Pop culture can teach us a lot about the law: almost everyone knows the Miranda warnings and can recite them by heart, thanks to Law and Order and other crime dramas,[1] the concept of a “conservatorship” is familiar to many because of Brittany Spears,[2] and the notorious RBG has become a household name, recognizable in a crown and jabot, partly due to Kate McKinnon’s portrayal on SNL.

Many of us have counseled students experiencing imposter syndrome in law school, especially if we primarily teach 1Ls. Although students from all backgrounds experience imposter syndrome, it is especially concerning among first-generation college/law students and minorities, both of whom are more likely to experience imposter syndrome.[1] 

I am both a legal writing professor and a language student—I am learning to speak German. In German, some nouns are feminine, some are masculine, and some are neuter. Why? For seemingly no reason at all. This non-explanation is hard for me to accept. First-year law students, too, are learning a new language. In the same way I felt frustration with German gendering, my students felt skepticism, frustration, and doubt in the face of the new norms and expectations I asked them to follow in our first-year legal writing course.

Motions. Briefs. Oral arguments. For students interested in a transactional career, a typical legal writing semester focused on persuasion sometimes feels like it is centered on inconsequential litigation-style assignments. What many students do not realize, however, is that many skills learned in a persuasive semester, including through the context of litigation-style assignments, are transferrable to transactional contexts and help students prepare for careers in transactional practices.

As early as two weeks into the fall semester, I already hear it. With a knowing look, some of my students announce that “1L is the time to grind it out,” while others proudly declare, “My well-being is really important to me, so I am OK with getting all Bs.” 

Why are students reluctant to attend faculty office hours? For years, this issue has confounded me. Students’ meeting with faculty outside of class has been shown to increase their comprehension and retention of material, satisfaction, engagement, and sense of belonging.[1] That is why I tell my students that I am almost always in my office, my door is always open, and they may drop by with any questions they have—no appointment needed.

In Summer 2023, I was scheduled to teach Legal Analysis, Research, and Writing I (LARW I) asynchronously online for the summer start students. One week before summer semester started, I was told I would have a visually impaired student in my class.

The legal writing class is the heart and soul of the first-year experience.  This is largely so because much of the vital work legal writing professors do is outside of the actual curriculum. In addition to teaching substantive legal writing skills, legal writing faculty also teach process-based skills—how to manage time, how to study effectively, how to maintain mental well-being, and how to begin to develop a professional identity.

Integrating an Oral Presentation Assignment into a Course on Drafting Contracts

Patricia Montana

Professor of Legal Writing

Director of Street Law: Legal Education in the Community Program

Lessons from a Retiring Legal Writing Professor    

Mary Ann Robinson

Professor Emeritus

Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law

Published: November 2023