A reliable TV shorthand for an incompetent lawyer is the inability to hold on to important papers without dropping them all over the floor. This is why all your best lawyers have superior hand-eye coordination and a history of athletic excellence.
The last picture is from an episode of Law and Order, in which ADA Ross drops her papers on purpose so that the defense attorney will assume she’s incompetent and not take her seriously. Thus, the poorly coordinated lawyer trope combines with the pool hustler trope for a great bit of legal maneuvering.
serhasacomplaint 
Katie
March 13, 2014 at 11:30 am
I often try that tactic, but it doesn’t seem to work as well on a conference call.
observeratlarge
March 13, 2014 at 1:19 pm
That’s a good way to trap a man, too. Make them think you’re weak and helpless.
It’s one I never mastered.
I can tell you from personal experience, that stereotype is unfounded. I once worked for a patent attorney who was, in a word, a mess. His quite large office was covered with stacks of files, periodicals. rolling bags full of papers, and sample containers. You had to pick a path through to his desk.
He bought the cheapest clothes, and the tail of his polyester shirt would never stay tucked into his pants. He was a terrible procrastinator, and was always leaving the building between 10 pm and midnight so he could meet the mailing deadlines for patent filings.
One day he told me his greatest fear was that the power would go out, and he would have to climb over the 12′ high electric gate, topped with barbed wire, to get the mailbox on time. He said “I always carry a flashlight just in case.” Removing it from his pocket, he flicked it on, and the batteries were dead.
He carried close to the biggest case load in the department, and he was pretty successful. It’s true that he never had to leave the building to go to court.