University of Utah
LAW 692 (College of Law)
"Lawyering Skills"
Linda Smith
(Taught Fall and Spring quarters every year)

1. Skills + Civil Clinic (or + Defenders)
2. Needed service. Students work in pro bono and poverty law offices, serving poor, elderly or disabled individuals with basic legal needs.
3. Service subject matter relation. Students learn interactive lawyering skills (e.g. how to counsel clients) and perform the skills as part of their service.
4. Class contemplates learniing through service. Class includes discussion of skills, including experiences in placements, and paper regarding placement experiences.
5. Credit/assessment of learning from service. Class requires paper regarding skills in light of experiences in placement using skills, and paper is graded.
6. Service recipients evaluate service. The supervising attorneys must evaluate the students' work, and sometimes the clients served are also offered an opportunity to evaluate.
7. Service develops civic education. All placements are public interest law offices, and students see poor and disabled clients.
8. Knowledge enhances service. Skills class provides model for skills in preparation for service.
9. Learning from other class members. Students present papers regarding their experiences and relation of experience to course theories to small groups in the class.
10. Criminal Clinic Defender Component
11. Needed service. Students work in public defenders law offices, serving poor persons accused of crime and entitled to a free lawyer.
12. Service-subject matter relation, Students learn criminal trial skills and perform the skills as part of their service.
13. Class contemplates learning through service. Class includes paper requirement, and paper could be written with this focus.
14. Credit/assessment of learning from service. Class requires paper relying upon experiences in placement, which is graded.
15. Service recipients evaluate service. The supervising attorneys must evaluate the students' work.
16. Service develops civic education. Placement is public defender law offices, and students see criminal justice system in all its glory.
17. Knowledge enhances service. Criminal Process Class provides instruction in criminal law and Trial Advocacy class provides instruction in trial skills in preparation for service.
18. Learning from other class members. Students COULD present papers regarding their experiences and relation of experience to course theories to entire class.

TEXTS

Required:

Binder, Bergman & Price, Lawyers as Counselors (1991) Gifford, Legal Negotiations (1989)

Utah Rules of Professional Conduct (Handouts in Copy Center) Short Handouts (Copy Center)

EDUCATIONAL GOALS AND METHODS

This class has four educational goals:

• to learn theories and models for lawyering skills, focusing upon interviewing, counseling, negotiating, and problem-solving
• to be able to plan and execute these skills
• to accurately critique one's own and others' performance of these skills
• to criticize, support, or alter the theories based upon one's own experiences, observations and analysis.

We will follow this approach:

• The texts present theories about lawyering skills and models of "good lawyering" We will discuss and observe videotaped lawyering performances in class. Students will perform the lawyering skills in role play exercises. We will videotape some of these exercises and use them for further discussion in class.
• Students will be videotaped in mock interview, counseling, and negotiating sessions. These tapes are then privately critiqued and graded
• Students will observe and perform most of the skills with actual clients during either Fall or Spring Semester. You may acquire live lawyering experiences in one of the following ways: Civil Clinic (2 or 3 cr., either F or S) Criminal Clinic (6 cr. F and S) Private Employment or Volunteer work with an office that provides attorney supervision and in which the lawyer allows the student to be directly involved with clients (interviewing, counseling) or with opponents (negotiating) or to participate in investigation, discovery or strategy sessions in on-going cases.
• Finally, students will meet in small groups to discuss your lawyering experiences. You will write and present analytical papers that criticize, support, or alter the theories about lawyering based upon the live lawyering you have observed and experienced. Students participating in live lawyering experiences during Fall Semester will meet during the last two weeks of Fall Semester. When students have committed to participate in live lawyering experiences during Spring Semester, they will meet for presentation and discussion during weeks 10-13 of Spring Semester and will receive a grade of "T" (Thesis in process) in the interim.

COURSE REOUIREMENTS

In order to receive credit, the following assignments must be completed. Grades will be based
upon these assignments:

         Videotaped Session of Interviewing
         Videotaped Session of Counseling
         Videotaped Session of Negotiating
         Outline(s) for Counseling and/or Negotiating Session(s)
         One paper analyzing a theory about a skill based upon clinic 

experiences) and readings.

• Performance of roleplays (both as attorney and client) and critique of fellow students.
• Regular class attendance and participation. (Unexcused absences may negatively affect overall grade for the course).

