The Profession.

Lawyers were few in the early English colonies because their skills were rarely required. In colonies like Massachusetts Bay the generally high level of education of the early inhabitants meant that some had experience in law. Gov. John Winthrop and the Reverend Nathaniel Ward were two such men. But there were no professional, full-time lawyers, and in colonies like early Virginia practically no one had any familiarity with English law. The demand for legal counsel came late in the 1600s and then only in the cities, usually fueled by merchants whose business interests were large enough and complicated enough to warrant seeking such help.

Attitudes.

For most people in the 1600s, going to court meant representing oneself. Lawyers were suspect, seen as individuals who profited off other people's misfortunes and tried to confuse honest folk with legal intricacies. From a modern point of...