Mindfulness in the Law

INSTRUCTOR: Andrej Milic

SECTION: U02B

SCHEDULE: Wednesday, 11:00A-1:30P (Summer B)

The focus on mindfulness in the professional practice of law has become an important aspect of maintaining civility and well-being. Organizations such as the American Bar Association, The Florida Bar Association and other lawyer associations around the country have made strides to bring together judges, lawyers, law professors and law students to explore mindfulness. The ability to balance workplace performance, household responsibilities and personal well-being takes a level of dedication to each area to have a commitment for balance. The course explores the tools that help bring the role of mindfulness into the lives of the students so that they have what it takes to deal with the challenges that come with entering the legal profession. Students will gain the ability to utilize tools to integrate mindfulness in an intentional manner in learning the law and analyzing the creative aspects of the legal profession. Guest speakers and practical exercises will be integrated in the semester to show what effective attorneys do to be successful. We will cover listening skills, focusing exercises, empathy, bias awareness, emotional regulation, decision making and cost benefit analysis. Insights into the changing profession will be ongoing throughout the course to help students understand what demands will be on them as they transition into law school and after the practice of law. Students will choose one area such as wellness, mediation, trial practice, human rights, family law, immigration, race or their area of choosing to do a presentation approximately halfway through the course showing what they are learning throughout the semester. If you would like to reach out to the professor email Prof. Milic at amilic@fiu.edu.