Grounding legal ethics learning in social scientific studies of lawyers at work

Article

Robertson, Michael and Tranter, Kieran. 2006. "Grounding legal ethics learning in social scientific studies of lawyers at work." Legal Ethics. 9 (2), pp. 210-229.
Article Title

Grounding legal ethics learning in social scientific studies of lawyers at work

ERA Journal ID33573
Article CategoryArticle
AuthorsRobertson, Michael (Author) and Tranter, Kieran (Author)
Journal TitleLegal Ethics
Journal Citation9 (2), pp. 210-229
Number of Pages20
Year2006
PublisherTaylor & Francis
Place of PublicationOxford, United Kingdom
ISSN1460-728X
Abstract

Legal ethics education, in Australia and elsewhere, has emphasised normative accounts of lawyers' professional responsibility. In the alternative we suggest legal ethical education should be informed by social scientific studies of lawyers' work. We argue that these studies reveal that legal practice is permeated with opportunities for choice, despite the rules and contextual factors that influence lawyersv practice decisions. We suggest that teaching that is designed to encourage students to come to terms with both the frequency and the situational complexity of ethical decision making, in the many discretionary spaces that inhabit the lawyer' s role, may result in qualitatively better learning outcomes in legal ethics education.

Keywordslegal education; legal ethics; legal work
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020390107. Humanities and social sciences curriculum and pedagogy (excl. economics, business and management)
500105. Legal ethics
480505. Legal practice, lawyering and the legal profession
Public Notes

'Copyright... remains the property of the contributor.' http://www.hartjournals.co.uk/le/contrib.html

Byline AffiliationsGriffith University
Institution of OriginUniversity of Southern Queensland
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