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BE-870218-Gerkman-Demeola (1).Pdf FOUNDATIONS FOR PRACTICE The “Whole Lawyer” and the Path to Competency for New Lawyers BY Alli Gerkman and Zachariah DeMeola or years, legal employers the Foundations for Practice proj- shared by the profession they hope have complained about ect undertaken by IAALS, the to enter. In one survey, 95 percent what they see as a lack Institute for the Advancement of of hiring partners and associates of preparation among the American Legal System, seeks believed that recently graduated Fnew lawyers. The media echo these to address in its attempt to close law students lacked key practi- 2 concerns, but often with a more the employment gap for law school cal skills at the time of hiring. In dramatic flourish, such as in this graduates. Findings gleaned from another survey, 76 percent of third- quote from a recently hired asso- this project have implications not year law students believed that ciate: “What they taught us at this they were prepared to practice law only for legal educators and legal law firm is how to be a lawyer. “right now,” while only 23 percent employers but also for regulators What they taught us at law school is of practicing attorneys believed as they assess the extent to which how to graduate from law school.”1 that recent law school graduates the current licensure process aligns This perceived skills gap may sug- were ready to do their jobs.3 with the needs of the profession. gest that law schools are, in fact, falling short when preparing their The gap between what new lawyers students for practice. But may it The Problem: What Do have and what new lawyers need also suggest that legal employers Attorneys Need Right Out of has exacerbated an already diffi- are falling short when it comes Law School to Succeed? cult employment situation. In the to developing hiring practices that past, law firms could rely on client result in good hires? Most law students are graduating fees to underwrite the training of from law school thinking that they new lawyers, but in recent years Most likely it is a combination of have the skills necessary to practice clients have demonstrated increas- these problems, both of which as attorneys, but that opinion is not ing reluctance to essentially pay to The Bar Examiner, Summer 2018 17 FOUNDATIONS FOR PRACTICE: THE “WHOLE LAWYER” AND THE PATH TO COMPETENCY FOR NEW LAWYERS bring first- or second-year attorneys undermine the public trust in our lawyers need to succeed, falling up to speed.4 The push by clients to legal system. under three foundation types: drive down costs is also occurring at a time when technology and Fixing the problem requires first • Legal skills — skills automation offer potentially more understanding exactly what new traditionally understood to efficient alternatives to traditional lawyers need as they enter the pro- be required for the specific discipline of law, such as legal services. In a 2016 survey, 21 fession. In 2014, IAALS, a national, preparing a case on appeal percent of law firms reported los- independent research center ded- ing business due to clients’ use of icated to facilitating continuous • Professional competencies technology, and 19 percent reported improvement and advancing excel- — skills seen as useful across losing business to non–law firm lence in the American legal system, vocations, such as managing providers of legal and quasi-legal sought this information when it meetings effectively services.5 launched Foundations for Practice Characteristics — features or (“Foundations”).8 Foundations is a • qualities, such as integrity and Among law graduates in the class of national, multiyear project designed trustworthiness 2017, which is the most recent class to accomplish three objectives: for which we have employment IAALS divided these 147 founda- the identification of founda- data, approximately 33 percent did 1. tions into 15 categories to create not secure full-time and long-term tions entry-level lawyers need to a more respondent-friendly survey jobs requiring a law license, and launch successful careers in the experience.9 So, for instance, the only about 75 percent landed a full- legal profession; characteristic “Have a strong work time and long-term job that either ethic and put forth best effort” falls required a law license or gave a 2. the development of measur- under the category of “Passion and preference to candidates with a able models of legal education that Ambition.”10 J.D.6 Although this reflects a mod- support those foundations; and est improvement in the percentage The survey asked respondents of graduates landing a full-time 3. the alignment of market needs to provide feedback in two criti- and long-term job requiring a law with hiring practices to incentiv- cal areas. First, the survey asked license over the class of 2016 grad- ize positive improvements in legal respondents to rank foundations as uates, there are fewer private prac- education. necessary in the short term, must tice opportunities for law school be acquired over time, advanta- graduates