Mark Dolliver's Takes: Law & Order

In our litigious society, it wouldn’t be a surprise if every American had a lawyer on speed dial. But no. In an Ipsos Insight poll for Avvo Inc., a Web site that rates lawyers, 11 percent of adults said they’d “been in a situation in which they considered hiring an attorney, but didn’t because they didn’t know how to choose the right one.” When respondents were asked to choose the fictional lawyer they’d most like to have represent them, Law & Order’s Jack McCoy topped the voting, followed closely by Perry Mason and Ben Matlock.