Lawyers advancing causes
have been around for as long as the bar has been existence. Spanning
the political spectrum and calling themselves various
names—“movement”, “public interest”, “community”, “rebellious”, “critical”, “activist”, “social
justice,” and “law and organizing,” to
name a few—cause lawyers practice law to transform
society. What is this “deviant strain within
the legal profession” (as some scholars have
described them)? How are cause lawyering practices
similar? How are they different? What professional
issues do cause lawyers face, and how do—and
should—they deal with them?
In this course, we will survey cause lawyers in historical
context, focusing on the mid-20th century onwards. Drawing
on law and society, critical and clinical scholarship,
we will consider various practices and examine their
features. What are their aims? The circumstances
they work under? Their methods? Examining
various ways cause lawyers do their work, we will draw
practical lessons. This course has a practicum
component that will allow each student to participate
in a range of cause lawyering initiatives. |
