Despite the rough atmosophere, Turow says,"There's honorable intellectual competition...it'sfun and inherently interesting and there are verybright colleagues."

Although Turow hadn't really considered lawschool until his years at stanford, he says he hasalways had a special love and admiration for theprofession.

But Turow agrees that many students choose toenter the law profession because they see it as apath to riches. That is the reason many peopledon't go into teaching which is "a nobleprofession, but grossly underpaid." "Certainlypart of the attraction is making money," Turowsays.

"The law remains attractive because of itscentrality. It's the great preserve of theundergraduates," Turow says. "It's many times forthe student who doesn't know what else to do.

"But they [these students] are usually the oneswho have trouble in the profession," he adds.

Out of law school in 1978, Turow became anassistant U.S. attorney in Chicago. He spent eightyears as a deputy prosecutor and was involved inOperation Greylord, a widespread crackdown topurge the Illinois legal system of corruption andfraud.

Near the end of his tenure, Turow successfullyconvicted Cook County Circuit Judge Reginald J.Holzer, who had served for 20 years before he wasfound guilty of extorting $200,000 in unpaid loansfrom lawyers and others who appeared before him incourt.

Holzer was the fourth Cook County circuit judgeto be convicted in the streak of investigations ofOperation Greylord.

During his tenure, Turow was reprimanded by theFederal Appeals Court for possibly havingobstructed justice by using a defense lawer as aninformant against his own client.

In the case Ofshe v. U.S., a Miami man,Ronald Arthur Ofshe, was arrested on cocainecharges. When Marvin Glass, Ofshe's attorney,learned that he was a target in "OperationGreylord," he offered to provide drug-relatedinformation about Ofshe to the Chicago U.S.Attorney's Office in exchange for favorabletreatment in his own case, according to The NewYork Times.

The Office accepted his offer, and Glass metperiodically with Turow, the designated contactfor the information exchange, according to The NewYork Times.

Turow, who was supported by U.S. attorney AntonValukas, said the Appeals Court's reproaches ofhim for obstruction justice were "disgraceful,lacking in legal or factual basis," and that hisactions were approved by his superiors.

Now, Turow is in private practice on the otherside of the bar, on the defense. And he is stillbalancing three lives.

"I do less legal work and more writing." hesays "I find my life very rich due to both."

And colleagues agree that although his legalsuccesses are overshadowed by his literary ones,Turow remains in their eyes primarily an excellentattorney.

"He's a phenomenally talented lawyer and peopleshouldn't forget that," Pearl says. "He has greatjudgment and wisdom. He knows people and how toanalyze a situation."

And Pearl says he admires the way Turow hasbalanced his two careers and family obligations.

"Scott and his wife thought this out verywell," Pearl says. "It's important to them to notlet this change their lives."

"He needn't be a lawyer but it's real importantto him," Pearl adds.

And meanwhile, between defending and fathering,Turow, who lives in the same house in which hewrote his two bestsellers, still commutes to workevery day. And on the morning train from Wilmetteto the Sears Tower, blueprints for another novelare in the making