Civility remains a problem in the legal profession. Teaching law students about civility is critical, but it is not enough. Continuing legal education (CLE) programs on civility make for a fun hour, but they similarly fall short. Adding phrases about civility to the oaths lawyers take certainly does not hurt, but those oaths typically lack accountability. Calls for civility and calls to return to civility have become routine in the legal profession, yet they ring hollow because they do not lead to significant change. We are naïve to hope that some lawyers will make substantial changes to their behavior in a profession riddled with systemic incivility just because others in the legal profession kindly ask them to do so. Instead, systemic change requires significantly altering the system—starting with mandating civility.

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