Didn't mama always warned you about Philadelphia lawyers? Direct from the Philadelphia Bar Association:
It's hard to talk about Philadelphia without talking about Philadelphia lawyers. And the Bar Association has forever been associated with the term "Philadelphia Lawyer." The term actually predates the nation's founding, having its origins in 1735 when Philadelphia lawyer Andrew Hamilton traveled to New York City to defend a poor printer, John Peter Zenger. Hamilton actually acted pro bono and accepted a case that no New York lawyer would take on. Defending Zenger against charges of sedition brought by the crown, Hamilton won the case and, in so doing, established the concept of freedom of the press more than 50 years before the First Amendment.Tags:
It was said that when the jury returned its verdict those in the galleries exclaimed: "Only a Philadelphia lawyer could have done it!" Ever since then the term "Philadelphia lawyer" has come to characterize a particularly adept lawyer: more clever; craftier; a lawyer who will find a way to prevail for his/her client.
