Post by Khoo Boon Han

𝐀 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐨 “𝐋𝐚𝐰𝐲𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐲𝐬 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲”? Let’s call this what it is: not a defence of the profession, but a fear of irrelevance. You say advertisng turns lawyers into TikTok traders. I say: clients have already been shopping like consumers for years. You just weren’t in the store. 1. “𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐞”. S𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐜, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤 Legal services have always been commodified. Fixed fees, panel work, bulk conveyancing, and insurance defence. What do you think that is? The only difference now? The market is visible. Before this, referrals happened behind closed doors. Golf games, kopi sessions, old boys’ networks. Now a young lawyer post content and suddenly it's "race to the bottom"? No. It’s just a race you’re no longer controlling. 2. “𝐀𝐥𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐦 𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐩𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐲”. 𝐍𝐨, 𝐢𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 You think clients sit around reading your 20-page article on fiduciary duties? People want clarity. Speed. Accessibility. If a lawyr can explain something in 30 seconds clearly enough to attract attention, that's not dumbing down. That's skill. Bad lawyers will mislead. Good lawyers will educate. Same as before. Different medium. 3. “𝐒𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐫 𝐥𝐚𝐰𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐝”. W𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲 You had 30 years to build reputation. If a junior with a phone can outcompete you, the problem isn’t TikTok. It’s positioning. Experience still wins, but only if people know you exist. You don’t get points for being good in silence. 4. “𝐃𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚” 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐲 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 Dignity is not tied to the platform. It’s tied to the person. If you think using Instagram automatically makes you undignified, then maybe your dignity was a bit fragile to begin with. A billboard doesn’t make you cheap. A bad lawyer makes you cheap. 5. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐚𝐲 This isn’t about dignity. This is about control. For years, work flowed through gatekeepers: e.g. senior lawyers, panels, networks. Now? A young lawyer can build a pipeline directly. That’s uncomfortable. The profession isn’t being destroyed. It’s being exposed. The ones who adapt will grow. You can either learn how to play the new game or keep explainong why the old one was better. Your choice. P.S: By that logic, we should probably ban AI as well. After all, nothing threatens “dignity” more than a tool that can draft faster, analyse quicker, and sometimes think clearer than a lawyer with 30 years’ experience. https://lnkd.in/gyU76jV5 #kbhsays