Uncategorized

The Power of Speech – Register Today!

by BLAdmin

Law schools play a pivotal role in shaping future leaders, and now, more than ever, the need for civility, ethics, and active engagement is paramount. Baylor Law is proud to invite you to a half-day symposium dedicated to enhancing professionalism and civility within law schools.

This event promises enriching discussions and insights to empower our future legal professionals to be positive difference-makers from day one.

Don’t miss this virtual opportunity to engage with thought leaders and experts in the field and gain invaluable knowledge that will shape the future of legal education.

– Leah

Welcoming Remarks

Thursday, September 28, 2023
1:30 – 3:00pm EDT/ 12:30 – 2:00pm CDT/ 11:30am – 1:00pm MDT/ 10:30am – 12:00pm PDT

Patricia Wilson
Interim Dean and William Boswell Chair of Law, Baylor Law

The State of Civil Discourse in America
and the Legal Profession

Thursday, September 28, 2023
1:35 – 3:00pm EDT/ 12:35 – 2:00pm CDT/ 11:35am – 1:00pm MDT/ 10:35am – 12:00pm PDT

Discussing the importance of freedom of speech and the consideration of techniques for encouraging law students and lawyers to approach the exercise of the right to free speech in a civil and professional manner to promote healthy and informed interactions.

Introduced by:
Leah Teague, Professor and Director of Leadership Program, Baylor Law

Moderated by:
Erwin Chemerinsky, UC Berkley School of Law, Dean and Jesse H. Choper Distinguished Professor of Law 

  • Deborah Enix-Ross, Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, Immediate Past ABA President
  • Mark Alexander, Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, Arthur J. Kania Dean and Professor of Law, President, AALS
  • April Barton, Duquesne University Thomas R. Kline School of Law, Dean and Professor of Law, Chair, AALS Leadership Section
  • Sudha Setty, CUNY School of Law, Dean and Professor of Law
REGISTER FOR SESSION 1:
The State of Civil Discourse in America
and the Legal Profession

Creating a Culture of Civility

Thursday, September 28, 2023

3:15 – 4:45pm EDT/ 2:15 – 3:45pm CDT/ 1:15pm – 2:45pm MDT/ 12:15pm – 1:45pm PDT

Discuss offerings, programs, and activities to support a culture of civility throughout the law schools, including specific discussions about professional identity formation, DEIB training for law students, student organization leadership training, public relations, and crisis management plans.

Introduced by:

Introduced by:
Lee Fisher, Cleveland-Marshall College of Law at Cleveland State University, Dean and Joseph C. Hostetler-BakerHostetler Chair in Law

Moderated by:
Kellye Testy, President and CEO, Law School Admissions Council (Panel Moderator)

  • Louis D. Bilionis, Cincinnati College of Law, Dean Emeritus and Droege Professor of Law
  • Timothy W. Floyd, Mercer University School of Law, Tommy Malone Distinguished Chair in Trial Advocacy and Director of Experiential Education
  • Tania Luma, Loyola University Chicago School of Law, Assistant Dean, Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
  • Leah Teague, Baylor University School of Law, Professor of Law and Director of Leadership Development Program
REGISTER FOR SESSION 2:
Creating a Culture of Civility

Join Baylor Law in welcoming award-winning author and renowned constitutional scholar Professor Akhil Amar discusses the historical underpinnings of Texas becoming a state, how civil discourse about important issues played a role in Texas’ formation, and why our modern First Amendment right to free speech is critical to our future success. Professor Amar will offer his insight into the key role the Federalist Papers and historical events play in understanding the importance our Founding Fathers placed on civil discourse. By better understanding our history, we will be better able to meaningfully engage with each other in the present day.

REGISTER FOR SESSION 3:
2023 Starr Federals Papers Lecture Series at Baylor Law
The Founding Fathers and the Importance of Civil Discourse
With Prof. Akhil Reed Amar
Uncategorized

The Power of Speech

by BLAdmin

Law schools, now more than ever, need to prepare their students to be active, engaged, civil, ethical leaders and difference-makers from the moment they graduate.

