Paula A. Franzese, Seton Hall Law School, Eugene D. Mazo, Duquesne University School of Law, and Lawrence Spinelli, Overseas Private Investment Corporation, have posted The Lawyer-Hero: Lessons in Leadership from Watergate to the Present Day, which is published as 54 University of Toledo Law Review 359 (2023):
--Dan ErnstIn recent years, a growing body of literature has turned to examine the critical role played by lawyers in the tasks of civic reinvention and restoring public trust in the United States. Some of this literature focuses on the importance of developing leadership skills in law students and young lawyers. Other literature looks to recognize the relevance of historical exemplars in helping lawyers to meet the tests of contemporary practice and engagement. Whether serving as public officials, politicians, general counsel, law enforcement agents, or members of law firms or public interest organizations, there is no question that lawyers today are asked to display leadership skills amidst increasing volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. Rising tides of public distrust, cynicism, and weariness compound the challenges that contemporary lawyers face.
Peter W. Rodino, Jr. (January 1974) (LC)
As the nation marks the fiftieth anniversary of Watergate, this Article seeks to offer lessons for today’s turbulent times from the leadership of Congressman Peter W. Rodino. In 1972, several aides associated with President Richard M. Nixon's re-election campaign broke into the offices of the Democratic National Committee in the Watergate building in Washington, D.C. The trespassers were caught wiretapping phones and stealing documents. Nixon endeavored to cover up their crimes, and his role in the conspiracy eventually led to articles of impeachment being drafted against him. On August 9, 1974, he resigned from office in disgrace. Peter W. Rodino of New Jersey, who was then the chair of the House Judiciary Committee, presided over the House’s impeachment proceedings and met the resultant national crisis with a steadiness and dignity seldom witnessed in the public sphere. This Article examines Rodino's approach to leadership during this time of social and political discord and explains why Rodino should be viewed as an effective model to lawyer-leaders in all spheres of professional and civic life today.
Part I sets forth the principles of effective leadership for lawyers, particularly in times of unrest and malaise. Part II looks at the making of a transformational leader by examining Rodino's life, early career, and the forces that shaped his time in practice and public service. Rodino's tenure in office reached its pinnacle during Watergate, when he was called to conduct the impeachment hearings against Nixon. To this day, many believe Rodino’s stewardship yielded "the gold standard for what Congress is capable of doing" during a national crisis. Part III looks beyond Watergate at the impeachments of Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, when the presidency was again in crisis and when lawyers were again responsible for the wrong-doing. Part IV returns to Rodino's leadership acuities, extracting object lessons for integrity-led management in uncertain times. The Article concludes by examining how Peter Rodino's legacy can help to inform successive generations of lawyer-leaders in the tasks of restoring civic engagement and vindicating the public’s trust.
