Disputes
Disputes Tip 5:
You Are A Lawyer: Learning by Osmosis
Why do you feel lost in disputes legal practice? You have always excelled in school. You followed the curriculum set out in the reading list. All the relevant facts, documents, and most importantly, clear instructions for lectures, tutorials, and even moots were served to you on a platter. Yet, maybe what you have now are generic instruction from a senior: “Just check out all the relevant law for this matter, and discuss again with me”. The best instruction you may have had was “just follow this precedent”.
The short answer is that you have been thrust into a world where learning often happens by apprenticeship, or what some call “osmosis”, unlike law school's structured curriculum. It's about being taught by demonstration, learning by immersion and practice, and refining your skills through experience and observation. There are no reading lists. There is no structured curriculum.
How to make the most of “osmosis”? Observe or inquire about your seniors’ work practices. When assigned tasks, seek clarity on the hours to be spent, and the best and fastest way to the result. Ironically, one of the greatest gifts for you is when the seniors make detailed amendments of your drafts – pore through the changes with a fine-toothed comb, discern the intent, and absorb the skill demonstrated. Be patient but also observant and reflective, as you remember that the best lawyers may not make the best teachers. The lawyer’s skillset is very different from the teacher’s skillset.
Most of all, learn to embrace work, in the sense that you should feel every single piece of work you do should always, slowly but surely, make you a better lawyer. In particular, embrace court exposure, whether as first chair submitting to the Court or assisting counsel.
Notwithstanding, as a noble profession, we can go beyond apprenticeship by “osmosis”. In the upcoming Disputes Practice Tips, we will introduce the 9 Roles of the Dispute Lawyer.
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