A number of individuals have this misconception when they think of lawyers or professionals working in the legal field. Some feel that legal professionals are often dishonest, cold, money-hungry, and lack a sense of compassion and morals. Having worked with numerous lawyers and legal professionals throughout my career, I can say that this is extremely far from the truth. Lawyers are kind, empathetic, have the utmost moral, and work exceptionally hard for their clients. Along with these personality traits, there are a number of skills and qualities individuals pursuing a degree in the legal field must also encompass. Below are just a few which I feel are essential for success in this profession.
Exceptional Interpersonal and Communication Skills
Whether you aspire to be a lawyer or paralegal, exceptional interpersonal and communication skills are vital. There will be numerous times when you will be required to present a case in court or present the details of a case to a client. Not only must you be a great speaker in either of these settings, but you must also be a great listener. You must actively listen to other legal professionals while in court, your clients, or fellow associates. Legal professionals must be clear, organized, and thorough when interacting with any of these individuals. They must be able to communicate effectively and in terminology that clients will be able to understand.
Assertiveness
An individual who encompasses this trait is hard-working, motivated, objective-focused, and straightforward. Legal professionals have done extensive research on their case and will be aggressive in advocating for their client. Legal professionals must be assertive and driven. This does not mean that legal professionals are cold and tactless to others; it means that they are generally straight-to-the point when dealing with fellow associates or other professionals in court.
Organizational and Time-Management Skills
You always hear about lawyers working 60- to 80-hour work weeks and never having any time for themselves. While this may be the case for some lawyers, this is not the case for all legal professionals. The legal field is all about meeting various deadlines therefore, legal professionals must be able to prioritize and use their time wisely. It is common for legal professionals to be working on several cases at once therefore, they must have exceptional organizational skills. Legal professionals must recognize what needs to be done by what date and determine the best strategies to go about completing these tasks.
Efficient Legal Research Skills
Legal professionals must conduct extensive research regarding the cases they are responsible for. They must master a number of legal research techniques, know how to locate legal authorities, interpret legal documents and terminology, learn proper legal citation, and have a broad knowledge of legal concepts, case law, litigation, statutes, and other information related to the legal field. A great deal of their occupation deals with investigating and examining the details of their cases therefore, they must have in interest and motivation to conduct research.
Compassion and Empathy
Opposed to what some individuals may think, legal professionals must have compassion and empathy for their clients. Lawyers must feel some sort of connection to their client since lawyers are advocating for these individuals. Although lawyers do not agree with the wrongful acts their clients performed, they must be able to understand what led their clients to do what they did and try to see things from their client’s point of view at times.
Careers in the legal field are exciting and fast-paced with each case being different from another. Legal professionals are able to work with clients from all different backgrounds and social economic statuses. A law degree opens many doors in the legal field as well as other fields and legal professionals do experience a lot of satisfaction from a job well done.
Below are a few helpful links which are related to the legal profession.
http://www.educationchoices.com/
http://legalcareers.about.com/od/legalcareerbasics/tp/Legal-Skills.htm
http://www.law21.ca/2008/07/core-competence-6-new-skills-now-required-of-lawyers/