proverb · Words worth keeping
A good lawyer, an evil neighbour.
A good lawyer, an evil neighbour.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying sets professional skill in law beside being a bad neighbour. It warns that an ability admired in one setting may be used unhelpfully in another.
What the words are saying
Good and evil give the same person opposing evaluations. A careful application asks how someone uses an advantage in everyday dealings rather than treating an occupation as proof of hostility. The text does not establish that legal competence makes people bad neighbours. Its useful contrast concerns skill and considerate conduct.
Everyday example
A skilled negotiator looks for a fair agreement with neighbours instead of exploiting every advantage in a minor disagreement.
When to use it
Use it to distinguish an ability from how it is exercised.
What it does not mean
The occupational judgment is a stereotype, not a verified rule about lawyers.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases
Entry 931 · Lawyer
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- English