In 2013, the faculty approved a
list of competencies that are important to the practice of
law. Here’s a list of those competencies, with those that this
class will become exposed to (E), will practice (P), or will become
competent in (C) marked appropriately.
Problem solving
- Identifies client problems and client objectives — E
- Identifies and diagnoses legal problems from sets of facts — P
- Demonstrates sufficient grounding in substantive law to recognize
legal issues and potential courses of action — P
- Identifies potential outcomes and consequences and develops
practical contingency plans to handle various possibilities — E
- Reads law and client facts carefully — P
- Listens well — P
- Uses knowledge and insights of others in finding solutions to a
legal problem — E
- Collaborates effectively to find solutions
Client counseling and management
- Establishes and maintains proper attorney-client relationships
- Gathers relevant information
- Analyzes decisions to be made — E
- Counsels clients about decisions
- Ascertains and implements clients’ decisions
- Demonstrates concern about clients’ problems and concerns and
works to gain clients’ trust
- Demonstrates sensitivity to whatever culture, gender, race, class
or other barriers might diminish communication and interaction
- Understands, timely responds to and anticipates clients’
concerns and demonstrates respect for clients’ choices and
values
- Understands how to advise and inform clients about choices,
expectations and risks, and how to advise and then work with clients to
reach decisions — E
Factual investigation and analysis
- Determines the need for factual investigation — E
- Plans a factual investigation and uses all available sources
including online resources
- Implements an investigative strategy
- Memorializes and organizes information in an accessible form
- Decides whether and when to conclude the process of
fact-gathering
- Evaluates the information that has been gathered — E
- Demonstrates understanding of the interplay between facts and
legal theories and between facts and rules of evidence — P
- Uncovers relevant facts (including those facts that help other
side) and demonstrates how the facts will be applied — E
- With respect to client and witness interviews:
- pays attention, listens well and takes notes as necessary;
- appropriately uses both open and closed questions to fully extract
information (and concerns with respect to client interviews);
- makes sure that she understands everything that was said and
follows up or clarifies so as to clear up any possible ambiguities or
misunderstandings;
- maintains eye contact with person being interviewed and conveys
interest and understanding with body language and words;
- avoids legal jargon and generally presents explanations that are
clear and simple; and
- decides, in advance, what she plans to accomplish in the interview
- Finds facts by mining documents, depositions and other paper
records for relevant information
Legal research
- Researches and applies relevant authorities — statutes, cases,
regulations — P
- Conducts effective and efficient research — P
- Uses primary and secondary sources to conduct research — P
- Uses applicable research tools to find relevant authority — P
- Uses applicable research tools to discover relevant factual
information — P
- Navigates statutory and regulatory authorities effectively — P
- Makes appropriate choices regarding free research resources — P
Legal analysis and reasoning
- Identifies and formulates legal issues — P
- Identifies relevant legal rules among a range of authorities — P
- Synthesizes legal rules — P
- Effectively applies facts to law — P
- Formulates effective legal theories — P
- Identifies and addresses counter-arguments — P
- Demonstrates careful case/law reading — P
- Identifies critical legal and factual issues presented by a legal
problem — P
- Identifies the main common law, statutory and regulatory rules and
authorities relevant to each issue — P
- Applies legal rules to each issue — P
- Determines answers to each issue and then puts the answers into a
sequence that answers the overall question posed by a legal
problem — P
- Identifies and addresses contrary authority and, with respect to
the contrary authority cited by opposing side, exposes weaknesses and
wrongly selected authority — P
- Sees client’s problem or legal issue from many points of
view and makes use of these perspectives in his or her understanding
and analysis — P
Writing and communication
- Organizes written documents effectively — E
- Explains and applies law accurately, effectively, and clearly
— E
- Correctly assesses the recipient’s perspective
- Uses effective oral communication
- Writes in concise, clear, grammatically correct, well-organized
language appropriate to the task — E
- Links facts to law logically and readably — E
- Speaks in simple declarative sentences, without rambling or using
jargon
- Oral communication is confident, respectful, and authentic
- Understands the audience(s), purpose and setting for a written
document or oral presentation and adapts approach accordingly
- Demonstrates sensitivity to whatever culture, gender, race, class
or other barriers might diminish communication and interaction
- Advocates in a persuasive and effective manner
Professionalism
- Demonstrates independent professional judgment
- Demonstrates self-directedness, self-awareness, and initiative
- Understands the business of law — E
- Takes responsibility for matters and assignments
- Project management
- Time management
- Proactively seeks supervision and/or feedback
- Assumes an active role in professional self-development
- Handles professional and personal stress and/or identifies when
she may need additional resources
- Engages in regular self-reflection
- Recognizes and take steps to address and/or resolve ethical
dilemmas
- Demonstrates collaboration skills by working effectively in a
team