More than Just Law School: Global Perspectives on the Place of the Practical in Legal Education

Abstract

Foreign experiences remind us that legal education is not just law school. They inform us that we should seek for ways not just to integrate theoretical and practical teaching, but to assure that our students or our graduates get real experience with practice. The assumption that law schools are the exclusive place for preparation for the profession of law is bad for students, bad for bar, bad for law schools, bad for the legal system and bad for society. We should look to see what we can do best and should encourage other institutions to do what they can do better.

Keywords: Legal education, legal profession, legal writing, articling, Referendar, legal internship, legal clerkship, practical training, clinical legal education