LAWYERING SKILLS CORNERSTONE SCHEDULE

DAY      DATE  SUBJECT/MEETING
Mon.     8/24  Introduction & Role Plays
Wed.     8/26  Interview Structure
Mon.     8/31  Theory Development in Interviews
Wed.     9/2   Interview Role Plays
Mon.     9/7   LABOR DAY -- NO CLASS
Wed.     9/9   Interview Techniques    and Discussion/Feedback
Mon.     9/14  Interview Role Plays
Wed.     9/16  Feedback and Discussion  Problemsolving
M-T      9/21-22       Videotaped Interview Sessions'
W-F      9/23-25         Videotape   Viewing & Critique
Mon.     9/28  Counseling  Structure
Wed.     9/30  Counseling  Role Plays
Mon.     10/5  Counseling  Techniques and Dicusion/Feedback
Wed.     10/7  Counseling Role Plays

Mon.     10/12 Discussion/Feedback and  Difficult Clients & 

Lawyers' Personalities

Wed. 10/14 Interviewing & Counseling for "Doing Deals"

Th-F. 10/15-16 Videotaped Counseling Sessions'

10/19 - 10/23 FALL BREAK,

Mon. 10/26 Negotiation Strategy & Planning

DAY / DATE SUBJECT/MEETING READING ASSIGNED

Wed. 10/28 Negotiation: Opening to Settlement Gifford Ch. 6l7f8l9 Video Material and Mini Role Plays

Mon. 11/2 Negotiation Role Plays Role Plays --Negotiation I

Wed. 11/4 Discussion/Feedback No New Reading

Mon. 11/9 Negotiation Role Plays Role Plays --Negotiation II

Wed. 11/11 Discussion/Feedback & Mediation Gifford Ch. 11

Mon. 11/16 Negotiation Role Plays Role Plays--Negotiation III

Wed. 11/18 Discussion/Feedback No New Reading

Th-F 11/19-20 Videotaped Negotiation Sessions Role Plays to

be Distributed

Mon. 11/23 Groups A & B Meet & Discuss Presenters submit Draft Papers

Wed. 11/25 Groups C & D Meet & Discuss Presenters submit Draft Papers

Thur. 11/26 THANKSGIVING

Mon. 11/30 Groups A & B Meet & Discuss Presenters submit Draft Papers

Wed. 12/2 Groups C & D Meet Presenters submit Draft Papers

Mon. 12/7 NO CLASS

' Videotaped session of interviewing will be scheduled throughout these days with students serving as "clients" and "attorneys" for one another. Videotapes will be viewed, critiqued (and graded) with Linda Smith during the remainder of the week in Linda Smith's office (Room 117). Viewing will take approximately an hour per student and will be held as scheduled. No other class meetings will take place during the week.

' Videotaped session of counseling will be scheduled throughout these days with students serving as "clients" and "attorneys" for one another. Videotapes will be viewed, critiqued (and graded) with Linda Smith during the following week(s) in Linda Smithis office (Room 117). Viewing will take approximately an hour per student and will be held as scheduled.

3 Videotaped session of negotiating will be scheduled throughout these days with students serving as "attorneys" opposite one another. Videotapes will be viewed, critiqued (and graded) with Linda Smith during the following week(s) in Linda Smith's office (Room 117). Viewing will take approximately an hour per session, and students may see their videotapes with their "opposing counsel" or individually as they so schedule.

ADDITIONAL READING

The following books, are recommended as additional reading:

Bastrass & Harbaugh, Interviewing, Counseling & Negotiating (1990) Bellow & Moulton, The Lawyering Process (1978) Berger, Mitchell & Clark, Pretrial Advocacy (1988) Binder & Bergman, Fact Investigation (1986) Brown & Dauer, Planning by Lawyers (1978) Fisher & Ury, Getting to Yes
Goldberg, Green & Sander, Dispute Resolution (1985) Haydock & Herr, Discovery: Theory, Practice & Problems Haydock, Herr & Stempel, Fundamentals of Pretrial Litigation Hartje & Wilson, Lawyers' Work (1984)
Mauet, Fundamentals of Trial Techniques (1980) Mauet, Fundamentals of Pretrial Techniques (1988) Riskin & Westbrook, Dispute Resolution and Lawyers (1987) Williams, Legal Negotiation & Settlement (1983)

PREPARATION

The role playing exercises are the "laboratory" where we test the lawyering theories and learn about our individual propensities in assuming the professional role of lawyer. Accordingly, it is crucial for each student to prepare the assigned role play exercises. Failure to prepare the "lawyer" role will make the exercise of little value; failure to prepare the "client" or "opposing attorney" role will prevent your partner from having a meaningful learning experience.

VIDEO NEEDS

You will be instructed about scheduling your individual videotaping session and critique sessions at the appropriate time. Darrell Brewer in the front office 581-6833 oversees the videotape scheduling. He will maintain the videotape schedules and should be contacted with any scheduling needs or problems.

OFFICE HOURS

Please feel f ree to contact Prof essor Smith in her off ice (Room 117) whenever she is available or to call 581-4077 (work) 583-9344 (home evenings) at your convenience. You may make an appointment with Professor Smith personnally or by writing your requested appointment time on the office door. (If she is unavailable at the requested time, she will put a note in your mail box.)

                                        Date: Wed, 27 Dec 1995 10:21:09 MST
                                        From: Renee Buchanan <RBUCHAN@ssb1.saff.utah.edu>