Learning, Lawyers and the Legal Sector in the UK - Essay Example

Learning, Lawyers and the Legal Sector Introduction: The history of law starts from 3000 BC and is marked with the development of human civilisation. Through the centuries law underwent drastic changes and acquired a status of its own. From the ancient code of conduct it has grown well to decide upon each and every part of our normal life, and now it determines how we live as citizens within the frontiers of one's own country. Along with this transition the practice of law has originated different law professionals in every country to suit various needs of the people. And UK was not an exception to this. The industrial revolution that swept across the UK in the eighteenth century marked the beginning of the emergence of a well defined, deep rooted and progressive legal industry in the country. History of legal profession in the UK: By the sixteenth century the legal profession in the UK had branched into two categories. The first one was barristers and the other is collective of attorneys and solicitors. The local "common law" was formulated by a specialised legal society known as the Inns of Court, in London. It was in these inns that through lectures and apprenticeship individuals were admitted to practise before the royal courts. With the passage of time these practitioners became sergeants who were considered as the most distinguished among the advocates. These dignitaries were later on appointed as royal judges. The "attorneys," who were authorised by the legislation initially, shared the life of the Inns with the "apprentices" in advocacy, till they acquired the title of barrister. (Branches of the Legal Profession, http://www.pravo.hr/_download/repository/ LEGAL_PROFESSION_IN_ENGLAND_08web.ppt, viewed on 9th April, 2009) In its ultimate growth the English legal profession resembled the European professions, particularly the northern France, where the parliaments (courts) were considered as corporate, and apprentices were trained like that of the Inns. Growth of the law was mainly through precedents based on the judgments of the courts, rather than through legislation. In England, senior practicing professionals were appointed as judges. Apart from this, the partition between barristers and solicitors eventually became more rigid in England. Moreover, England never acquired the profession of notaries and thus the whole burden of transactional work was carried out by the present solicitors with legal advice from the bar. David H. Goodchild, in his work on History of the English Legal Profession in Paris 1850-2000 says, ".in 1880 the picture had changed quite considerably by which time as a result of the Judicature Act 1873 all attorneys at law and solicitors had been merged into one single profession of "solicitor" and those practising abroad were listed under the somewhat charming section entitled "Solicitors practising in foreign parts". (Page 1, http://72.14.235.132/searchq= cache:dhmu KhIOD2YJ:fbls.org/pages/FR/ publications/assets/articles/ English_legal_profession.pdf+History+of+UK+legal+profession&cd=15&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=in, viewed on 9th April, 2009) Change in Status of the Law Professionals Even before the Judicature Act 1873 the status of the solicitors has undergone radical changes. They became the legal advisors of the wealthy feudal and businessmen. In the year 1804 they acquired the monopoly of conveyancing, and just before the end of the 19th century they started dealing with divorce and admiralty cases and obtained the rights of audience in County Courts. The progress they earned since then was tremendous, and at present over 97000 solicitors practise all over UK. Many of them are practising in private firms and governmental bodies as legal advisors doing advocacies, drafting legal documents etc. However, they cannot appear in every court, whereas the barristers are entitled to have appearance in courts. More than 11500 barristers are engaged in practice in England and Wales, now. Some of them are in employed practice. They only represent their employers. Other barristers work independently in their law chambers. Growth of Law Firms in UK The Law Society in its article 'Measuring law firm success' wrote: 'The Law Society is taking forward an initiative to explore ways of measuring the success of law firms. The initiative will look beyond the blunt instrument of profit per equity partner to the longer-term sustainability of firms, including business strategy, client care, employee engagement, innovation, social capital and efficiency.'(The Law Society, 14th February, 2008, http://www.lawsociety.org.uk/newsandevents/news/majorcampaigns/ view=news article.lawCAMPAIGNSID=382972, accessed on 10th April, 2009). Despite all cons in the industry the enormous success of various law firms like Clifford Chance, Linklaters, Freshfields and Allen & Overy shows that the legal industry in UK is marching towards a bright future. In this context it is quite relevant to note that the turnover of Allen & Overy was $2,034m in the last year.