The Wu-Tang Clan taught us that “cash rules everything around me.” And nowhere is this truer than in law firms.

I have learned a lot about people over the last two years. I have been through a lot. I have been betrayed by people I trusted. And I have been uplifted by people who possess a genuine moral compass and an authentic sense of values. Separating the posers from the real ones has been an unexpected gift in a long battle.

Here is what I have learned: It is dangerous to come between people and money. Most people will choose money every single time.

This is not cynicism. This is observation. And if you want to understand why law firms struggle with culture, why toxic partners survive for decades, why meaningful reform feels impossible, you need to understand this fundamental truth about human nature and economic incentives.

The Economics of Looking Away

Law firms are money-making machines. This is not a criticism. It is simply a fact. Partners eat what they kill. Compensation depends on origination credits, billable hours, and business development. Every relationship has a dollar sign attached to it.

This creates a problem when values and profit collide.

Good people will excuse awful behavior if they think addressing it will cost them money or the opportunity to make money. They won’t endorse the behavior. They will simply look the other way.

I have watched this happen repeatedly. Sexual harassment. Bullying. Substance abuse. Partners who treat associates like disposable labor. Rainmakers who create hostile work environments. The pattern is always the same. People know. People see. People stay quiet.

Why? Because that partner brings in three million dollars a year. Because that practice group generates twenty percent of the firm’s revenue. Because confronting the problem means risking the relationship and risking the money.

This is how monsters survive in professional environments. Harvey Weinstein operated for decades. Diddy operated for decades. Otherwise, decent people knew something was wrong and said nothing. Fear played a role. But so did greed. Speaking up meant risking access. Risking opportunity. Risking the next deal.

Law firms operate on the same dynamics, just at a smaller scale and with lower stakes. The partner who screams at associates? Everyone knows. The partner who makes inappropriate comments? Everyone knows. The partner who takes credit for other people’s work? Everyone knows.

And everyone stays quiet because the math is simple. Confrontation equals risk. Silence equals continued compensation.

The Convenient Lie

This dynamic makes it easy for people to believe lies that serve their interests.

When someone challenges a powerful person, the firm faces a choice. Investigate genuinely and risk losing a rainmaker or accept a convenient narrative that protects the revenue stream.

I have watched otherwise intelligent people embrace obvious falsehoods because the truth was expensive. Liars understand this. They craft narratives designed for a receptive audience. An audience that wants to believe. An audience that has financial incentives to believe.

This is not stupidity. It is motivated reasoning. People are remarkably good at convincing themselves that what benefits them financially is also what is true and right.

The partner accused of harassment? There must be another explanation. The associate who complained? Probably a performance issue. The pattern of behavior spanning years and multiple victims? Coincidence.

Convenient lies require cooperative believers. Law firms are full of them.

What Values Actually Mean

Here is what I have learned about values: They are what you do when it is inconvenient and does not maximize profit.

Anyone can have values when values cost nothing. Anyone can stand for integrity when integrity is easy. The test comes when standing for something means losing something.

Most people fail this test. They will profess values up to and until those values cost them money. Then the rationalizations begin. Then the exceptions emerge. Then the principles that seemed so firm suddenly become flexible.

I am not saying this to condemn anyone. I am saying this because understanding it is essential to understanding how law firms actually work.

When a firm says it values diversity but promotes the same demographic year after year, what does it actually value? When a firm says it values work-life balance but rewards partners who bill 2400 hours, what does it actually value? When a firm says it values respect but tolerates a partner who demeans staff, what does it actually value?

The answer is always the same. Firms value what they pay for. Everything else is marketing.

The Danger of Speaking Truth

Telling the truth is rarely convenient. Speaking up that something is wrong is only safe when the wrongdoer is weak. If they are in power, you are in trouble.

I have lived this. Speaking truth to power in a law firm environment is career-threatening behavior. The person who raises concerns becomes the problem. The whistleblower becomes the troublemaker. The truth-teller becomes the one who lacks judgment.

