Student Section: Observations from Law Students
Five Skills
Lawyers Need to Learn through Leadership Training BY CLAIRE HALFFIELD
Leadership, like lawyering, is service. As a second-term Student Bar Association President and third-year law student at Ohio State, I know my time as a student leader has informed how I want to practice law. Serving as a leader has honed my lawyering skills in a practical manner and improved how I work with others. Leaders are called on to serve within and outside of the profession, but all lawyers need leadership training. Here are five salient skills I would not have if I was not a student leader.
1. Without leadership, I would not know how to provide information effectively. Serving as a student leader has helped me perfect my pitch. As a leader, I have met with officials serving in government, university leaders and professionals
STUDENT SECTION
outside of the legal field. When only having five or 10 minutes to get a point across, one needs to be able to identify the most important points to share while preparing to give further details. Lawyers need this skill often, such as when communicating with other attorneys or while advocating for clients in front of judges. As a learner used to providing as much detail as possible while answering questions in class or on exams, my student leadership role has provided real world experience for communicating to help clients.
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