The University of Alabama School of Law announces today the launch of The Business of Being a Lawyer video library which integrates the “real world” practice of law with legal education. Two years in the making, the BBL video library is the first of its kind in legal education.
The BBL library provides more than 100 interviews of lawyers and judges from all types of practice of law, including private practice, in-house counsel, public interest, criminal prosecution and defense, as well as lawyers in fields such as business and higher education.
“The legal profession is undergoing dramatic changes which present opportunities for law students and lawyers who are aware of them and know how to adapt to them,” said Pamela Bucy Pierson, the Bainbridge-Mims Professor of Law at the University of Alabama School of Law. “The lawyers in this library have shared their time and experience, providing advice that is practical, helpful, candid, and often humorous, on how to thrive in the legal profession of the future.”
Legal, psychology and financial experts in the library address:
- Economic trends in the legal profession
- Managing Stress, finding balance and building resiliency in the practice of law
- Gallup Strength Finders and how to use these strengths in the practice of law
- Financial planning advice for students and lawyers
- Business etiquette issues that arise in the practice of law
About BBL
The Business of Being a Lawyer (BBL) is a law school course, CLE and book (West Academic, 2014) created by Pamela Bucy Pierson, the Bainbridge-Mims Professor of Law at the University of Alabama School of Law, working with colleagues in academia and with practicing lawyers. BBL is based on the premise that each lawyer is a business – her own business. Whether working for a law firm or in solo practice, in a public interest or government office, or in a law-related field, lawyers need to understand their own balance sheets – their assets, liabilities, strengths, weaknesses, investments made in themselves, and investments needed. The Business of Being a Lawyer addresses the following four topics: (1) current economic trends in the legal profession and how these trends impact law students and lawyers, (2) personal financial planning basics, recognizing that one’s career choices are enhanced, or restricted, by one’s financial situation, (3) issues of Emotional Intelligence (EQ), skills for building EQ, and how such skills help navigate professional and personal challenges in the legal profession, and (4) “Free Agency”: how to be an effective free agent throughout one’s career, recognizing the fact that the average lawyer changes jobs seven times in a career.