The Vandy-AltaClaro Partnership<\/strong><\/p>\n That\u2019s why Vanderbilt Law School\u2019s recent partnership with AltaClaro<\/a> reflects such a meaningful approach for future Vandy law grads. AltaClaro is a leading provider of simulated legal training. In fact, it may be the only one committed to a \u201clearning by doing\u201d approach. It places lawyers in simulated real-life situations they must work through.<\/p>\n Earlier this year, it introduced DepoSim<\/a>. DepoSim uses AI to take on the roles of witnesses, opposing lawyers, and even court reporters in a simulated deposition. The program even allows users to dial up different personalities for the witness and opposing counsel. A difficult witness. An obnoxious opposing counsel. And at the conclusion of the exercise, the tool provides feedback.<\/p>\n The Vandy-AltaClaro partnership offers Vandy law students access to DepoSim so they can become acquainted with the deposition process and learn practical deposition taking skills. It\u2019s not the first time AltaClaro has partnered with a law school to offer practical programs. Earlier this year, it announced a partnership<\/a> with Cleveland State University to offer AI prompt training.<\/p>\n And according to Emily Pavuluri<\/a>, the Associate Director of the Vanderbilt AI Lab, it\u2019s just this kind of exposure that students really want.<\/p>\n But There\u2019s More to This Story<\/strong><\/p>\n But when I talked to Pavuluri, along with AltaClaro CEO Abdi Shayesteh<\/a>, I found that while the partnership is interesting, there was much more to the story.<\/p>\n Pavuluri told me that, like other law schools, Vandy is grappling with fundamental questions like what it now means to be a lawyer. And how in the hell the next generation of lawyers needs to be taught.<\/p>\n Vanderbilt\u2019s approach, though, is refreshingly different. Pavuluri told me that she believes many students come to law school hungry from day one for practical experience and actual legal work. So Vandy\u2019s unique approach in part is designed to capitalize on that desire.<\/p>\n As you would expect, Vandy 1Ls spend much of their first semester taking core classes and learning how to write and do legal research. But that\u2019s where Vandy parts ways with the traditional process.<\/p>\n Pavuluri told me the school is very intentional and purposeful about how it introduces AI. It wants to be sure to give students time to learn how to do the hard thinking and writing so they can master critical skills early. And it also is intentional about getting students to think about what AI does well in the legal practice and what it doesn\u2019t. Instead of outright banning the use of AI, as some schools have done.<\/p>\n Then after the first year, Vandy works hard to place its students in law firms for the summer. Pavuluri believes that by the time they return from that first summer, the students have a better picture of what the practice is like. Vandy also hopes to partner more with its clinical faculty as well to enhance the practical experience throughout the year.<\/p>\n The Proof Is In the Pudding<\/strong><\/p>\n But lots of law schools talk a good game about their practical programs. The proof, though, is in the pudding. And if the performance of the students with DepoSim is any indication, Vandy is on the right track.<\/p>\n Pavuluri and Shayesteh told me they were amazed by student questions and comments in a DepoSim workshop the day before we talked. Says Pavuluri, \u201cThe questions that were being asked were not questions you would typically hear from 2Ls. They were asking questions like they were real practitioners. Questions you would expect of an innovation team or a partner.\u201d<\/p>\n Pavuluri and Shayesteh\u2019s excitement about what they heard was actually palpable. It was so cool, they said, to watch the students go at it, pulling up exhibits, and bantering with the AI opposing counsel. And while most students came in with a prepared outline, they quickly recognized the need to make course corrections based on the answers they got. They had to react. Deal with opposing counsel. Make decisions in real time.<\/p>\n Shayesteh told me, \u201cIt really helped them understand that there\u2019s more to it than preparing by just writing an outline.\u201d Hmm. I don\u2019t mind telling you, it took me a few years and a lot of depositions to figure that out.<\/p>\n Pavuluri summed up just what I was thinking, \u201cFor them to jump in and be interested in these types of questions just goes to show they\u2019re ready for practice.\u201d Damn right.<\/p>\n The process by which students are trained to use DepoSim and other tech tools also reflects the school\u2019s commitment to prepare students for real life. Pavuluri told me that the students are given the material to work with \u2014 in the case of DepoSim, a factual scenario \u2014 and then left to determine how much time they need to spend to prepare.<\/p>\n She tells them that in real life practice, they will have to prioritize their time and energies. \u201cThey learn what it means to be a lawyer, and that they have to make judgment calls about where they spend their time and energy.