Please join us for a half-day symposium to consider how to enhance professionalism and civility within law school environments. Immediately following the two virtual panel discussions, we invite you to stay online for the Ninth Annual Starr Federalists Papers Lecture Series with Prof. Akhil Amar as he offers his insight into the historical underpinnings of the right to free speech and the importance of civil discourse. 

– Leah

Welcoming Remarks

Thursday, September 28, 2023
1:30 – 3:00pm EDT/ 12:30 – 2:00pm CDT/ 11:30am – 1:00pm MDT/ 10:30am – 12:00pm PDT

Patricia Wilson
Interim Dean and William Boswell Chair of Law, Baylor Law

The State of Civil Discourse in America
and the Legal Profession

Thursday, September 28, 2023
1:30 – 3:00pm EDT/ 12:30 – 2:00pm CDT/ 11:30am – 1:00pm MDT/ 10:30am – 12:00pm PDT

Discussing the Importance of freedom of speech and the consideration of techniques for encouraging law students and lawyers to approach the exercise of the right to free speech in a civil and professional manner to promote healthy and informed interactions.

Introduced by:
Leah Teague, Professor and Director of Leadership Program, Baylor Law

Moderated by:
Erwin Chemerinsky, UC Berkley School of Law, Dean and Jesse H. Choper Distinguished Professor of Law 

  • Deborah Enix-Ross, Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, Immediate Past ABA President
  • Mark Alexander, Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, Arthur J. Kania Dean and Professor of Law, President, AALS
  • April Barton, Duquesne University Thomas R. Kline School of Law, Dean and Professor of Law, Chair, AALS Leadership Section
  • Sudha Setty, CUNY School of Law, Dean and Professor of Law
REGISTER FOR SESSION 1:
The State of Civil Discourse in America
and the Legal Profession

Creating a Culture of Civility

Thursday, September 28, 2023

3:15 – 4:45pm EDT/ 2:15 – 3:45pm CDT/ 1:15pm – 2:45pm MDT/ 12:15pm – 1:45pm PDT

Discuss offerings, programs, and activities to support a culture of civility throughout the law schools, including specific discussions about professional identity formation, DEIB training for law students, student organization leadership training, public relations, and crisis management plans.

Introduced by:

Introduced by:
Lee Fisher, Cleveland-Marshall College of Law at Cleveland State University, Dean and Joseph C. Hostetler-BakerHostetler Chair in Law

Moderated by:
Kellye Testy, President and CEO, Law School Admissions Council (Panel Moderator)

  • Louis D. Bilionis, Cincinnati College of Law, Dean Emeritus and Droege Professor of Law
  • Timothy W. Floyd, Mercer University School of Law, Tommy Malone Distinguished Chair in Trial Advocacy and Director of Experiential Education
  • Tania Luma, Loyola University Chicago School of Law, Assistant Dean, Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
  • Leah Teague, Baylor University School of Law, Professor of Law and Director of Leadership Development Program

Discuss offerings, programs, and activities to support a culture of civility throughout the law schools, including specific discussions about professional identity formation, DEIB training for law students, student organization leadership training, public relations, and crisis management plans.

REGISTER FOR SESSION 2:
Creating a Culture of Civility

Join Baylor Law in welcoming award-winning author and renowned constitutional scholar Professor Akhil Amar discusses the historical underpinnings of Texas becoming a state, how civil discourse about important issues played a role in Texas’ formation, and why our modern First Amendment right to free speech is critical to our future success. Professor Amar will offer his insight into the key role the Federalist Papers and historical events play in understanding the importance our Founding Fathers placed on civil discourse. By better understanding our history, we will be better able to meaningfully engage with each other in the present day.

