“What should I know about the legal profession?”, “Would the legal profession suit me?”, “Why should I become a lawyer, not a magistrate?”, “What awaits me after I become a lawyer? “
These are some of the questions that law graduates often ask, as well as young trainee lawyers, and to which, unfortunately, they often fail to find an answer when they need it.
- In many situations you will have the impression that you know nothing. As sad as it sounds, the reality is that law schools do not prepare students for practice in general or for the practice of law in particular. Therefore, at least during the internship years, you will have the impression that all the tasks you will have to perform as a lawyer have novelty elements and that you always have something to learn. It is important to be persevering and you will find that in a short time you will gain the necessary experience to practice the profession of lawyer with professionalism.
- Surprisingly, law requires less knowing how to speak, but especially knowing how to listen and write . Any young lawyer may fall into the sin of believing that he is very well prepared, and in an effort to persuade a client to turn to him, he may tend to talk too much about his own legal knowledge, instead of listening to the real problems of customer. This is a mistake because, in general, the opinion among the litigious public is that lawyers are good professionals and that is why they use their services. And when it does, a customer expects to be listened to and understood. He is also expected to be clarified with regard to his case in terms that he understands, not in the specialized language used between lawyers.
- You probably won’t spend too much time in court. For a young lawyer, at the beginning of the road, access to a stable clientele is more difficult, as it requires trust, which is built over time. Also, a responsible master will not send his trainee to the court only, with the client’s consent, at the postponement deadlines and only in the processes in which the chances of winning are maximum. Therefore, for a trainee lawyer, the best way to get acquainted with the rigors of a court hearing is through criminal offices and special curatorship in civil matters. With the consent of his / her master, any trainee lawyer should be on these legal aid lists, as this will give him or her experience, confidence and escape the trauma inherent in any profession.
- Your acquaintances will ask you for free legal advice.In any circumstance you will be in society, when acquaintances, friends or more distant relatives will find out that you have entered the bar, they will remember that they also have a divorce or sharing process, a succession to debate, a contract to sign. and so on and, although they have probably already turned to the professional services of another lawyer, they will definitely want to know your opinion. Of course, you can give them legal advice, but you need to let them know that the advice given in that context does not carry any professional responsibility and that it is better to have the same discussion in your office, after carefully studying all the documents. which he must make available to you.
- You will learn to organize your time. In the case of a lawyer, the use of an agenda is mandatory. No one has such a memory that they remember all the terms in which they have to participate or organize all their meetings with clients without overlapping.