\u201d With a chuckle, she told me sometimes the students make the right call and sometimes it blows up in their face. Just like in real life. So much for coddling.<\/p>\n Hitting the Ground Running Without Coddling<\/strong><\/p>\n What was so great about all this is not only will Vandy students come out of law school with real life training, but with a recognition of their strengths and interests. So they can better determine what they want to do with their career. When I got out of law school and was interviewing, out of ignorance, my answer to the \u201cwhat kind of work do you want to do\u201d question was \u201canything but litigation.\u201d<\/p>\n I had no clue what it meant to practice law in any specialty, and I didn\u2019t recognize my strengths fit litigation better than most other areas. Had I gone through a program like Vandy is putting together, I would have figured out in law school that litigation was something I liked and was good at. Instead of mucking around for several years trying to figure it out.<\/p>\n And Pavuluri, not surprisingly, talked a lot about the role of the law school in helping students deal with real life issues about their careers. To help them figure out what kind of firm in which they want to practice. To help them be nimble and able to pivot. To better understand how firms are using or not using technology. To cut through vendor bullshit.<\/p>\n A Whole Cloth Approach<\/strong><\/p>\n It struck me that it\u2019s really a whole cloth approach to legal education. Instead of knee-jerk rejection of AI, banning laptops from classrooms, and hunkering down with traditional law school training, Vandy, along with a handful of other law schools like Suffolk, Northwestern, Stanford, and BYU, is trying hard to teach skills their graduates will need.<\/p>\n I don\u2019t know any recent Vandy law graduates. But my guess is that wherever they are, they don\u2019t need to be coddled. They are hitting the ground running. And in today\u2019s brave new AI world, the younger lawyers who can hit the ground running with practical skills and the ability to think through problems are going to succeed.<\/p>\n Graduating lawyers who need coddling? Vandy says not on our watch. And that\u2019s what today\u2019s law school ought to be all about.<\/p>\n Stephen Embry is a lawyer, speaker, blogger, and writer. He publishes\u00a0TechLaw Crossroads<\/a>, a blog devoted to the examination of the tension between technology, the law, and the practice of law.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n The post Coddling Young Lawyers? One Law School\u00a0Says Not On Our Watch<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n Young lawyers are apparently a disaster. They have to be coddled. They can\u2019t think. They are lazy and don\u2019t want to work. They need constant feedback. We\u2019ve all heard it: if they\u2019re left alone for more than 20 minutes, they will wander into traffic while staring at TikTok.<\/p>\n How much of this is just typical generational bitching, and how much is true, remains to be seen. But there does seem to be a particular vehemence to what so many practicing lawyers are claiming, which leads us inevitably back to the law schools.<\/p>\n Ever since I\u2019ve been practicing, law schools have done very little to prepare students to actually practice law. Hence, the first several years of practice mainly served as training grounds. But now AI can do many of those tasks that law firms used to train young lawyers.<\/p>\n So, it\u2019s legitimate to ask hard questions about the role of the law schools. And Vanderbilt Law School<\/a>, along with a handful of others, seems to be getting the message that it can no longer be business as usual.<\/p>\n The Vandy-AltaClaro Partnership<\/strong><\/p>\n That\u2019s why Vanderbilt Law School\u2019s recent partnership with AltaClaro<\/a> reflects such a meaningful approach for future Vandy law grads. AltaClaro is a leading provider of simulated legal training. In fact, it may be the only one committed to a \u201clearning by doing\u201d approach. It places lawyers in simulated real-life situations they must work through.<\/p>\n Earlier this year, it introduced DepoSim<\/a>. DepoSim uses AI to take on the roles of witnesses, opposing lawyers, and even court reporters in a simulated deposition. The program even allows users to dial up different personalities for the witness and opposing counsel. A difficult witness. An obnoxious opposing counsel. And at the conclusion of the exercise, the tool provides feedback.<\/p>\n The Vandy-AltaClaro partnership offers Vandy law students access to DepoSim so they can become acquainted with the deposition process and learn practical deposition taking skills. It\u2019s not the first time AltaClaro has partnered with a law school to offer practical programs. Earlier this year, it announced a partnership<\/a> with Cleveland State University to offer AI prompt training.<\/p>\n And according to Emily Pavuluri<\/a>, the Associate Director of the Vanderbilt AI Lab, it\u2019s just this kind of exposure that students really want.<\/p>\n
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