ABSTRACT
To the public, to writers for television and film, advocacy is what lawyers do. Standing up in court, arguing their client’s case, fielding judicial interventions, beguiling the jury. Can you imagine a Hollywood film about a crusading lawyer (lawyers who are the heroes of films must always be crusading) who sits at his or her desk and drafts documents? The idea of advocacy as the skill that most closely relates to actual legal practice insidiously affects even law students. Writing and drafting documents, researching problems, finding cases – these are all skills that are developed within the academic stages of law degrees. But advocacy remains resolutely a practice-based skill. Yet, as this chapter will show, advocacy is often intrinsic in every aspect of law degrees. Advocacy develops the preparatory skills of interviewing, of drafting, of research and analysis and gives them focus: the argument in a courtroom setting.
