Legal Commentary

Broadly speaking, there are three choices that schools have in choosing LRW teachers.  In some schools, the programs are taught by professors or full-time instructors; in other schools, part-time faculty teach LRW; and in still other schools, the program is taught by fellows who will, after 1-3 years, go on the tenure-track market.  To be sure, there are variations on these models, but I think these are the broad contours.

Each of these models has its benefits.  On the one end of the spectrum, having permanent, full-time (tenure-track or contract) LRW faculty means that the program is taught by Legal Research and Writing professionals.  They know what they are doing; they are committed to it; they think a lot about it; they attend conferences, contribute to the literature, and stay on top of developments; they become experienced over time; and so forth.  It also shows a commitment on the part of the school and reduces the likelihood that students get the message that LRW is a step-child.

On the other end of the spectrum, fellowship programs offer many ancillary benefits to the schools, the fellows, and the students.  But I want to focus on the actual teaching of LRW.  (Obligatory conflict of interest reminder:  I was an LRW teaching fellow at Stanford.)  I do sometimes wonder whether this model is good for teaching LRW.  Here are some problems with it:

• Fellows don't really want to teach LRW (I had a great time doing it, but it wasn't my long-term career goal);
• Fellows are not committed to LRW teaching, and consequently don't attend conferences, stay on top of the literature, and so forth;
• Fellows may not have a great deal of practical lawyering experience;
• Fellows operate with time constraints, committed as they are to publishing and going on the market.

So I do wonder whether this is the optimal model for LRW teaching.  That said, I think this model carries at least some benefits.  Fellows may bring an excitement to the LRW classroom; they may view the fellowship (as I did) as an opportunity to learn how to teach, and therefore be very committed to doing a good job; they may be approachable for students; they may realize that their performance evaluations from faculty and students will play a role in their marketability; and the very fact that they are not far removed from having practiced as junior attorneys may make them uniquely suitable to preparing students for that role.

It could be that these positives, together with the ancillary benefits to the schools, makes this an attractive option.  Further, a good program, with strong gatekeeping and a good director and mentoring (as we had at Stanford), may well mitigate some or all of the risks and negatives.  If pushed, however, I think that from the standpoint of LRW teaching, the fellowship model presents the greatest risk. 

Let me hasten to add that I think very highly of the Stanford program, the people who run it, and my colleagues; we all took the job quite seriously and were reasonably good at it.  But none of that changes the fact that the model represents a risk, and that overall, dedicated and potentially permanent LRW faculty may be a better model strictly from the standpoint of teaching.  Indeed, as I have argued, as the doctrinal faculty becomes more and more specialized--and more and more removed from practice experience--it may be especially important to have LRW instructors who bring a different set of experiences and skills to the table.

One final word on the subject: whatever the model, LRW instructors need to have some basic practice experience.  They don't all need to have been litigators, despite the fact that LRW programs usually focus on the litigation context; indeed, given that many (probably most) of our law students will not be litigators, it is important to have instructors with a diverse range of lawyering experiences.  But they absolutely must have some practical lawyering experience.

I am curious what others think about these issues.  And I am especially interested in what students have to say.  Please chime in!