Preface

We chose 'The New Lawyer' as the title of this book because of the term's appealing diversity of meanings. If 'lawyer' is defined as a legal practitioner, the 'new lawyer' is the recent law graduate, learning how to apply what they have learned at law school to the practice of law in any one of a wide range of professional contexts. If 'lawyer' is defined more broadly to include not only law graduates but also law students, the 'new lawyer' is the person new to law school, wondering perhaps what to do with their life and career. And thirdly, the 'new lawyer' is the new type of lawyer, one concerned not only about the acquisition of expertise in Australian law and a successful legal career, but also law's global context, the relationship between law and social justice, and important role played by law and lawyers in 21^st century communities. This book is written for the 'new lawyer' in all three senses of the term. Most importantly, however, it is written for the first year law student, and seeks to prepare the new student for the many challenges they will face at law school and as a legal practitioner.

When the authors went to law school in the 1980s, the emphasis during the first year of the law degree was upon the coverage of introductory legal material such as the history of the Australian legal system, definitions of key legal concepts, explanations of key legal doctrines, the various sources of law and statutory interpretation, and upon getting started as quickly as possible with substantive doctrinal law subjects such as tort law, contract law and criminal law. There was little acknowledgement of the enormous differences between law school and what new law students had been doing before they arrived (high school, in most cases), and students were effectively 'thrown in the deep end' of legal education, and expected to sink or swim. Nor was it made very clear where legal education was supposed to be taking students -- the later years of the degree and legal practice were mysteries that were not solved until they were directly encountered and experienced, and sometimes not even then.

Things have certainly changed since we were at law school. Teaching students about fundamental legal concepts is still seen as an important part of the first year of law, but teaching is now seen as the facilitation of student learning rather than the coverage of certain topics, and law teachers today recognise the importance of easing the transition into first year law, preparing students for their subsequent legal studies by developing useful legal skills, contextualising doctrinal legal knowledge by examining social, political, cultural and critical perspectives on the law, and facilitating the development by students of not only legal expertise but also self-management skills and resilience.

Law teachers today also have a much clearer understanding of the expected outcomes of legal education. Since the early 1990s, law schools have prioritised the coverage of the eleven areas of substantive knowledge that must be covered by a student before they will be admitted to practice. (This list is known as the Priestley 11, and is described in more detail in chapter 1). Recently, in 2010, law teachers, legal practitioners, members of the judiciary and the various admitting authorities collaborated in the drafting of a more comprehensive list of expected outcomes of legal education. The Australian Learning and Teaching Council's Bachelor of Laws Learning and Teaching Academic Standards Statement ^[1] sets out six 'Threshold Learning Outcomes' (TLOs) for the Bachelor of Laws degree. These six TLOs represent what every Bachelor of Laws graduate is expected 'to know, understand and be able to do as a result of learning'. ^[2] They cover 'knowledge' (TLO1), 'ethics and professional responsibility' (TLO2), 'thinking skills' (TLO3), 'research skills' (TLO4), 'communication and collaboration' (TLO5), and 'self management' (TLO6).

There are many excellent law textbooks that have already been written for first year law students, and some of the more recent ones refer to the TLOs. What is missing, however, is a book that develops the whole student and that adequately prepares them for both the study and the practice of law in the 21^st century. When we sat down to begin writing this book, we set aside those other introductory law textbooks and began with a blank page and a series of questions. Drawing upon the six TLOs and what we have learned in recent years about the nature of the first year experience and about legal education generally, we asked ourselves: What does a new law student need to know in order to succeed at law school and beyond? What do they need to be able to do? And what kind of person do they need to become? The answers that we came up with are set out in the diagram below.

This diagram provided us with both the structure for the book and our overall objective: to support you, the new law student, in your efforts to learn the fundamental knowledge, acquire the practical skills and develop the personal attributes that you will need in order to complete your legal studies and become a successful new lawyer.

The book is divided into three Parts: 'Knowing', 'Doing' and 'Being'. In Part 1, 'Knowing', we address the broad areas of knowledge that must be understood by every new law student. In chapter 1, 'The Life of a Lawyer', we begin by examining some of the myths and realities about being a legal professional before introducing you to the diverse range of career opportunities available to you as a result of completing a law degree. We then offer some strategies to help you make the most of your legal education from your first year. In the final section of the chapter, we discuss the importance of developing a positive professional identity while at law school.

Chapter 2, 'Fundamental Legal Concepts', is the first step in your long journey towards achieving a sophisticated and thorough understanding of the nature and purpose of law. The first part is an examination of some fundamental questions about law: What is it? How is it organised? Why is it necessary? Why does it change? The second part of the chapter tackles some of the more philosophical questions about law: Is the law simply a set of rules made by government, or is there some fundamental and necessary relationship between the law and extrinsic standards such as justice and morality? The final part of the chapter considers the extent to which Western legal systems reflect and enshrine fundamental liberal values such as liberty, rationality, rights, private property and equality.

