Busting The Lawyer Stereotype: An Interview With Author Paula Franzese

Paula Franzese with her students

Paula Franzese with her students


Before you were a teacher, you practiced property law. What were the biggest lessons you gained from working in the “real world” and how has that impacted how you teach your students?
I learned that with one phone call, one letter, one court appearance, as lawyers we can change lives. I came to appreciate the immense power and majesty of the law. I witnessed the sea of need as countless people and constituencies go unrepresented. I resolved then to do what I could with the expertise (and, therefore, power) that I possessed. Each and every compassionate and principled act matters.
You work with law students almost every day. What are the biggest mistakes they make that hold them back from standing out and reaching their potential?
The principal cause of suffering is forgetfulness. Students suffer when they forget that they are more than equipped to do the work and that their efforts will be worth it. We live in cynical times, and sometimes even the most earnest student will make the mistake of confusing cynicism with discernment. Cynicism is a belief in nothing. It takes courage to believe in things, and even more courage to believe in people, because things and people can disappoint. The cynic won’t indulge the possibility that people are good. Discernment by contrast is the conscious choice to seek out causes for hopefulness and then share those with the world. Eventually we all find what we are looking for, so we must take good care with the search. An angry or jaded person will always find reasons to be right about his estimations of the world. A hopeful person, who believes that the good in some can be the good in all, will most often be vindicated in that estimation of the world and the people in it.
As a whole, law school applications enrollments have been declining in recent years. And many graduates are struggling to find work and pay off their loans. If an undergraduate came up and asked you why he or she should enroll in law school, what would you say? Why is practicing the law still worth it?
The study of law is a door opener. The legal method of inquiry is an essential predicate to the task of social reform. There will always be opportunities for lawyers. Further, the worst of the economic fallout from the recession is over.  Jobs are back, and the practice of law allows one to achieve success and, most of all, significance.
Where do you see the best opportunities for lawyers in the coming years and how would you counsel students to prepare for them?
As a lawyer, the possibilities are vast. Certainly, globalization now provides extraordinary opportunities to practice across the world. New technologies render intellectual property law exceedingly relevant. Moreover, the nuts and bolts of the practice will always be mainstays, because the law affects all aspects of daily life.
First-year law can be a major struggle. Students are basically attempting to master a new language, if not a new way of thinking. What advice would you give to 1Ls who are struggling with doubt and thinking about giving up?
Read my book!! It contains entire sections on what to do when you begin to doubt yourself. Most fears are born of fatigue. Hence, the best advice in the presence of looming doubt might be, “Go to sleep!” Everything is better after a good night’s rest.
Every coach or teacher has a success story, a student who overcame long odds or came a long way over three years. When you look back at your career, what student stands out as someone who really touched or inspired you and reinforced your desire to continue teaching?  
All of my students have had a story to tell and something to teach me. I am better because of them. I thank them for the privilege.
To order a copy of Franzese’s A Short & Happy Guide to Being a Law Student, click here. All royalties from the sale of the book go to public interest law fellowships.

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