by Chrissy Giuliano, 3L Contributor
Think like a lawyer:
The one thing every professor first year said we would learn. When I first heard this phrase during orientation, I had no
idea what it meant. As my first year dragged on, I developed a jaded view of
the phrase, believing that it had no real meaning. I thought professors lorded
the phrase over us as a way to make the law seem mysterious or because their
law professors lorded it over them. So, what does “think like a lawyer” actually
mean?
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After two and half years of law
school, I am happy to say that I have shaken off my jaded view and found
meaning in thinking like a lawyer.
Obvious as it may be, the phrase refers to a thought process we continuously develop
over time. It enables us to identify more than one side to an issue. There is
no denying that law school changes you as a person. Aside from becoming
disturbingly excited over hornbooks and study supplements, we start to
understand just how different law school is from other academic endeavors as we
question what were once clear-cut matters. Sometimes it is hard to shut off
this thought process, especially when with friends outside of law school who do
not care what the word “reasonable” means. To them, that’s why dictionaries
exist.
In my quest to figure out what it means to “think like a
lawyer,” I turned to Duquesne Law’s own professors for insight.
“‘A lawyer is trained for two things and two things only. To
clarify - that's one. And to confuse - that's the other. He does whichever is
to his client's advantage,’” said Jacob Rooksby, assistant professor of intellectual
property, quoting the fictional presidential candidate, Hal Philip Walker, in Robert
Altman's 1975 classic Nashville. While
Professor Rooksby acknowledged the cynicism, he added, “The lawyer's craft
always involves interweaving critical reasoning with strategic thought.”
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Associate Dean Jane Campbell Moriarty believes thinking like a lawyer is “both a method
and a practice.” This is exercised “when we deconstruct a problem, an idea, a
document or an argument to tease out its strengths, weaknesses, and potential
inconsistencies.”
With attention to detail and persistence of thought, “really
good lawyers . . . maintain an open mind and a belief that they are life-long
learners,” Dean Moriarty said.
Thinking like a
lawyer has no single meaning. As we continue
in our education and future careers as lawyers, we must have our own personal
sense of what it means. I challenge everyone to graduate from law school with
that sense. If we do, we will take something with us from first year that is
more valuable than recounting the facts from Palsgraff. And in the spirit of Dean Moriarty’s thoughts, may you
never stop learning how to think like a
lawyer.
Chrissy Giuliano is a third-year law student at Duquesne and
the editor-in-chief of Duquesne Law Review.
