LCS Graduate Fellow
It is easy to forget that the relationships you build in law school can affect what happens on your career path outside of law school. Your reputation and the ways others perceive you in school are actually directly connected with your future career. When job prospects are available, your classmates will likely notify only those that they remember positively from law school.
In the November 2013 Edition of ABA's Student Lawyer, G.M. Filisko outlines some etiquette tips that will help you succeed in law school, build a strong and positive reputation among your classmates and school faculty, and create a positive foundation for your career. Here are a few tips:
- No one likes a gunner. We all know who these students are, and they are likely to annoy their less vocal classmates. It is important to understand the difference between vocalizing to help you and others understand the subject better and vocalizing to make yourself look good.
- Give freely, take little. It is recommended that when asking for notes, an outline or help from a classmate, always give them an option to say no. It is also nice to offer something in exchange for their gracious efforts.
- Follow classroom behavior basics. We learned from grade school that it is rude and disrespectful to chat with your neighbor while the teacher is talking. There is no difference in law school while the professor is lecturing. This may bother your classmates even more so than in 5th grade, since law school lectures are expensive.
- Don't let your technology interrupt class. Standard for technology: don't distract your classmates! Even if you don't feel you're bothering anyone, think about how you would feel if constant phone vibrations hummed from your neighbor's desk. It is very distracting, and should be avoided.
- Address professors and administrators professionally. Some students fail to remember that law school is a hierarchy, and we should address people by their formal titles accordingly. Leave it up to the professor or administrator to tell you if they want to be addressed less formally.