( List of largest UK law firms, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_UK_law_firms#cite_note-1, viewed on 10th April, 2009) Now-a-days, many US, Australian and Indian law firms are merging with UK law firms lured by the lucrative legal business latent in the UK legal industry. Richard Lloyd, in his article titled 'British Firms Watch Australia's Law Firm' on 6th June 2007 stated: "Partners at even the most profitable Wall Street firms might be a little green with envy at the news from Down Under. A handful of lawyers at Australia's 140-lawyer Slater & Gordon are due to share in a financial windfall in the world's first initial public offering by a law firm. On listing, seven principals -- as partners at Slater & Gordon are known -- will each own stakes worth between $2 million and $8.5 million. (Australian dollar figures have been converted into U.S. dollars.) In total, 42 lawyers and other staff will receive shares in the new public company, which will have a market capitalization of $89.7 million." (Richard Lloyd, The American Lawyer, Law.Com, http://www.law.com/ jsp/article.jspid=1181034331105, accessed on 10th April, 2009) Though the legal industry in UK is flourishing, eminent lawyers are very critical about the growth of the UK Law firms. David Maister, in his article published in April 2006, comments that: "Law firms are different. The ways of thinking and behaving that help lawyers excel in their profession may be the very things that limit what they can achieve as firms. Management challenges occur not in spite of lawyers' intelligence and training, but because of them" ( http://davidmaister.com/articles/1/92/ retrieved on 7th April, 2009). Pros and Cons of the progress of UK Law firms and their Management Considering the skeptical views of the learned and discarding all negations, it can be arrived that apart from the modus of legal training and practice, the following facts keep the lawyers from efficiently running in groups. These facts are: 1. Troubles with trust 2. Difficulties with political orientation, values, and rules 3. Professional separation 4. And strange advances to decision making If law firms are not able to defeat these intrinsic tendencies, they will not be able to deliver their goals and develop business strategies which they pursue. (http://davidmaister.com/articles/1/92/ retrieved on 7th April, 2009). It is true that every industry will have its pros and cons. Legal industry is also akin to this. Success of a law firm depends on the oneness of the team and the stability in achieving their aim discarding all sorts of disparities among them. For, it is a fact that law firms work in their unique way much dissimilar to other professional firms. Though the cases the law firms deal with are different, they are considered as the partners' common target and the cases are passed on to the next without a question so that they become successful and fruits of their joint effort are shared equally or proportionally. The great lawyer writer, Mr. Peter Scott in his article, 'Strategies for Success' remarked: "Teams can come and teams can also go. Management of your team should be done by someone from outside the firm, who is sufficiently skilled in building and running a law practice, not just in leading a team.. This will require a core base of US clients who can provide a stream of work to all parts of the firm, including the London office, and a sustainable level of profitability that is sufficient to provide the funds for investment in people, training and technology. It should also ensure that the partners can be rewarded competitively in the London market.It needs a culture, which although performance-oriented, can accommodate a route to partnership in London that is not based solely on the introduction of business and can reward a broader contribution to the success of the firm.The firm must be able to demonstrate that it has a respected reputation and profile that is seen to possess the necessary competitive skills and resources to succeed in today's legal market. Lawyers in London are asking whether their own law firm is the most appropriate environment from which to best service their clients and attract new ones. However good a lawyer is, they will not realise their maximum potential if they are in the 'wrong' firm. Law firms, if they are able to create that necessary environment, based on foundations such as those above, will stand a better chance of providing a credible alternative for quality lawyers seeking a new platform on which to develop their practices." (Peter Scott, Legal Week, 31/05/2001, http://www.peterscott consult.co.uk/articles/Strategiesforsuccess.doc., accessed on 10th April, 2009) Problems of law firms: The present practice in firm control, organization, and compensation is due to the fact that partners smartly support their rights to liberty and individuality, well beyond the common factors in other professions. Of course there is nothing wrong with that. On the other hand, as key corporations merge their work among a minor number of firms, nationally and internationally, they anticipate that firms will provide effective cross-office and cross-disciplinary teams. Firms are energetically reacting to this with a charge of lateral hires, amalgamations, and attainments. Their destination is to produce big organizations which offer numerous disciplines, locations, and cultures. But the main query here is whether these firms can shift from a managerial approach which is based on partner autonomy, to novel approaches that can build a well synchronized set of team players Is the custom of independence at the heart of a partner's individuality, or can it vary In reality, a low-trust situation has lots of untoward effects-and they are promptly noticeable in many law firms. 1. Opening move which reckon on teamwork and joint causes will seldom be carried out well. When lawyers are not able to depend on their colleagues for commitments made, they permit themselves to have a similar mental attitude, and the situation coils downward. 