The Professional Identity of Lawyers
The Practice
March/April 2016
How does becoming a lawyer change you?
March/April 2016
The Professional Identity - Formation of Lawyers
Where do new lawyers locate their professional identity among the other roles in their lives? More specifically, how does the law student’s conception of his or her professional role shift during the law school experience?
Drawing Your Own Path
It is clear that the professional identity of lawyers will continue to grow and change in the coming years. While all may not agree with the drastic picture painted by thinkers like Richard Susskind—who portends the end of the professions as technology disperses expertise—no profession is immune to change. As Susskind argues, the tasks that a doctor or nurse does today are quite different than they were 50 years ago.
Professional Identity in Practice
What is the professional identity of a practicing lawyer? To answer this question, many reach for a technical definition, seeking to describe what lawyers do in their day-to-day jobs. On a quotidian level, lawyers file briefs, conduct depositions, write memos, and provide legal opinions. More broadly, they seek to interpret and apply the law on behalf of their clients, practicing the zealous advocacy that characterizes the legal profession.
The Health of the Profession
Substance use and other mental health concerns among lawyers have received greater attention in recent years, but important questions remain. An article published in February 2016 by the Journal of Addictive Medicine attempts to address some of these questions.
What Is Good in the Law and in Life
Howard Gardner is the John H. and Elisabeth A. Hobbs Professor of Cognition and Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the director of the Good Project. Gardner recently sat down with David B. Wilkins, faculty director of the Center on the Legal Profession, for a one-on-one conversation on professional identity in the professions.
Model Objectives
After substantial debate, at the February 2016 mid-year meeting, the American Bar Association (ABA) adopted Resolution 105—Model Regulatory Objectives for the Provision of Legal Services. At its core, the resolution, which came out of the Commission on the Future of Legal Services, “provides model regulatory objectives for state regulators considering how to regulate nontraditional legal service providers.”
