The Oklahoma Bar Journal May 2023

T he B ack P age

Lawyering Up with Will Rogers By Tom Hird

W ILL ROGERS’ MOST famous saying is, “I never met a man I didn’t like.” I can hear someone say, “Yes, but Will Rogers never worked in the legal profes sion.” It is true – his father was a Cherokee attorney and judge, but Will did not follow in his father’s footsteps. I submit to you, how ever, that even if he had, he still

with other lawyers, even the diffi cult ones. If you think about it, lik ing everyone you meet could even be considered an encapsulation of the radical principles of loving your enemies and treating others as you would like to be treated. Will Rogers felt strongly about “I never met a man I didn’t like,” even directing that it should go on his tombstone. Liking every one you meet is about developing a strong sense of empathy, not just for some, but for all. While it undoubtedly would have been hard at times, Will Rogers would have found a way to like all the lawyers and litigants he dealt with, and I believe we can do it today. In the process, we can raise the level of legal discourse and the stature of the legal profession.

would have been able to say that he never met anyone he didn’t like. One reason why is the experi ence and wisdom he acquired from his Cherokee heritage while growing up in Indian Territory. Another reason is his gentle, aw-shucks humility. For example, when he said, “Everybody is igno rant, only on different subjects,” or, “I have never

been a non-believer, but I can honestly tell you I don’t think that any one religion is the religion,” he invoked a humility and lack of certi tude we would all do well to model. Certitude where certitude is unwar ranted runs ram pant these days, both in and outside legal circles. We are the ones who are ignorant more often than we think. In this life, we all see through a glass, darkly. If Will Rogers had been a law yer, he would have

Mr. Hird practices in Oklahoma City.

exhibited humil ity rather than

arrogance, and he would have tried to follow the golden rule in his dealings

Courtesy Oklahoma Historical Society.

104 | MAY 2023

THE OKLAHOMA BAR JOURNAL