Many lawyers feel that we go to a trade school where they do not really teach us our trade. The legal academy prides itself on teaching the ubiquitous skill of "thinking like a lawyer." Thinking like a lawyer is a necessary skill but far from the only skill required to be an effective and ethical lawyer. The ABA finally made a move to round out legal education with the required teaching of soft skills beyond the basic rules of Professional Responsibility and memorization of doctrinal law. The term professional identity formation (PIF) is what learning the new set of skills has been called. In 2022, the ABA adopted revised Rule 303(b) to require of law schools that "substantial opportunities be offered to develop professional identity." About one third of the 200 law schools have taken up the mantle of really creating a professional identity formation program, by creating 1 credit classes on the subject. Other law schools are still working on it or just reconfiguring what they already have in place to "cover" Rule 303(b).

There is a distinct difference between professional responsibility and professional identity formation. Professional responsibility is how professionals react to problems by drawing on perspectives (rules) through professional ethics. Professional identity formation (PIF) is the process of integrating a profession's knowledge, skills, values, and behaviors with one's preexisting identity and values.