Thinking Like A Lawyer - Is That A Good Thing or a Bad Thing?

Link: Law Librarian Blog: Professional Reading: Thinking Like a Lawyer: The Heuristics of Case Synthesis. One of my favorite TV shows in the 80s was "The Paper Chase", a TV adapation of the best-selling book about Harvard Law School. The show's principal teacher character, Charles Kingsfield, ably played by actor John Houseman, used to tell his students that he was going to teach them to "think like a lawyer". After many years of thinking like a lawyer, I go into the twilight years of my life wondering whether that is a good thing or a bad thing. More than one relationship has gone badly when my significant other accused me of acting like a lawyer. On the other hand, I always considered it a compliment that I had been trained to think rationally, and that I was able to synthesize a large amount of information before making a decision. However enabling Socratic thought is, however, perhaps we need to do more thinking like a bum. You know, spend some time acting on impulse, and smelling flowers. Relaxation and thinking like a lawyer can both be components in a life well lived.

Comments

[Roy Wilson]

Taken a look at Kerouac's "The Dharma Bums" lately? I am in process.