2. When a firm's current atmosphere is competitive and not collaboration, partners hardly ever sacrifice for the good of the firm. For instance, they will be hesitant to take on managerial roles which might require them to limit their full-time practices. They also have a fear that their partners will not care for them fairly when the time comes for them to move into full-time practice. 3. There is little forbearance for delivering power or influence to practice group or firm leadership. This results in the largest firm's executive authority to severely limit to be meaningless. Decisions are taken slowly, if they are not avoided altogether. 4. Most vital, want of trust may be a noteworthy leading factor to the exceptionally short-term preferences of many law firms. If partners do not trust the firm or value their contributions to future success, then what is the point of them in making investment which may not finally be credited for If law firms have the intentions to deliver the visions they have set for themselves, then it is a must that they address such issues as to the behavior partners' right to expect from each other, what is the minimum standards and values, and how ordinary values and standards can essentially be attained, not just preached ( http://davidmaister.com /articles/ 1/92/ retrieved on 7th April, 2009). The psychology and personality types of Lawyers: Psychology of success means the primary psychology principles of success. These principles are relevant to all regardless of age, background or status. Psychology of Success is not a onetime approach. It suggests a vigorous role in defining what is right for them. If this principle is applied, the lawyers should care to have more self-awareness to make their career in its esteem. This awareness must be propped with critical thinking to examine their dreams, values, interests, skills, needs, identities, and social interaction. Such a prudent step will make them achieve their goals. The concepts of psychology denote creative exercises that are conceived to help the legal professionals understand the concepts in its depth and apply them to their betterment. (Courtesy: Denis Waitley Psychology of Success, McGraw-Hill, February 5, 2009) People sometimes act in ways that benefit others. This they do in spite of knowing that their accommodating behavior will be pricey, displeasing, or dangerous. But ever since Plato's classic discussion in his 2nd book of the Republic, people are trying to find out why some individual's behave in the way they do. We are forced to think about the motives of such people-are they selfless or are they provoked by egoism It would be apt to recall what Thomas Hobbes once remarked: "No man giveth but with intention of good to himself, because gift is voluntary; and of all voluntary acts, the object is to every man his own good; of which, if men see they shall be frustrated, there will be no beginning of benevolence or trust, nor consequently of mutual help" (Leviathan, 1651, Ch. 15). Law is a knowledge based business. Lawyers are different but they themselves may not realise it. However, there is a unique element of a lawyer's personality, which differentiates them from other professionals. Lawyers in reality have a tendency to take 'thinking' and not 'feeling' approach to decision making. They are creative thinkers who value justice, consistency, truth and objectivity. Their decisions are such that their personal values are not reflected and they are good at crisis solving. Attorneys are extremely critical and they are always on the want of testing propositions to measure their logic, recognize options and feature as to what is wrong rather than what is right. They adopt a conservative, law-and-order approach to ethical decision making. Lawyers always take pleasure in quiet concentration, musing, reading and writing. This is a life-long preference, which is present from childhood. Even in their very young age the-would-be attorneys display the quality of leadership and a stress on self-discipline, than obedience to authority. They also have a high requirement for accomplishment founded on external or internal standard of excellence. They have only a moderate need for power. Over the recent years it has been found that lawyers work in a different way. With this in mind several law firms have attempted to develop their structures and have adopted a more corporate management structure. They also have a chief executive and management board which is most of the time headed by a non-lawyer. But even these firms maintain the legacy of the conventional law-firm structures. These structures live surrounded by the cultures and attitudes of lawyers and create challenges. Attorneys work and assess themselves based on their billable hours. Fee-earning lawyers normally counterbalance to meet their formidable billable hours target. They always prioritise their non-billable time with great care. They are obviously materialistic and their firms are profit driven. This is the reason that these lawyers invest time and money only in worthwhile causes. Vince Lombardi remarked about leadership quality on the following lines: "Contrary to the opinion of many people, leaders are not born. Leaders are made, and they are made by effort and hard work" (Vince Lombardi, 1913-1970, Professional football coach). Thus it is very important that advocates understand the differences between management skills and leadership skills. If a lawyer is aspiring to be a leader then he/she should