REGISTER FOR SESSION 3:
2023 Starr Federals Papers Lecture Series at Baylor Law
The Founding Fathers and the Importance of Civil Discourse
With Prof. Akhil Reed Amar
Uncategorized

Extreme Ownership – Book Review

by BLAdmin

Guest Post by Baylor Law Student Mike Brunger

The following post is a book review written by Mike Brunger, a student in our Winter 2022-23 Leadership Class. I hope you enjoy this book review as much as I did. – Leah

Extreme Ownership, by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin, is more than a book on leadership. It is a tool that can prove handy in anyone’s toolbox. This book is both captivating and easy to read. The authors present the reader with situations where ownership could be improved. But after employing Extreme Ownership principles in these situations, the results were incredible. 

The authors, Jocko and Leif, served as Navy SEAL officers in SEAL Team Three. This Team, more commonly known as Task Unit Bruiser, is the most decorated special operations unit that has served in the Iraq War. Under Jocko and Leif’s leadership, Seal Team Three experienced some of the most taxing combat in the history of SEAL Teams.

After leaving active duty, Willink and Babin launched a company called Echelon Front and embarked on a mission to share their stories from the battlefield. Traveling the world, they teach business professionals leadership tactics, specifically the importance of ownership. Each chapter of the book focuses on a specific element of leadership.

They start each chapter by telling a story from their time with SEAL Team Three. The story usually takes place in a high-stakes combat situation. Then, Jocko and Leif apply lessons from that story to a problem in the civilian world. The typical scenario likely involves a CEO needing realignment within their organization. This book is very military-heavy; however, you do not have to have a military background to understand and embrace the concepts taught in this book.

My wife, Vanessa, is a hotel company’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, she started working from home. As travel abruptly halted, the hotel industry was left in financial ruin. At home, at the same time, I could hear her having very tough conversations with staff members. On more than one occasion, she could be heard sobbing after terminating a team member due to the lack of revenue. The pandemic was full of uncertainty and fear. Fortunately, my wife was never on the receiving end of one of those calls.

Vanessa was having a conversation with one of her sales leaders one day. Her employee was disgruntled, venting quite loudly. Vanessa listened as her employee explained how she needed help understanding why the corporate office was constantly requesting reports. Moreover, she stressed how her hotel was already short-staffed, and at times she was stuck behind the front desk checking guests in. Amassing all the requested information was time-consuming. Vanessa, acting as the liaison between her hotels and the corporate office, tried her best to explain the reasons why. The call soon ended.

I was sitting in our living room holding a copy of Extreme Ownership. My wife entered the room, ready to explode! She knew I likely heard the entire discussion. But, before she said a word, I handed her the book and said, “Look at chapter ten.”

Chapter ten discusses the importance of leading up and down the chain of command. More importantly, the chapter explains why. The chapter begins by taking the reader to the Euphrates River bank, where SEAL Team Three’s leaders prepare for a combat operation. Leif and Jocko had just received an email from the Team’s higher headquarters staff, led by their Seal Team’s commanding officer (CO). Leif was livid! In the email, their CO requested clarifying information regarding the operation the Team planned to execute within the next few hours. Leif could not understand how “they” do not know what the Team does, how hard they work, and how busy they are. Additionally, Leif did not know why they had to stop what they were doing to answer “idiotic” questions.

Jocko did his best to calm Leif down. The CO required answers before approving the operation. He tried to help Leif see their combat operations through the CO’s eyes. It was the CO’s job to approve every mission, and it was Jocko’s job to put the CO in his comfort zone so the operation could get approved. Leif began to understand.

The CO and his staff operated from an office in the United States. Therefore, they could not fully appreciate the hard work the Teams were conducting. The more Jocko pushed situational awareness up the chain, the more comfortable they became. Jocko explained the “why” by telling Leif, “We have to lead them.” The more the Team communicated up the chain of command, the less they were “badgered” by the CO.

Chapter ten got my wife’s attention and is just one of many great chapters that can be applied to all aspects of business and life. I recommend this book to anyone. My wife had a copy of the book sent to all her sales leaders. I look forward to hearing stories about how her organization has used this book.     

