When most people think of lawyers, they think of litigators. We are constantly exposed to zealous litigators in shows like Lincoln Lawyer, For the People, and Law & Order. Even rare portrayals of supposed “corporate lawyers,” as seen in characters like Harvey Specter from Suits, somehow manage to blur the lines, making them quasi-litigators.
The reality is, however, that most law school graduates will find themselves doing some form of transactional work after law school, whether as a traditional M&A attorney, in-house counsel, or compliance professional. Even those who become litigators or hot-shot trial lawyers often find themselves in transactional situations, including negotiating civil settlements or plea deals.
My journey to law school began with the aspiration of becoming an education lawyer. Yet, as is the case for many first-year law students, I discovered that my interest was piqued by classes different from those I expected. Rather than being captivated by Constitutional and Criminal Law, I was engrossed in courses many lawyers and law students often describe as mundane––Contracts, Property, and Tax.
The first glimmer of the burgeoning transactional lawyer within me emerged during Temple Law’s Introduction to Transactional Skills (ITS). The 1-credit, 3-week mini-course at the start of each Temple student’s 1L year, led by Professor Andy Monroe and her fabulous team, exposes students to the world of transactional law (often for the first time) through the lens of a restaurant partnership. Students work in pairs to represent either a famous chef or his financial partner. The students engage in client interviewing, negotiate with opposing counsel, and draft carefully worded provisions in “binding” agreements.
Not only does ITS give students a much-needed break from doctrinal courses in their first semester of law school, it also provides a preview of what it’s like to be a practicing attorney with a client to please. A unique program among law schools, ITS equips law students, within the first few weeks of their first year, with practical skills essential for legal practice, a feat that law schools have frequently been criticized for lacking. ITS emphasizes crucial soft skills, including the ability to gain a client’s trust, identify the client’s goals, and communicate effectively to convey information and options in terms that a client can understand.
As of the writing of this article, I have served as an ITS Teaching Assistant for day, evening, and international students. Each iteration of ITS has its intricacies, with evening and international students often bringing more of their backgrounds to the negotiating table. For the evening students, many have day jobs in which they have already negotiated a non-compete or salary. For international students, many of them are licensed attorneys in their home country and may even be transactional attorneys themselves.
After the conclusion of each rendition of ITS, I ask my students two questions. How many of you were initially uninterested in transactional law? After ITS, how many of you harbor at least a mild interest in transactional law? At a school like Temple Law, known for its nationally recognized trial advocacy program, the number of hands raised for the first question is no surprise. However, what is noteworthy is the number of hands that remain raised for the second question.
Based on my own experience in ITS and observing successive student cohorts, the significance of an introductory transactional skills course in a law school’s first-year curriculum cannot be overstated. Without a mandatory course like ITS, many students, including myself, might leave a latent passion for transactional law undiscovered, if only due to ignorance. Many students who walk up the steps of Klein Hall on that sweltering first day in August, initially envisioning themselves as future Trial Lawyer Hall of Fame members, emerge three years later as budding transactional attorneys, thanks to ITS.
ITS allows those undiscovered transactional lawyers, like myself, to get a taste of transactional work that ultimately may leave them craving more. Even for those who find themselves “allergic” to transactional law, the skills imparted in ITS—client interviewing and negotiating—prove equally valuable in civil or criminal litigation practices as in more traditional transactional settings.