understand that it is a unique opportunity which is presented to them to serve their organisations. Of course, management skills are very crucial to a law firm, but such skills, even when they are displayed at the highest level they cannot be the same as leadership. More than ever, effective human relations skills are crucial to business success as organizations grow and compete in a global business environment. Employees must have the knowledge and skill to adapt to a workplace where change is frequent and inevitable. Using time-tested, research-based psychology and management principles, as well as newer theories and philosophies of human relations drawn from management theory, group theory, personality theory, and relationship theory will help the lawyers to prepare for this changing world. They can find strategies and techniques to achieve human relations success on and off the job, and human relations skills that transfer from the classroom to the real world of work. (Courtesy: Lowell Lamberton, Leslie Minor-Evans, Human Relations, January 8, 2009, McGraw-Hill) Management is the art and science of getting order and skilfulness to people and process. Even though order and efficiency are indispensable, most attorneys almost certainly would like somebody else to be managed or to take up the managing task. Simply directing, commanding or even exercising any other kind of authority is not appealing for most partners. Actually practising leadership is very positive but it is rare. In summation, apart from fighting forcefully to defend their sovereignty, lawyers are professional doubters: They are chosen, educated, and employed to be cynical and to mark flaws. To defend their clients, they place the most horrible potential construction on the result of any idea or suggestion and on the needs, aims, and likely conduct of those they are conducting with. Lawyers carry this vision into their transactions with their own partners. It is difficult to differentiate between the cause and the effect, but the blend of a need for sovereignty and high levels of cynicism make most law firms low-trust environments. Five Minds for the bright future of the Legal Professionals Professor Howard Gardner in his book Five Minds for the Future states that human mind has five characteristics, namely (i) the disciplined mind (ii) the synthesizing mind (iii) the creative mind (iv) the respectful mind, and (v) the ethical mind. A disciplined mind is the one that see things through separate disciplines. The synthesizing mind realizes that we are all inundated with information. To synthesize we have to put information together in different ways which cohere to make sense. Being a cognitive psychologist Prof. Gardner holds the view that there is a natural progression from having a discipline, to being able to synthesize, to creating something new. Considering relations of people in groups and to one another human minds are categorized into Respectful Mind and the Ethical Mind.And legal professionals have to build their career considering the above characteristics of human mind in the relevant perspective. (Howard Gardner, Five Minds for the Future, 2008, http://www.howardgardner.com/Papers/documents/ ibo%204%2013%2008%202.doc, accessed on 9th April, 2009) Professional disengagement Many researchers have demonstrated that lawyers score very less when it comes to areas of confidence skills and sociability. They prefer role-to-role communications with people both internal and external to the firm. They are keen to seek person-to-person associations. This does not mean that dislike people. It just means that, statistically speaking, lawyers favour centering on the job at hand rather than investing in relationships with either their partners or associates or even for clients. In their legal training, lawyers are promoted to be cold-eyed. They have been taught to leave their personal feelings at home. Legal Education in UK "Legal education in the UK is divided between the common law system of England and Wales and Northern Ireland and that of Scotland, which uses a hybrid of common law and civil law" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_education _in_the_United_Kingdom, viewed on 10th April, 2009) Requirement for admission to Legal education. The requirements for admission to law schools depends upon the law student's plans to become a barrister or a solicitor. Qualifying law degree A law student must have a qualifying law degree or should have completed a conversion course for getting admission to the Law Schools. Here, qualifying law degree in the England means having seven modules under (i) Public law (constitutional/ administrative), (ii) European Union law , (iii) Procedural Law (including law of evidence), (iv) Criminal law, (v) Law of obligations (contract, restitution, and tort), (vi) Property law (real property), and (vii) Trusts and equity. Vocational and other training The law learning process differ for solicitors and barristers. To get enrolled in the Law Society as a prospective solicitor a student must take a one-year course called Legal Practice Course (LPC) and then a two year apprenticeship called Training Contract. A student should undergo one year Bar Vocational Course (BVC) and then another one year pupillage to become prospective barrister under the Law Society. LPC/PSC The first step in the legal education is qualifying with the Legal Practice Course(LPC). After the completion of the one year course of LPC and acceptance into a Training Contract, a student can enter the compulsory training of Professional Skills Course (PSC). (Beyond the LPC, http://www.kaplanlawschool.co.uk/Default. aspxtabid=1074, accessed on 10th April, 2009) Present problems of the lawyers in the UK: The lawyers in UK face numerous new pressures today- from the commercialisation of the legal sector and approaches of legal technology, to adjusting to new regulation such as the Anti-Money Laundering Regulations which has to be enforced by law firms by the end of this year. It is learnt that most lawyers who wanted change to Continuous Professional Development (CPD) hours conceived that 20-25 hours per year was suitable. US lawyers who are working in the UK are more concerned about CPD with less than a third in privilege of the current regime. 