than there were before The Survey: Capturing the geous but not necessary, or not the recession. And while the per- Foundations New Lawyers relevant. Second, the survey asked centage of public service jobs has Need respondents to identify the helpful- been generally stagnant for more ness of hiring criteria, such as law than 30 years, the ABA recently To meet the first objective, IAALS school attended, class rank, clinical reported that entry-level hiring has developed a survey to capture the experience, and letters of recom- decreased in the government, aca- range of foundations new lawyers mendation. The survey also asked demia, and public interest areas.7 need to be successful in their field questions eliciting demographics and the degree to which those foun- and practice information from the The perceived skills gap affects dations are required. Using exist- participants. employment, but it is also an issue ing literature in this area, law firm that has even greater implications core competencies obtained from In 2014–2015, IAALS distributed the for the profession as a whole. New employers, and input from a diverse survey to lawyers across the coun- lawyers entering the workforce group of experts in the field, IAALS try and received responses from unprepared or underprepared identified 147 foundations that new over 24,000 attorneys with office 18 The Bar Examiner, Summer 2018 FOUNDATIONS FOR PRACTICE: THE “WHOLE LAWYER” AND THE PATH TO COMPETENCY FOR NEW LAWYERS locations in all 50 states, represent- ing most types of work settings and Foundations for Practice Terminology practice areas. This gave IAALS a Foundations: The legal skills, professional competencies, and significant amount of data to ana- characteristics that new lawyers need to succeed, falling under three lyze and interpret. foundation types: “Character Quotient” Matters Legal skills — skills traditionally understood to be required for the specific discipline of law, such as preparing a case on appeal to Practicing Lawyers In July 2016, IAALS published its Professional competencies — skills seen as useful across vocations, such as managing meetings effectively first report based on the survey results, Foundations for Practice: Characteristics — features or qualities, such as integrity and The Whole Lawyer and the Character trustworthiness Quotient.11 Overall, respondents identified 77 foundations necessary The whole lawyer: The new lawyer who exhibits a combination of the 77 specific characteristics, professional competencies, and legal for new lawyers in the short term. skills believed by Foundations for Practice survey respondents to be In other words, practicing lawyers fundamental to the success of new lawyers right out of law school believe that these 77 foundations are fundamental to the success of Character quotient: The extent to which new lawyers possess new lawyers right out of law school. the characteristics identified by Foundations for Practice survey IAALS called the new lawyer who respondents to be necessary for new lawyers in the short term exhibits this combination of 77 spe- cific legal skills, professional com- petencies, and characteristics the suggesting that new lawyers must The “Whole Lawyer”: “whole lawyer.” have a certain “character quotient.” Consistent Across All A glance at the 20 foundations that But the most striking aspect of these made it to the top of the list, shown Workplaces results was what they revealed in the sidebar on page 20, empha- As reported in The Whole Lawyer about the importance and urgency sizes the point. and the Character Quotient, survey of characteristics and, to a lesser respondents identified 77 founda- extent, professional competencies— Only one of these top 20 foun- tions they believed necessary for particularly when compared with dations, “Effectively research the new lawyers in the short term. But legal skills. The survey respondents law,” is a traditional legal skill. This were results different among the made clear that characteristics (e.g., is not to suggest that legal skills various practice settings or firm integrity and trustworthiness, com- were viewed as unnecessary by sizes? IAALS looked at the types mon sense), as well as professional respondents. In total, respondents of foundations that make up the competencies (e.g., listening atten- identified 98% of the legal skills whole lawyer for each practice set- tively and respectfully; arriving on as necessary, but they were identi- time for meetings, appointments, fied as foundations that could be ting and firm size, comparing them and hearings), were prioritized in acquired over time. Thus, the data to one another and to the overall brand-new lawyers over legal skills indicate that attorneys largely see “whole lawyer” results. The differ- (e.g., drafting policies, preparing a characteristics as the foundations ences among respondents were so case for trial). In fact, of the three that are most initially necessary in few that one of the most remarkable foundation types, characteristics new lawyers.
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