Reason First: Michael Avenatti Found Guilty, Justice and Selfishness Win the Day

When an attorney needs defense attorneys, that usually means that there’s real trouble. Former lawyer Michael Avenatti received a guilty verdict related to an extortion case involving the athletic apparel giant Nike amongst other charges. He faces at least two scores in prison at sentencing in June 2020. Known as the lawyer for adult film actress Stormy Daniels, Avenatti seemed poised to even one day ascend to the highest office in the land. Now, he is confined to a jail cell and allegedly being treated “like a caged animal.” Good. His smugness and subjectivism did him in this time. He just knew that his thousand dollar suits and slick talk would get him out of this jam. Such was not the case.

Avenatti’s dismissal of the facts lead to his guilt. Rather than identify with reality and be honest, he shredded up integrity and burned any traces of personal credibility. Because of his oversized altruism (not ego) he ought to go down as one of the worst lawyers in American justice.

What separates an upstanding, selfish, and good lawyer from someone like Avenatti? It is the fact that such an attorney never sacrifices the truth for shine on television and mobile device screens. It means that such a lawyer represents their client to the fullest and upholds reality as the ultimate arbiter. The issue with Avenatti is not the fact that he made honest mistakes but that he breached morality. By saying that he would go against Nike for false information related to their grassroots projects, he chose to go against the facts of reality. He possessed the opportunity to do the right thing and not advance a falsehood. He decided to pursue this ugly ideal and is now paying for it.

The way that he may be characterized now is a selfless, vicious person who never knew the definition of selfishness. Avenatti never recognized how his actions meant the attempt at destroying truth. Only the attempt can be made. Truth is on the side of the most consistent, objective individual. Once a person deviates from the truth, they must be morally pulverized. Their sense of right and wrong must be illuminated like a laser light cutting through the darkness. Avenatti’s guiltiness should serve as a reminder that those who work as agents of the law can go against it as well. As a liar and extortionist, Avenatti has proven that it takes more than some slick fast-talker to champion cases. He’s the bully on the schoolyard that spits a good game but isn’t trying to stick up for justice but just hear himself talk.

While he may have stunned some with his million-dollar words, his Jimmy “Slippin’ Jimmy/Saul Goodman/ Gene Takavic” McGill persona caught up with him. As he now awaits his punishment for crimes that didn’t have to be committed, the American people ought to take note of what a false prophet looks like without all of the mystical connotations. It’s not some figure with a sign of separatism that an individual has to look out for but the “lawyer” dangling favors and trinkets all the while he is full of corruption.

So, what’s the solution here? Well, Avenatti will most likely rot in a cell somewhere. It’s either that or he’ll weasel a deal to be held at “Club Fed” and live a more comfortable life behind the wall. But what needs to be taken away from all of this is the fact that young lawyers coming onto the scene should view Avenatti’s ordeal as a cautionary tale. It is better to tell the truth because it benefits others, yes. But more important, it is a selfish desire to always show respect to your own system of values. A hierarchical plan ought to include an objectivity that is solid and sterling. For those about to take the bar examination, let their ethics be not to avoid their name being splashed in the media as the guilty, but to position themselves to always tell the truth and have their ego as their refuge.