Academia, Uncategorized

Leadership development for success, service, and significance: Upcoming Webinar Sponsored by Norton Rose Fulbright

by BLAdmin

While we focus our efforts primarily on legal education, we recognize the need for practicing lawyers and law firms to also encourage and support leadership development in the profession. We are always thrilled to discover kindred spirits who are doing just that! Today I write to introduce one of those to you and invite you to join us for an upcoming webinar.

Brett C. Govett, a Partner with Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP, is the creator and host of a series of leadership webinars on leadership. I am honored to be his next guest on Wednesday, April 26, 2023 (1:00 – 1:30 pm ET | 12:00 – 12:30 pm CT | 10:00 – 10:30 am PT) for a conversation about developing leadership skills and seeking opportunities to make a difference. Here is the link for registration for Leadership development for success, service, and significance. We hope you can join us!

We also want to take this opportunity to THANK YOU for your individual and collective efforts to incorporate more leadership development programming in law schools across the country. This important work is now a national movement because of the efforts of so many of you. Together we are making a difference as we better equip our law students for the important obligations and opportunities that await them after graduation. Please let us know how we can help you!

– Leah

Uncategorized

Lawyers Leading Higher Education

by BLAdmin

Special Guest Post By:

Patricia E. Salkin, Professor of Law and Senior VP, Academic Affairs, and Provost, Graduate and Professional Divisions,
Touro Law Center

A little-studied area about the role of lawyers in the higher education C-Suite has been highlighted in my newly released book, May it Please the Campus: Lawyers Leading Higher Education.  This multi-year examination of lawyer college and university presidents was undertaken as a Ph.D. dissertation in creativity.

Leading an institution of higher education is a demanding responsibility and one that requires a skillset that is comparable to those that successful lawyers must possess. Something significant is happening as the data shows that in each of the last three decades, the number of lawyers who have been appointed as college and university presidents has been doubling. By extrapolating the data from the first two decades of 2022, this trend not only continues, but by the end of the 2020s, it is likely that 10% of the sitting presidents of Carnegie classified institutions will be lawyers.

In addition to highlighting the skills and experiences that lawyers bring to campus leadership, the book explores the history of higher education focused on early lawyer presidents in the 1700s, the development of formal legal education, and the explosion in the number of law schools – leading to more lawyer faculty and more law deans actively engaged in higher education.  For some, creating a pathway to the presidency through a more conventional career path of advancement within the academy.  Yet, as the data reveals, a noticeable number of lawyer presidents are being tapped for these leadership opportunities with little to no prior academic experience – coming from government, the corporate world, and private law practice. 

As the list of law schools providing formal leadership training grows, supported by a fairly new AALS Section on Leadership, the opportunities for lawyers to lead in different sectors outside of the traditional law practice settings are enormous. 

May it Please the Campus, offers readers a treasure trove of data documenting the changing face of the campus presidency, and offering a glimpse into the backgrounds of lawyer leaders in higher education.  A website that hosts a blog provides additional data, stories, and news on lawyer presidents. See, https://lawyersleadinghighered.com  For example, the blog highlights John Mercer Langston, the first African American lawyer president, Frances Tarlton “Sissy” Farenthold, the first woman lawyer president, and lawyer Anthony Appel who reigned his presidency after 6 days on the job.

Please contact me with comments and suggestions for other lawyer presidents to highlight. [email protected]

Uncategorized

Secure Your Own Mask First: Work-Life Harmony in 2023

by BLAdmin

“Secure Your Own Oxygen Mask First,” by Laura Gibson, the President of the State Bar of Texas, is a terrific example of wellness in practice. So much of this equation comes from ensuring that we are taking care of ourselves so that we may take care of our clients and communities. We discuss the importance of well-being at Baylor Law to help students figure out how they will keep their work and personal lives in harmony* in the practice of law. Our message is that they should use the time during law school to figure out what works for them rather than waiting until they get to a crisis. This exercise requires a great deal of self-reflection and purposeful problem-solving, but the students who do so reap the rewards in practice. “Secure Your Own Oxygen Mask First” is a powerful analogy for finding harmony.

