Newly-minted lawyers must straddle a fine line. They must appear confident to ease their client’s mind and to assert themselves as prepared professionals to their adversary. But they must also remain, at least relatively, humble in their attitude and declarations to the court and/or opposing counsel (so that they are not immediately exposed as preening greenhorns).
Achieving this balance is not easy, for obvious reasons; a practitioner new to the field cannot possibly know all, or even a great deal of the law applicable to the case, even if they are familiar with the case file. Secondly, there is no substitute for institutional knowledge, the familiarity with court proceedings, courthouse staff, opposing counsel, and even the judge. This can only be acquired through doing. It’s a ‘fake-it-till-you-make-it’ Catch-22, perilous to unwary lawyers just starting out.
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