Ann Juergens, “Practicing What We Teach: The Importance of Emotion and Community Connection in Law Work and Law Teaching”

This essay argues that law teachers must both address the emotional facets of lawyers’ work but, also “walk our talk”. In particular, the author suggests that teaching students about the importance of intrinsic goals and a well-balanced life is useless if students cannot see teachers live their lives accordingly. Based on their years of legal teaching (including within the clinical setting), the author presents two key messages that they believe are absent from most of the modelling in legal education. Those messages are: (1) laugh when you are happy, cry when you are sad, and (2) grow roots deep into your community.

The first message – laugh when you are happy, cry when you are sad – is meant to demonstrate that law teachers should not hide all their emotions; otherwise, the emotions will be muted. The disassociation of competence from expressiveness in law is a long-sustained problem that harms both lawyers and clients. Worrisome is the reality that as one’s ability to express one’s feelings decreases, one’s ability to hear other people’s feelings atrophies as well. This may lead to overlooking clients’ inner experiences, misunderstandings of clients’ goals, missed opportunities, and other professional errors.

To ensure that teachers are sufficiently sending the aforementioned message, teachers must ask themselves the following questions:

• When did I let a student know I was thrilled by-not just pleasantly appreciative of-their clinic or class work?
• When, if ever, have I shed a tear at work in the presence of any other person?
• Do I behave as if I have no emotions other than a certain pride of intellect?

The second message – grow roots deep into your own community – speaks to deep work that sustains an individual. The community encompasses the immediate family, children, and circle of close friends, as well as the wider net of civic, cultural and religious institutions, shopkeepers, libraries, schools, recreation centres, and other organizations outside of work that make life richer. Teachers demonstrate to students how to understand their cultural position but, also the culture of their larger communities. Clinical teachers are specially positioned to teach students about the benefits of being well-rooted in the community, thereby assisting in solution seeking that engages the community.

It is important that lawyers transform their hate and fear so that they “do not turn those emotions against others or against ourselves through depression or addition” (424). As such, law students need guidance in understanding the emotional aspects of lawyering. Sustained emotional health is the foundation for maintaining professional excellence.

Ann Juergens, “Practicing What We Teach: The Importance of Emotion and Community Connection in Law Work and Law Teaching” (2005) 11:2 Clinical L Rev 413.