* We often hear this described as work-life balance, but we prefer the expression “work-life harmony.” See Chapter 11 of Fundamentals of Lawyer Leadership for a more detailed discussion of the difference.

Uncategorized

2023 AALS Annual Meeting: Leadership Events

by BLAdmin

We are getting excited about the upcoming programming at the 2023 AALS Annual Meeting! Below we have highlighted the Leadership Section’s programming and co-sponsored programming, along with some other panels that we thought you might find interesting. Hope to see you in San Diego!

Primary Leadership Section Programming:
How Teaching Leadership Can Make a Difference

Date/Time: January 7, 2023, 8:30 am – 10:10 am

Description: This year’s conference theme challenges us to think about how law schools and each of us as academics can make a difference and bring about positive change. Cultivating a leadership mindset in the next generation of lawyers is one of the most significant ways law schools can make a meaningful impact in the work around us. Leadership development is a critical part our professional responsibility and a lawyer’s greater duty to advance justice in our society. This panel will discuss the ways that leadership education in our law schools can bring about positive change in our organizations, government, and society.

Panelists:

April M. Barton
Organization: Thomas R. Kline School of Law of Duquesne University

Erwin Chemerinsky
Organization: University of California, Berkeley School of Law

Farayi Chipungu
Organization: Harvard Kennedy School of Government

Garry W. Jenkins
Organization: University of Minnesota Law School

Angela I. Onwuachi-Willig
Organization: Boston University School of Law

Hillary A. Sale
Organization: Georgetown University Law Center

Co-Sponsored Program: Incorporating Access to Justice & Pro-Bono Across the Law School Curriculum, Section on Pro Bono and Access to Justice

Date/Time: January 5, 2023, 3:00 pm – 4:40 pm

Description: Access to justice and pro bono service can be an effective lens through which to explore any law school subject, and yet most law professors do not include them in their syllabi. This session features faculty whose courses provide students with insight into how lower-income people navigate the legal system and the ways in which that may differ from what we learn in casebooks. Attendees will leave with practical and replicable tools to integrate access to justice and pro bono service across the law school curriculum.

Other programs that involve leadership topics that you may want to attend:

        1. Clinics and Institutional Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging, Clinical Legal Education Section

        Date/Time: January 4, 2023, 1:00 pm – 2:40 pm

        2. Critical Leadership, Accountability, and Justice Within Organizations, Civil Rights Section and Minority Groups Joint Program

        Date/Time: January 6, 2023, 10:00 am – 11:40 am

        Description: Lawyers and the organizations they lead have a duty to care for justice. This duty is important to accomplish justice, but also to justify the legitimacy of organizations and their lawyers. This duty requires that lawyers address and demonstrate progress toward social inequities, including problems of access, equity, discrimination, and under-representation of diverse constituencies. How do lawyers work for justice inside organizations? How can lawyers leverage their organizational roles and capabilities toward justice? How can lawyers hold their institutions accountable to act authentically to advance justice? What can leaders do to enhance and effectuate justice that is not performative?

        3. How Law Schools Can Make a Difference: DEI work in the Curriculum, in the Classroom, and in the Courtroom, AALS Symposium Program

        Date/Time: January 6, 2023, 1:00 pm – 4:40 pm

        Description: Changes in ABA standards have led to more inclusive and equitable law school curricula, which in turn have significantly impacted law school faculty and administrations, the practice of law, and the judiciary. This symposium will address the changes taking place, offer practical guidance for navigating these changes, and discuss how these changes affect the judiciary and the practice of law. 

