Connections

The inside cover of America magazine always has a column entitled “Of Many Things.”  A recent piece by Edward Schmidt, S.J., focused on the importance of connections. “Connections great and small help us find balance and identity”, he wrote. Is that what I was seeking as we drove southeast from St. Paul headed to Milwaukee for my reunion?

Reunions of lawyers are like other reunions in that they connect or reconnect those that life has flung to places, close and far, from where the original connection took place. But lawyers are sui generis, and I use that term thinking of Justice Hugo Black who, I am told, did not use Latin in his opinions. Our uniqueness comes from our training and what we do. Over the years I have used examples of my “job” such as this past weekend’s match between Nadal and Federer. For every stroke of one, the other quickly and frequently with devastating accuracy counters with a stroke intended to thwart or defeat the other. Not unlike a wide receiver trying to run a post pattern or Dirk trying to stop our beloved D Wade, the lawyer is constantly countered by defenses offered by another lawyer. Unlike athletes, we seldom have throngs cheering our moves. Frequently the cause we advocate is unpopular

What we have done over the years has formed what we have become.  

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When in School, Be a Student

There is a lot of discussion within the legal community about how law schools can (or should) prepare students for the business of practicing law.  It is common to hear complaints about how young graduates do not understand how to run a practice, and that the law school faculty and administrators should better prepare them for the real world.  I respectfully disagree.

There are so few times in our lives when we can truly immerse ourselves in the science of our profession.  The years in law school expose us to intellectual experiences that may never be found in a private practice.  The law school faculty is best equipped to challenge the law student’s mind in the most thought-provoking and critical ways.  In law school, we learn how to write clearly, concisely, and persuasively.  Law schools offer opportunities to study and understand fundamental legal rights that serve as the foundation for most legal disputes that arise within the practice.  Learning about and discussing, in a critical and theoretical manner, constitutional rights or contract rights or procedural options instills a preliminary basis for everything we do as lawyers.

The best way to run a well-respected law practice is to demonstrate strong skills as a lawyer.  You can’t do that unless you have obtained a good education – one that offers the type of critical legal analysis and knowledge that is acquired in school.

Don’t get me wrong.  There are many pieces that need to fit together properly to run a successful law practice.  I submit that a solid legal education is the first and arguably largest piece in the cog.  A commitment to an ethical method of practice with a high level of integrity will naturally lead to the acquisition of the other pieces necessary to operate the machine we call a law practice.

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Graduation: A Time for New Beginnings

We have a number of graduations to celebrate in our family this month, and there is a lot of excitement about the future. The buzz surrounding the start of a new and exciting chapter in the graduate’s life causes me to ask: Why don’t we join them and embrace the new and exciting things that could occur in our lives? I’m not talking about the concrete changes that we will see our graduates make — going off to a new school or starting a new job. I’m talking about creating our own changes to pave the way for a better professional future.

It’s not a bad idea to reflect upon our work as lawyers with an eye toward positive change. That change may be in the way we relate to our co-workers. That change may be in a new commitment to volunteer in the legal community. That change may be a commitment to incorporate a greater level of organization into our practice. That change may be a new routine to stay informed about recent developments in the law. That change may be taking time to become a better listener. That change may be setting aside time to appreciate how rewarding and stimulating our work is. It doesn’t really matter what the change is. The important thing is that we take this opportunity to reassess how we, like new graduates, can take affirmative action that will provide us with a new and fulfilling future.

I recently read a great quote from Mark Twain: “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than the ones you did.”  This is the type of statement hundreds of graduates will hear over the next few weeks. It’s time for all of us, new graduates and seasoned practitioners, to embrace this time of new beginnings.

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