Why do lawyers get a bad name when an economics professor writes an article?
Because some lawyer's going to try it based on Professor Bleeding Heart's interpretation of the data. C'mon FalconJimmy, certainly you could make an argument for such protection under the ADA, couldn't you? I think I probably could, especially if I were going to get a cool 30% of the award. But since I'm just a 2L, the more likely scenario is Gloria Alred will be the first to attempt it on behalf of some ugly Hollywood type. And Ms. Alred has legitimate research to back her up.
Hmmm... well, I guess that's one way to look at it. the other would be that attorneys function in society and are part of society. To blame them for everything that occurs in society is something some people do. However, I don't see how that reflects poorly on attorneys. That reflects poorly on people who don't take the time to understand what attorneys and the judiciary do. Attorneys don't file suit for themselves (generally). They file on behalf of plaintiffs. Attorneys also don't award large settlements. That's done by juries (and sometimes judges.)
So, what you're saying is that any time an academic, in any field, publishes anything, it makes attorneys look bad because some members of society might file suit and other members of society might award damages?
Yeah, not seeing it. Then, perhaps we have different ideas of the role of attorneys in society.