        4. The Judiciary—Making the Least Democratic Branch of Government More Respected, Less Political, Litigation Section

        Date/Time: January 6, 2023, 1:00 pm – 2:40 pm

        Description: The Judicial Branch is the least democratic branch of government. This program will focus on balancing populism, politics, and qualifications in selecting judges (appointment, election, merit screening, and confirmation hearings); periodic performance review (terms, term limits, life tenure, retention elections, impeachment); recusal and peremptory strikes; other legitimacy concerns (court-packing). How do politics, qualifications, and merit screening affect the preference for judicial appointment or judicial elections? Are term limits an effective brake on the politicization of the judiciary, or is life tenure preferable? Can stricter recusal requirements be implemented, and would failure to recuse be severe enough to justify impeachment?”

        5. What a Difference a Difference Makes: Empowering Students through Self Determination Theory, AALS Discussion Group

        Date/Time: January 7, 2023, 1:00 pm – 2:40 pm

        Description: Law students arrive at law school excited to make a difference. Through a combination of (mostly unintended) factors, law schools manage to extinguish that excitement. We will discuss how to rekindle that excitement and create a long-burning passion for making a difference. We will consider the potential of self-determination theory, which teaches us that adults learn best when they are aware of their connections to others, their own autonomy, and a sense of competence. We will discuss how much we are doing to foster these principles in all areas of our law school education and what more we could do.

         

        These sessions were the ones that stuck out to us in our quick review of the program. Are you speaking in a session? Which sessions are you particularly excited about? Please include these sessions in the comments below!

        Uncategorized

        Law Firm ‘Burnout Advisors’

        by BLAdmin

        This article in the ABA Journal discusses law firms that are employing burnout advisors to help guide them when their attorneys are feeling overwhelmed. We applaud efforts to make sure that attorneys are not overwhelmed and are satisfied with their jobs. But what struck me as interesting is that this seems to be an exercise in emotional intelligence, relationship-building, and feedback loops through checking in with colleagues. While the firms in this article have outsourced that task, law firm leaders can also develop their own skills in these areas to gauge how their colleagues are doing and adjust on the fly rather than wait for a check-in. This is not to say that an outside advisor would not also be helpful, but a law firm leader who is in touch with his or her team will have a higher-performing team with less downtime or team members feeling unheard until the advisor comes back. It’s an interesting read that could lead to good conversations in class about the topic.

        View this post, here:

        https://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/firms-are-employing-burnout-advisers-to-keep-their-attorneys-from-getting-overwhelmed?

        -SLR

        Uncategorized

        Investing in Homegrown Leaders: Here’s How to Develop Effective Lawyer Leadership Skills

        by BLAdmin

        Leadership is a teachable skill, writes Yuliya LaRoe, and it’s important that lawyers learn it. In this article, LaRoe urges law practices to invest in team members by developing their leadership skills. To that end, she outlines a five-pillar leadership program, with skills and concepts to learn in each category.

        -SLR

        View this post, here:

        https://www.attorneyatwork.com/lawyer-leadership/

        Uncategorized

        Dear Summer Law Clerk,

        by BLAdmin

        Special Guest Post By:

        Martin H. Brinkley, Dean and William Rand Kenan, Jr. Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of North Carolina School of Law, Chapel Hill.

        As we roll into June and turn our focus to helping law students apply leadership skills in their summer internships and other opportunities, we reached out to Dean Martin Brinkley at UNC Law School requesting that he share some words of wisdom with all of our law students. We love what he wrote! Please share this letter with your students!

        Dear Summer Law Clerk,

        Before becoming dean of the University of North Carolina School of Law in 2015, I spent 22 years in private law practice at two large law firms.  I met, hired, and evaluated many, many summer law clerks. 

        You might well think that law students, by virtue of their temporary status in the firm, are about as low on the totem pole of “power” in a law firm as it can get.  That line of thinking misses the point.  Seeing whether you have the capacity to be someone powerful in the future is what the firm is doing with you in the summer.

