Lessons from Lincoln on Defending the Rule of Law
In the May/June 2025 issue of CT Lawyer Magazine, Connecticut Bar Association President and Pullman & Comley Litigation attorney James (Tim) Shearin reflects on how the messages in Abraham Lincoln’s 1838 Lyceum Address still resonate today, especially amid growing concerns about attacks on the rule of law and judicial independence.
Tim begins by acknowledging the concern shared by many members of the legal community in response to recent court-related headlines. While affirming that the CBA is not a political entity, he makes clear that the Association will speak up if and when the rule of law and the independence of judges are threatened.
Looking to history for guidance, Tim revisits Lincoln’s Lyceum Address—delivered at a time when mob violence and public disregard for legal institutions threatened the fabric of American democracy. Lincoln warned of the "increasing disregard for law which pervades the country” and predicted that if America were to fall, “we must ourselves be its author and finisher.”
Tim draws attention to Lincoln’s call for all citizens to commit to the Constitution and the rule of law with deep conviction. “Let reverence for the laws, be breathed by every American mother, to the lisping babe… let it be taught in schools, in seminaries and in colleges… let it become the political religion of the nation,” Lincoln urged. For Tim, that call is as relevant today as it was nearly two centuries ago.
In an era increasingly dominated by political division, Tim warns that passion alone is insufficient. He cites Lincoln’s caution that passion "could be our enemy” and emphasizes the enduring need for “reason, cold, calculating, unimpassioned reason” to guide our national discourse and defense of democratic institutions.
“Our voices must teach,” Tim writes. “Our voices must inspire belief.” He concludes by urging lawyers to embrace their responsibility not only as practitioners of the law but as public stewards of its legitimacy. “We must protect the rule of law. So, speak up!”
This article is currently available in the print edition only.