't make sense to go ahead with the will without talking it over carefully with the client. It is our duty as lawyers to be counselors as well as technical experts on wills." Ultimately, I wouldn't do it. "I'm not in the business of helping someone do something there is good reason to believe he is going to regret later." Each of these stances reflects different conceptions of the attorney-client relationship, and the way we imagine the work we do as lawyers. The conceptions of lawyering in the "write the will" and "talk it over" approaches move us in different directions. There is a world of values represented by each of these stances. There are a number of ways to do what Mr. Roberts "wants" done and assume there are no moral/ethical concerns presented. Some law students argue that a lawyer should write the will and not worry about Mr. Roberts and his relationship with his daughter. Consider the following ways in which the "don't worry about it" stance might be supported:
Dr. Patterson began treating Mrs. Frank two years ago. Thereafter, she lent him, without security $25,000 for various real estate investments. One year ago, you prepared a will in which Mrs. Frank forgave the doctor's indebtedness to her. Your notes indicate she explained that Dr. Patterson was a wonderful doctor. During the past year she spent considerable time in a private hospital and was treated during her stay by Dr. Patterson. During her hospitalization, Dr. Patterson gave her flowers and made arrangements with another physician to perform an eye operation which was successful. In talking with Mrs. Frank, she seems rather smitten with Dr. Patterson. She beams at mention of the doctor's name. She tells you, "I guess he is the son I never had." When you question Mrs. Frank about Mark Jensen, she indicates that one month ago when she was hospitalized, Mark had made unfavorable comments about her relationship with Dr. Patterson, and told her the doctor was "after her money." She was deeply offended and resented his interference in her personal affairs. She also indicated that, prior to Mark's visit, Dr. Patterson suggested to her that Mark Jensen was a difficult man to deal with. Mrs. Frank now wants to draft a new will and leave her entire estate to her physician, Dr. Lawrence Patterson. Dr. Patterson is 38 years old. [Adopted from Lewis D. Solomon, Trusts and Estates: A Basic Course (Charlottesville: The Michie Company, 1981)] Notes Additional Reading: Thomas Shaffer, Will Interviews, Young Clients and the Psychology of Testation, 44 Notre Dame Lawyer 345 (1969)
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The
client, a 58-year-old man, asks you to prepare a will that leaves his
estate, estimated at four million dollars to take care of his five cats.
The client has a brother and sister. Both live in other states. The
client has never been married.