        I remember from my practice days how some summer clerks seemed to grasp the dynamics and culture of the law firm naturally, while others – highly competent at law work, but emotionally clueless – blundered over the most obvious landmines.  For some of you, the analytical skills your professors have helped you develop have come easily.  But sensitivity to other human beings in an organization like a law firm, corporate legal department, or government agency is a different, equally important skill.  Years of experience have taught me that the ability to forge ties of sympathy and shared awareness can be learned and cultivated.  And even those of us who think we are “good with people” can improve at it. 

        Take my word for it:

        • The ability to work with other people through stressful, challenging situations over the long haul is a core leadership skill in the profession of law. 
        • This skill has nothing in common with the analytical muscles you’ve been building up in law school. 
        • The ability to work with others is a leadership trait your employer is looking for, at least as much as any traditional “lawyering” skill. 

                      Here are a couple of simple observations that apply to every workplace. 

        First:  Work hard.  Do great work.  Come early and stay late – if that is what the lawyers you’re working with on a given project are doing.  But otherwise, spend your time forming relationships.  Be enthusiastic about the firm and its clients, but avoid looking like a gunner. 

        You have been offered a summer job so that your employer can assess two things about you.  First, can you do the work that clients need done, at a level that will impress the clients and bind them closer to the firm over the long haul?  Second, are you a good long-term “fit” for the employer’s culture, not just now but for many years to come?  In short, will you wear well? 

        Trying too hard to impress those you are working with can signal, unintentionally, that you are needy of approval and lack confidence.  Take the compliments you receive graciously, but have the humility to ask the assigning lawyer what you could have done better.  Inviting criticism assures your employer that you are focused less on yourself than on doing a good job.  It suggests that if hired, you will take criticism well and, thus, wear well.

        Law firms, corporate legal departments, and other employers, no matter how prestigious, are not law schools.  Competition for grades and short-term prizes like law review slots are not what they are there to foster.  Legal employers are there to help clients to meet their goals and to offer rewarding careers to lawyers and staff.  That’s it.  Nothing more.  Their question about you is:  Can we see you as a person whom we enjoy working with?  Will you contribute to our organization over time?

        Second:  Respect, support, and befriend non-lawyer staff members.  A sure-fire way to exhibit quiet leadership in any work setting is to forge strong relationships with support staff. 

        Administrative assistants, IT professionals, and paralegals are the backbone of law firms, corporate legal departments, and government agencies.  Without their skills, clients cannot be served effectively. 

        Partners and experienced associates in law firms, and senior lawyers in other work settings, know this intimately.  Unless they are dysfunctional narcissists, they approach these vital co-workers with the greatest respect and affection.  Any hiring committee worth its salt will spot the summer clerk who courts only the powerful and ignores the rest.  For their part, support personnel can smell arrogance and self-regard a mile away – and will not hesitate to make their views known to the lawyers they work with.  When I was in practice, I would actively seek out the views of my longtime administrative assistant on our summer clerks.  She knew she had the power to blackball any clerk whose interpersonal skills did not impress her.  She was never wrong.

        My advice on this score: 

        • Make the copies yourself, after asking an administrative assistant (“AA”) how to work the machine.  Put in a new ream of paper when the supply is low. 
        • Print your own research and work products, or at least offer to, unless the AA tells you otherwise.
        • Enter your own time unless you are instructed otherwise.  If you are told to give your timesheets to an AA, turn them in on a daily basis.  There is nothing a good AA hates more than a lawyer who leaves all of his or her timesheets til the end of the week, much less the end of the month.
        • If you have a day when you aren’t being taken to lunch by a lawyer, bring your sandwich into the staff breakroom.  Show an interest in the families and lives of staff members. 
        • Call administrative staff by the titles preferred in the workplace you’re in (i.e., don’t call someone a “secretary” if the firm calls him or her an “administrative assistant”). 

        If you want to be viewed as a long-term asset to your summer employer, these suggestions should serve you well.  Best of luck to you.

        Martin H. Brinkley is Dean and William Rand Kenan, Jr. Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of North Carolina School of Law, Chapel Hill.