President's Perspective
Where We Come From, Where We Go
By Susan R. Steingass
As we planned for our new Bar Center, our
association's first full-time executive director Philip S. Habermann
told current executive director Steve Smay about an all-but-forgotten
time capsule sealed within our current facility. During construction of
the Bar Center 40 years ago, a storage box was placed in the
cornerstone. That box, Habermann recalled, contained letters written by
prominent lawyers of the day, predicting the legal profession's
future.
On June 30, 1998, having been assured by experts that removing the
cornerstone would not cause the building's collapse, several of us
gathered to see what treasurers were hidden behind the cornerstone.
Secreted in that space was a welded copper box containing, among other
things, 22 sealed letters written in April 1958 by lawyers from around
the state, including an admonition that they not be opened until the
year 2050.
A sense of history and respect caused us to leave the letters sealed.
But all that did was increase our curiosity! We hoped the writers of
some of these letters, or their families, might be as curious about
their contents as were we. Besides, the parallels between that time 40
years ago and now were compelling.
We identified three of these letters to be from lawyers whose place
in our legal history and that of the State Bar goes deep: Janesville
attorney Leon Feingold, who passed away in 1980; Madison attorney Gordon
Sinykin, who passed away in 1991; and our first executive director,
Philip Habermann, who has remained involved in the Bar all these
years.
As many of you know, Gordon Sinykin and Leon Feingold were
distinguished lawyers and fathers of lawyers who continue the tradition
today. Leon Feingold graduated in 1937 and was a sole practitioner in
Janesville until 1974, when he was joined in practice by his son David.
Leon and his wife had four children, two of whom also are lawyers. David
continues to practice in the Janesville law office his father founded
and is heavily involved in the State Bar. Russ practiced for many years
in Madison and now serves with distinction as a U.S. senator. Nancy is a
psychotherapist in Madison, and Dena is a rabbi in Kenosha.
Gordon Sinykin was admitted to practice in 1933. He was a founder of
the Madison law firm of LaFollette & Sinykin and a staunch supporter
of the State Bar and the Wisconsin Law Foundation, serving as its
director, executive officer, and president. He and his wife had three
children. Daniel, a lawyer, lives and works in Madison. Phillip is an
electrical engineer and his twin sister Susan works for the State of
Wisconsin.
We called the Sinykin and Feingold families and Phil Habermann,
seeking their permission to reveal the contents of these letters early.
They were happy to agree and excited by the prospect.
Susan Steingass and executive director Steve Smay (right) get
the first peek at time-capsule treasures. The items were sealed in the
cornerstone during a ceremony dedicating the then-new Bar Center in
1958.
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With permissions in order, we opened these three letters with great
anticipation. While their full text will be published later, here's
enough to whet your appetite - some of their predictions about the
then-future of the profession, which has become for us its present.
Phil Habermann predicted that the Bar Center would be enlarged by the
addition of a second story in 1970 (it was, in 1969) and that in the
year 2000 the "offices will have moved to new and larger quarters" (they
will, in 1999). Experienced as he was in bar administration, Habermann
predicted an exponential increase in the number of Bar members and
staff, though the sheer scope of that increase was unimaginable. By
2050, he predicted, "Wisconsin will have 12,000 lawyers" (we had 19,000
in less than half that time) and Bar staff would soar to 16 (we have
85)!
Gordon Sinykin took a more systemic approach, projecting that
"something certainly will have to be done before then to relieve the
congestion in the courts" - a struggle that continues unabated to this
day. He pegged the increase in specialization, predicting that, "Only in
the smallest communities will the general practitioner continue to serve
all who may come to him." He also predicted that the abstract of title
would be a "museum piece," and that attorney's offices would have
machines to file, index, tabulate, photograph, transcribe, "and even do
some research."
Leon Feingold took a more global approach, predicting increased
specialization and that, "Law relating to human relations will be more
in the area of the social sciences such as sociology and economics
rather than in the present categories of the law." He foresaw the
increased importance of international law and order with the
then-fledgling United Nations touching virtually everyone on the planet
and curtailing "war and serious threats of war."
While acknowledging that it was "presumptuous" to predict the future,
the process clearly intrigued him: "... at times one does look back on
the past and does think of the future ... and perhaps my grandchildren
or great-grandchildren ... in the year 2050, may have the opportunity of
reading this letter," predicting that, at minimum, they would find it
amusing.
Well said! No one can predict the future - but these three came
suprisingly close. When their letters are resealed and, with others yet
unopened, ensconced within the cornerstone of the new Bar Center next
year, they will be accompanied by predictions from today's lawyers. May
we all have their foresight and commitment. We all learn from what these
three prognosticators have to say and extend our thanks to them and to
their families for allowing us to share.
Wisconsin Lawyer