At a recent law school “Career Day” panel discussion, a student asked the nine panelists, “How did law school help you prepare for what you actually do from day-to-day in your law offices?” The first lawyer answered, “I didn’t learn anything useful in law school.” After the other eight spoke, he asked to amend his statement – what he meant was that he had not learned any substance dealing with the problems he now deals with daily in his specialized practice. The reason he needed to amend his statement was this: the other eight panelists reminded him of all that he had learned in law school. And what was it that he and the others had learned, then mastered (for example):
These “meta-lawyering” skills (and others) are what law students need to practice daily. Anyone can memorize a bunch of laws. That’s not what law school is about. Law school is about becoming a lawyer – and becoming a lawyer requires arduous, purposeful, goal-oriented hard work. Mental sweat. Attention to the Components of Assessment-Targeted Study qualifies on all counts.