Let’s play a fun game in law schools, at law firm retreats and during bar gatherings. It’s a game for the 21st century, characterized by honest debates, thoughtful dialogue and, unlike Monopoly, an actionable payoff. I call it “The Game of Opportunities,” or “GO” for short. The rules are straightforward: list the training needs of law students/new lawyers that are currently ignored, marginalized or eschewed. Two rules: no finger-pointing or recriminations, and always remember, to paraphrase Shaw, that “every truth starts off as a heresy.” I’ll go first.

Opportunity No. 1: Ditch Traditional Socratic Method

It is as useless as it is time-honored. “Ms. Jones, what are the facts of Anglo v. Saxon?” “Mr. Sanchez, what did the court below hold?” “Ms. Akeem, how did the court of appeals resolve the conflict between the holdings in In Re Ancient Mariner and Venerable v. Antiquated?” Reality check: We are training students to become practicing lawyers, not historians or abstract thinkers (conceptual, yes; abstract, no) or automatons. Let me suggest training students to learn how to weaponize cases by asking them a single question: “What do you know now that you did not know before reading the case?” That’s a productive platform from which to launch a dialogue.

Opportunity No. 2:  Always Question Authority