This is not an accident. It is a feature of the system. Power protects itself by punishing those who challenge it. And in law firms, power is measured in dollars.

The associate who reports a partner’s misconduct faces retaliation. The partner who challenges another partner’s behavior faces political consequences. The staff member who refuses to participate in something unethical faces termination.

Meanwhile, the person with power faces nothing. Because they generate revenue. Because they have relationships. Because removing them costs money.

This creates a brutal calculus for anyone with a conscience. Speak up and risk everything. Stay quiet and keep your career intact. Most people choose their careers. I do not blame them. I understand the choice even when I disagree with it.

Control Mechanisms

Abusive systems require control mechanisms. Law firms have plenty.

Compensation structures are control mechanisms. When your income depends on the discretion of a small group of people, you learn quickly not to challenge that group.

Origination credits are control mechanisms. When credit for business can be allocated or taken away based on relationships, you learn to maintain relationships even with people who behave badly.

Awards and recognition are control mechanisms. Who gets nominated? Who gets celebrated? These decisions signal what the firm actually values and who holds power.

Partnership decisions are the ultimate control mechanism. Years of work leading to a single vote by people whose favor you need. How likely are you to rock the boat during that process?

These mechanisms are not inherently evil. But they create environments where abuse can flourish. Where silence becomes rational. Where going along becomes safer than speaking up.

The Silence That Enables

Abuse depends on silence. The silence of victims, yes. But more importantly, the silence of bystanders.

There is a quote often attributed to Dante, though the sourcing is disputed: “The hottest places in Hell are reserved for those who, in times of moral crisis, maintain their neutrality.”

Whether Dante said it or not, the sentiment is true. Neutrality in the face of wrongdoing is not neutral. It is support for the wrongdoer. Every person who sees something wrong and says nothing makes it easier for that wrong to continue.

Law firms are full of neutral people. People who know something is wrong. People who have the standing to speak up. People who choose not to because the personal cost is too high.

I have been one of those people. I have seen things and said nothing because the timing was not right. Because I needed something from someone. Because I was afraid. I am not proud of it.

But I have also been the person who spoke up. Who challenged power. Who refused to go along. And I have paid for it. Every single time.

The Leadership Problem

Here is the hard truth that nobody wants to acknowledge: All problems in a law firm are leadership problems.

Toxic partners exist because leadership allows them to exist. Bad culture persists because leadership permits it to persist. Values get compromised because leadership compromises them.

When a firm tolerates behavior that contradicts its stated values, that is a leadership decision. When a firm protects a rainmaker at the expense of everyone else, that is a leadership decision. When a firm chooses revenue over integrity, that is a leadership decision.

Healthy law firms are those with values-driven leadership. Leaders who make hard decisions. Leaders who remove toxic people even when it costs money. Leaders who demonstrate through action that certain behaviors are unacceptable regardless of how much business someone brings in.

These firms exist. They are rare. They are almost always led by people who have decided that some things matter more than maximizing profit.

Evil Is Real

I have come to believe that evil exists in the world. Not cartoon evil. Not mustache-twirling villainy. Ordinary evil. The evil of people who do harm because they can. Because it benefits them. Because nobody stops them.

Evil banks on greed. Evil banks on self-interest. Evil banks on weak people who will not stand in its way.

Law firms are not uniquely evil places. But they are places where the incentives align in ways that let bad actors thrive. Where the structures protect power. Where the economics reward silence.

If you work in a law firm, you will eventually face a moment where your values and your interests conflict. You will have to decide who you actually are.

Most people discover they are weaker than they thought. Some people discover they are stronger. Either way, you will learn something about yourself.

I have learned a lot about myself over the last two years. I have learned what I will tolerate and what I will not. I have learned what I will sacrifice to maintain my integrity. I have learned who my real friends are.

And I have learned that speaking truth in law firms is dangerous business. It remains worth doing anyway. Not because it will be rewarded. Not because it will be easy. But because some things matter more than money.

The Wu-Tang Clan was right. Cash rules everything around us. But it does not have to rule us.