As Valentine’s Day nears, one topic that I’m sure rarely crosses students' minds is the relationship between law and love.*
Now I don’t imagine every law student is obsessed with their textbooks, cases and essays as much as they are about their next Tinder, Hinge or Bumble date, but there is an excitement that comes when you finally understand the complexities of a legal issue. In fact, I you could say there are at least four forms of love that come through the study and engagement with law.
A love that may be brought about through debating the nature of the quistclose trust or the moral justifications (or not) of tax havens. To some, having complex legal issues suddenly make sense in one’s mind and being able to articulate theories and opinions into well-constructed essays is an expression of passion.
Finally landing that vacation scheme you’ve been longing for, getting the training contract offer you worked so tirelessly to get or the mini-pupillage you researched weeks for, brings about a sort of euphoria. That feeling when you can say to yourself ‘I finally did it’ and feel all warm inside.
Pro-bono work is the sort of work that is both interesting and challenging, as well as rewarding. Once you help a distressed individual with their housing dispute or provide a safe space for someone to discuss their immigration status in a post-Brexit world, you feel a neighbourly sort of love. You may not have saved the world, but you have made a contribution to a person in need and used your legal skills to fight a good fight. What’s not to love about doing a deed that makes you feel fuzzy inside (and doesn’t look too shabby on the CV either)?
It may involve continuous rejection from law firms, disappointing essay results, confusing debates. Hey—who said love was easy? Elle Woods taught us that! The study of law is a battle with yourself and others, it is a task of resilience, of overcoming rejection, boredom and knocked confidence… but it is a battle we fight together.
With love,
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P.S. Just bend and—snap!
*This article was originally published in February 2020.
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