In chapter 3, 'The History of Australian Law', we examine some important aspects of Australian legal history and tradition. We begin by presenting a brief history of Australian Indigenous law, including Aboriginal customary law. We then describe the development of the law in Britain, and the development of Australian law following British settlement. We conclude by briefly considering some recent legal developments concerning Indigenous Australians.

In chapter 4, 'The Australian Legal System', and chapter 5, 'The Sources of Law in Australia', we endeavour to unravel the complexity of Australia's system of law. In chapter 4 we present the key characteristics of the Australian legal system, examine the various constitutions in Australia, and outline the functions of the executive government. And in Chapter 5 we outline the functions of the other two arms of government, the legislature and the judiciary, and examine in detail the two main sources of law in Australia: legislation and case law.

In Part 2, 'Doing', we focus upon the fundamental legal skills required by every law student and lawyer. In chapter 6, 'Research Skills', we assist you to independently develop your legal research skills using five simple principles: (1) adopt a systematic approach, (2) know where to look, (3) access good quality information, (4) read actively and efficiently, and (5) apply your research. These five principles will together form the foundation for your personal research method.

In chapter 7, 'Interpretation Skills', we describe the ways lawyers and judges interpret legal rules, legal documents and other legal texts. In the first part of the chapter we explain how to read the law itself: legislation and case reports. In the second part we consider the skill of interpretation: why legal texts need to be interpreted by those with legal expertise, the various rules that assist in the interpretation of statutes, and the differences between statutory interpretation and the interpretation of other types of legal texts such as contracts. Finally we briefly consider the ways in which ambiguity in the law can be turned to a lawyer's advantage.

In chapter 8, 'Thinking Skills', we develop your ability to 'think like a lawyer'. In the first part of the chapter we examine the process of formal legal reasoning and explain our preferred version of the step-by-step approach to legal reasoning, the CIRAC method. We also consider the relevance of logical reasoning and policy considerations to formal legal reasoning. In the second and third parts of the chapter we explain the relevance to the study and practice of law of critical thinking and creative thinking.

Chapter 9 is titled 'Communication and Collaboration Skills'. Communication and collaboration skills are two of the most important practical skills for law students and lawyers. These skills are critical to your success as a law student, and as a new lawyer you will use communication skills and collaboration skills every day of your working life. In the two first parts of the chapter we focus upon the development of your communication skills, and in the final part we focus upon the development of your collaboration skills.

Chapter 10 is concerned with development of your 'Self-management Skills'. The importance of self-management skills cannot be over-emphasised, not only in terms of meeting the needs of employers, but also in terms of your own learning and wellbeing. We begin the chapter with an explanation of the importance of self-management skills generally, and then devote the majority of the chapter to a description of six particular self-management skills, offering strategies to help you to master them and become an independent, reflective and well-adjusted lawyer.

The third and final Part of the book, 'Being', is concerned with four personal traits essential to success as a new lawyer. In chapter 11, 'Being Realistic', we examine the various conceptualisations of the way lawyers and judges think and make decisions, from the formalistic conceptualisations with which you will already be familiar, through the more nuanced theories of various legal theorists, to the insights of the legal realists. In the second part of the Chapter we consider a range of theoretical perspectives on the relationship between law and power, and the views of those who insist that the claims to equality before the law made within liberal democracies often mask the ways in which the law is used to advantage some groups within the community at the expense of others. After working through the chapter you will have a much more realistic understanding of the law and its operation, and you will be better placed to participate in efforts to realise law's potential to provide justice for all.

Chapter 12 is concerned with the importance of 'Being Committed to Justice'. The new lawyer is not only an expert in the law. They also have a deeply held commitment to justice: both for their individual clients and for the community as a whole. This chapter will provide you with the knowledge and the conceptual tools that you will call upon when fighting for justice for your client and for your community.

Chapter 13 is concerned with the importance of 'Being Ethical'. Ethical questions are an unavoidable aspect of legal practice. As a new lawyer you will frequently be confronted by situations where you will have to make choices on the basis of ethical considerations. In the first half of the chapter we examine the nature and sources of ethics generally, the question of who has moral status, and the relationship between ethical rules and legal rules. In the second half we consider the ethical issues specifically confronted by lawyers.

Chapter 14, 'Being Globally-Minded', is the final chapter of the book. It explores what it means to be a globally-minded law student and lawyer. In the first section we briefly describe the global context of Australian law. In the following section we establish the importance of 'global-mindedness' for contemporary law students and lawyers, and examine the meaning of a range of terms associated with the concept. Finally, we consider some ways in which, as both a law student and a legal professional, you can achieve global-mindedness.

