Do you have a fear-inducing cautionary tale about a legal mishap?
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Last week, we noted a law review article positing that law professors’ use of fear-inducing cautionary tales (about making embarrassing or costly errors in briefs, etc.) is counterproductive.
“Although some fear is productive and can motivate students to achieve,” article author and legal writing scholar Abigail Patthoff of Chapman law school wrote, “too much fear can be debilitating and distracting. A decline in well-being among law students, attributed to stress, has been well-documented. Fear is one of the culprits contributing to this distress.”
This week, we’d like to ask you: Do you have a fear-inducing cautionary tale to share? One that was shared with you in law school or somewhere else? How did hearing this tale affect you?
Answer in the comments.
Read the answers to last week’s question: Tell us about your craziest classmate from law school.
Featured answers:
BillW said: “One of our classmates was a bull rider from Texas who would always walk around in a big black cowboy hat. The irony, which wasn’t lost on the professors, was that we were at Stetson Law (named for the maker of such hats). This guy would always be in some show with the local rednecks and people from the school would go to watch. In class, he was the big-time conservative as well. He was a nice enough guy, and his law school nickname was ‘The Duke’ because he was obsessed with John Wayne.”
Jason L. Van Dyke said to BillW: “I appreciate the nomination and hope you enjoyed the shows. I haven’t ridden in some time because I eventually got injured, but I still wear that very same cowboy hat. If you’re ever in Texas, give me a shout so that we can grab a cold beer.”
Do you have an idea for a future question of the week? If so, contact us.
