PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY: THE LAWYER'S ROLE IN ERADICATING SYSTEMIC INEQUITIES
(LAWI-4130) - 2 UNITS

Lawyers have the power to transform lives in macro and micro ways. Lawyers have an especially crucial role to play in addressing issues impacting traditionally marginalized identity groups.

Research indicates that a close connection between a lawyer's personal and professional identity contributes to a lawyer's long-term well-being and happiness in the legal profession. This course will: (a) offer students an opportunity to identify and reflect on those personal values that embody a commitment to eradicating systemic inequities; and (b) begin the student's development of a professional identity that is aligned with the student's personal values. This course will also help students acquire additional competencies, including cultural competencies, foundational to success in the profession.

Students will draft an autoethnography, a research tool allowing students to examine their identities (who they are, what they stand for and why) as a means of understanding their racial, cultural, and gendered social context. Through the autoethnography, students will: (1) identify and describe lived experiences in which the law played a part; (2) explore a significant aspect of the law (i.e., housing, healthcare, education, employment, voting, crime) that has had a material impact on their lives; and (3) suggest solutions for amplifying any positive, and rectifying any negative, impact the law has had in the student?s own life.

Grades will be based on the autoethnography, class participation, and the successful completion of additional written and oral assignments. This course will satisfy the Upper Division Writing Requirement. Enrollment is limited to 7 students. Admission is by permission of the professor. Interested students should email the professor at patricia.winograd@lls.edu.

Pass/Fail:
No

Prerequisites:
None