Each of these fourteen chapters does more than describe the relevant knowledge, skills and attributes. The chapters have been written and designed to make it easy for you to engage with and interact with the text. In writing this book we have sought to achieve ten goals, and it is the importance placed upon achieving each of these goals that distinguishes this book from the other first year law textbooks currently available.

1. Engage the reader - Reading this book should not be a chore. We want you to be interested in what we have to say, because if we can engage your interest, you are more likely to understand and retain the content of each chapter. We have endeavoured to engage your interest by regularly emphasising the relevance of the content to the study and practice of law, using a dynamic writing style, and frequently changing the format of the text. Extracts from recent media items such as news stories illustrate important points in the text and demonstrate their contemporary relevance. Complex information is clarified using figures and flowcharts, and detailed information is presented in the form of tables. Most chapters begin with a problem or dilemma that is then resolved throughout the chapter.

2. Encourage active learning - Reading this book should not be a passive experience. In order to encourage you to engage with the text, we periodically encourage you to stop reading and do something. Activities throughout each chapter include 'research' activities that require you to locate extra information of relevance to what you have just read, 'rephrase' activities that require you to restate a complex point in your own words, and 'revision' activities that test your knowledge and understanding of key points in the chapter. Each chapter includes five exercises that require you to apply what you have learned in the chapter to the resolution of complex problems or the analysis and evaluation of complex issues.

3. Encourage reflective learning - You are also more likely to engage with the text if you take the time to pause and reflect upon what you have just read. Periodic 'think' activities throughout the chapter require you to reflect upon a question of relevance to the text. Each chapter beings with a concise list of objectives to be achieved as a result of working through the chapter, and a checklist towards the end of each chapter makes it easier for you to reflect upon whether you have achieved each of these objectives.

4. Encourage collaborative learning - To collaborate means to work cooperatively with others. The importance of collaboration skills for law students and lawyers is acknowledged in the Threshold Learning Outcomes for Law in TLO 5, which states that law graduates must be able to 'collaborate effectively'. We explain the importance of collaborative learning in more detail in chapter 9, and in that chapter we also provide some useful skills and strategies for collaborating effectively and explain how to deal with problems that commonly arise when working in groups or teams. In other chapters we include periodic 'collaborate' activities that require you to work with other students on a practical problem.

5. Emphasise the TLOs for Law - It is not only TLO5 that receives special attention in this book. We engage with and endeavour to develop all 6 TLOs throughout the book: knowledge, ethics, thinking skills, research skills, collaboration & communication, and self-management. Each TLO is explained in detail in the appropriate chapters.

6. Ease the transition into law school - Many new law students struggle with the transition from previous study (typically high school) into law school, and we endeavour to make that transition easier by offering practical tips on studying law and insights into legal education throughout book; positioning the writing style and tone of the book somewhere between a typical high school textbook and a traditional law textbook; providing practical guidance about adjusting to law school and university; and providing opportunities for you to reflect upon why you are studying law. We also emphasise the importance of student wellbeing and the development of self-management skills, particularly in Chapter 10.

7. Teach students how to think like lawyers - Teaching law students how to 'think like a lawyer' is frequently identified as one of the most important objectives of legal education. In this book we offer engaging explanations of fundamental legal concepts; provide comprehensive instruction in legal reasoning, logical reasoning, critical thinking and creative thinking; and periodically pose questions that challenge you to reflect upon issues of justice and ethics.

8. Prepare students for later law studies - The first year of law school is the time for you to acquire the knowledge and develop the skills that you will need in order to succeed in your later law subjects. The first part of the book provides you with the foundational knowledge you will need in your subsequent studies, and the later chapters develop your fundamental legal skills: research skills (including online research), thinking skills, communication and collaboration skills, and self-management skills.

9. Prepare students for transition to legal practice - In their first year of law school, many law students are already starting to think about what they are going to do upon graduation, and starting to become concerned about making that other difficult transition: from university to professional practice. We endeavour to prepare you for that transition by providing periodic explanations of how the material relates to the practice of law, describing the wide range of career options available to law graduates, and explaining what life is like as a new lawyer.

10. Acknowledge the diversity in student backgrounds and destinations - Law student cohorts today include students who have come directly from high school as well as older students who have already had successful careers in other fields; Australian students and international students; students from a diverse range of cultural backgrounds; and students with a wide range of career intentions, including those who intend to practice law overseas. We have endeavoured to acknowledge this diversity throughout the text, particular in the first and final chapters of the book.

We are confident that we have managed to achieve all ten of these important goals. It is our sincere hope that the knowledge, skills and attributes developed as a result of working through this book will facilitate both your professional and your personal success as a new law student and a new lawyer.