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68 A.B.A. J. 97 (1982)
For Lawyers, Brown Might Be Better

handle is hein.journals/abaj68 and id is 97 raw text is: Law Office Memos For lawyers, brown might be better By Donald E. Vinson THROUGHOUT history clothing has had tremendous ritual, ceremonial, and even economic importance. Uniforms, styles of dress, and the value of one's apparel have all conveyed a message. In modern times we are inclined -to put slightly less stock in clothing. The more gaudy and elaborate ceremonial styles have been reserved for special occasions, and in daily life we settle for a certain formal correctness in appro- priate clothes. Clients of professionals are aware of dress and have certain ex- pectations. It is probably safe to say that we have no clear-cut theory of clothes. We do have, however, many opinions, and for those whose professional success de- pends in part on the clothes they wear, these opinions must be an important starting point for a consideration of dress. Lawyers are among those who must be most concerned with clothes. In pre- senting their case to a jury, lawyers are in a highly exposed and vulnerable position, constantly under scrutiny. At- tention is focused on what they say, how they look, and the general impres- sion they convey. A particular suit might feel lucky or project a certain image that is right for a specific jury. One color or another will have greater appeal. The disposition of the judge also will govern clothes selection to a degree, as will the views of one's col- leagues. As specialists in the application of the behavioral sciences, we decided to systematize our knowledge of how dress influences the perceptions of the jury. We wanted to study certain prop- ositions about the way lawyers dress and to develop hard data about the in- fluences of clothing on a jury. As a starting point, we isolated the variable of suit color and investigated the impact that blue, brown, gray, and tan have on jurors. This is not meant to imply, however, that other factors are unimportant. Style, ornament, shirt and tie, height, weight, hair color, and fa- cial features are all part of the impres- sion one gives. But in order to be cer- tain that color was the factor studied, uninfluenced by others, we designed our investigation to control the impact of all other variables on dress. In short, we were interested in the at- tribution to the attorney of certain qual- ities on the basis of suit color alone. After careful consideration, 13 of these qualities were chosen: aggressiveness, friendliness, honesty, success, confi- dence, power, intelligence, arrogance, sincerity, believability, reliability, competence, and cleverness. Do jurors find the man in the blue suit more honest, capable, and friendly? Is the man in gray perceived as successful or arrogant? Does the man in brown lack cleverness? These are the kind of propositions this study was de- signed to test. We found answers, but not the ones expected. Jurors evaluate attorneys as well as arguments. According to attitude theory, they do not form positive or , ' '- -o&i- January, 1982 zVourne68 £7

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