Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Session 3, 1:30-2:15pm
"Plays Well with Others": What Contract-drafting Exercises Can Teach First-Year Students about the Practice of Law and Themselves
Travis Dale Jones, Rosemary L. Dillon
Program Code: T3F
Our focus will be on how a group assignment to negotiate and draft a contract can build first-year students’ research and writing skills. These assignments have been a part of Texas Tech’s Legal Practice program for a number of years. The assignments can ignite students’ interest in the practice of law. Furthermore, this type of assignment addresses concerns that traditional methods of legal education have an alienating effect on students (as described by Lawrence Krieger, among others).
The assignment provides an avenue for practical skills development during the first year. In addition, the assignment introduces a different form of legal writing, one that may be more appealing to students who do not envision life as a litigator. Because the assignment involves a team negotiation, students also learn about personal interactions in a professional setting. They come to appreciate the difference between legal standards of professional responsibility and their own moral compasses.