Democratic Lawyering: Upending the “Hidden Curriculum” to Prepare New Lawyers for a New World

Authors

Eduardo R.C. Capulong, Professor of Law and Director of Experiential Learning, University of Hawai‘i William S. Richardson School of Law
Andrew King-Ries, Professor of Law and Associate Dean of Professionalism and Community Engagement, University of Montana Alexander Blewett III School of Law
Monte Mills, Charles I. Stone Professor of Law and Director of the Native American Law Center, University of Washington School of Law

Abstract

Multiple heightening crises reveal the deficiencies and contradictions of legal education, in particular the values it imparts. Perpetuating myths about U.S. democracy and rule of law, the enduring formalist, liberal legalist cast of law school is increasingly at odds with students’ lived experiences. As liberal democracy and the rule of law falter, no longer is relying on the “hidden curriculum” or the historically nebulous and mythical narratives of the law and our legal system sufficient to prepare tomorrow’s lawyers for the challenges faced by our profession. Instead, with a boost from ABA Standard 303, this article draws on the tradition of democratic lawyering as a well from which to continue to propagate an approach to professional-identity development. This approach—democratic lawyering—makes explicit its orientation: training legal professionals rooted in and committed to multiracial democracy. Only by clearly and intentionally recentering the project of legal education to embrace and spring from this tradition can the legal profession meet the challenges ahead.

Recommended Citation

Eduardo R.C. Capulong, Andrew King-Ries, and Monte Mills, Democratic Lawyering: Upending the “Hidden Curriculum” to Prepare New Lawyers for a New World, 2 J. Law Teaching & Learning 191 (2025).
Available at: https://lawrepository.ualr.edu/lawteachingjournal/vol2/iss1/6