Laughing lawyers

Legal comedians may sometimes inadvertently show themselves up by taking laughable points, but few have the courage to take to the spotlight in order to prove it can be deliberate.

The English legal profession has Bob Mortimer of Vic and Bob, a one-time assistant solicitor, while there is, unlikely as it seems, an annual funniest lawyer competition in New York (as an indication of the standard, one recent contestant told audiences that he was missing a continuing professional development class in ethics to perform for them...

but that he paid a guy $10 to take it for him).

And now, the Canadian Lawyer magazine reports on a former Crown prosecutor in Montreal who has turned to comedy.

Franco Montesano makes a play of his heritage - 'I didn't choose to be a criminal lawyer, but being Italian, I was born into a criminal family' - and remains a member of his local bar, presumably just in case it all goes wrong.

He looks back at practice fondly: 'I was a criminal lawyer and everyday I heard about assaults, threats and sexual harassment.

And that was only my secretary.' No heckling please.