1. The results of the findings conducted by LexisNexis and Legal Week into lawyers' attitudes to training and development are: 2. 70% of UK firms make use eLearning opportunity to train lawyers and half of them say its use will increase. 3. More than one third of UK firms use eLearning for technical legal training and almost 60% use eLearning to progress in their IT skills. 4. Most lawyers admit the gains of electronic knowledge management systems which help lawyers to do their job more effectively; develop service to clients and free up professional backing lawyers to do more special work. (http://www.lexisnexis.co.uk/file/40ff5388a55820056740c1898c5c336f/lawyers-training-requirements-are-inadequate.html, retrieved on 8th April, 2009). 5. Jon Brewer, Director, LexisNexis, has remarked that, "Technical legal training is the bedrock of effective legal practice and the core of risk management strategy, but successful law firms and practitioners are those embracing a range of learning opportunities, including client experience and management development. The future of our industry is grounded on developing lawyers who have the right blend of business skills and the very best technical legal training. To support these initiatives, practitioners are investing in a range of solutions such as e-learning resources, online know how and research services." (http://www.lexisnexis.co.uk/file /40ff5388a 55820056740c1898c5c336f/lawyers-training-requirements-are-inadequate.html) retrieved on 8th April, 2009). Conclusion: Legal firms have historically prospered without compositions that spell out minimum partner behaviors. Many firms have their profits and revenues on the rise. What then will be the power that might generate the need for change Most probably, it will be the client force on firms to act as firms-providing unlined service, practice areas that have depth but not just a compilation of individualistic stars, and true, cross-boundary teamwork. 'Many firms have accumulations of great lawyers. The time may come when the clients will expect them to go beyond this and become efficient organizations. Without a anterior, expressed agreement on minimum standards, and the resolution to impose them, many law firms may not be able to carry on well as firms but may stay back on the same lines as they are today: lots of warlords, each with his/her followers, who rule a group of overawed citizens and behaving in provisional alliance-till an improved opportunity comes along' (http://davidmaister.com/articles/1/92/, retrieved on 8th April, 2009). References: 1) Branches of the Legal Profession, http://www.pravo.hr/_download/ repository/ LEGAL_PROFESSION _IN _ENGLAND 08web.ppt, viewed on 9th April, 2009 2) Page 1, http://72.14.235.132/searchq= cache:dhmu KhIOD2YJ:fbls.org/pages/ FR/ publications/assets/articles/English_legal_profession.pdf+History+of+UK+ legal+profession&cd=15&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=in, viewed on 9th April, 2009 3) The Law Society, 14th February, 2008, http://www.lawsociety.org.uk/ newsandevents/news/majorcampaigns/ view=news article.law CAMPAIGNSID=382972, accessed on 10th April, 2009 4) List of largest UK law firms, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest _UK_law_firms#cite_note-1, viewed on 10th April, 2009 5) Richard Lloyd, The American Lawyer, Law.Com, http://www.law.com/ jsp/article.jspid=1181034331105, accessed on 10th April, 2009 6) ( http://davidmaister.com/articles/1/92/ retrieved on 7th April, 2009). 7) Peter Scott, Legal Week, 31/05/2001, http://www.peterscott consult.co.uk/articles/ Strategiesforsuccess.doc., accessed on 10th April, 2009 8) Denis Waitley Psychology of Success, McGraw-Hill, February 5, 2009 9) Leviathan, 1651, Ch. 15 10) Vince Lombardi, 1913-1970, Professional football coach 11) Lowell Lamberton, Leslie Minor-Evans, Human Relations, January 8, 2009, McGraw-Hill 12) http://www.lexisnexis.co.uk/file/40ff5388a55820056740c1898c5c336f/ lawyers-training-requirements-are-inadequate.html, retrieved on 8th April, 2009 13) http://www.lexisnexis.co.uk/file /40ff5388a 55820056740c1898c5c336f/ lawyers-training-requirements-are-inadequate.html) retrieved on 8th April, 2009 14) http://davidmaister.com/articles/1/92/, retrieved on 8th April, 2009 15) "legal profession." Encyclopdia Britannica. 2009, Encyclopdia Britannica Online. 07 Apr. 2009,http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/ topic/334873/legal-profession. 16. Howard Gardner, Five Minds for the Future, 2008, http://www.howardgardner.com /Papers/documents/ ibo%204%2013%2008%202.doc, accessed on 9th April, 2009 17. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_education _in_the_United_Kingdom, viewed on 10th April, 2009. 18. Beyond the LPC, http://www.kaplanlawschool.co.uk/Default. aspxtabid=1074, accessed on 10th April, 2009. Read More