Veteran lawyer and blogger Carolyn Elefant has an intriguing post on law.com about whether clients really want their lawyers to be courteous to opposing counsel. (This does not directly address the issue of whether lawyers should be civil to opposing counsel regardless of what their clients prefer–assuming it does not adversely impact substantive aspects of the representation.) The post includes insights and useful references to other sources on the topic.
Here is the link:
Law.com – Inside Opinions: Legal Blogs