What Can the Legal Profession Do For Us? Formerly Incarcerated Attorneys and the Practice of Law as a Strengths-Based Endeavour

Abstract

In recent years, the concept of strengths-based reentry has gained increased attention from scholars and commentators. Proponents of the strengths-based paradigm argue that the formerly incarcerated are far more than a collection of needs and risks. Rather, we bring unique skills to the reentry process that can be utilized to engage in generative activities that serve to diminish the stigma of a criminal history and to promote post-release success. Drawing on my own journey from prison to practicing attorney, this article contemplates the legal profession as one such generative activity. By serving clients at risk of criminal justice system involvement and organizing to promote experiential diversity at law schools and in the bar, many formerly incarcerated attorneys are engaged, often subconsciously, in ongoing stigma/shame management at the micro and macro levels respectively. For these reasons, this paper contends that the legal profession ought to be considered a viable, realistic option for formerly incarcerated students, as they possess the empathy to excel as attorneys and to use the law as a means of transforming their own self concept.

Criminal history inquiries and minority threat in the legal profession: An analysis of law school and state bar admission applications

“…Eliminating criminal history inquiries is also expressive, assuring applicants that their pasts do not define them negatively and that all who win admission to a given law school will be received and supported analogously. Data make clear that law schools can take this step, eliminating criminal history inquiries from their applications for admission without sacrificing campus safety, creating legal liability, or offending ABA guidelines (Binnall, 2022; Binnall & Davis, 2021; Fortney, 2003).…”

“…Moreover, organizing efforts in this area are still in their nascent stages (see e.g., California System‐Involved Bar Association, 2021). Nonetheless, the prison to school pipeline continues to produce college graduates eager to further their education (Murillo, 2021), and for many seeking a helping profession that can spawn meaningful change for those with prior criminal legal system contact, the law is an optimal career path (Binnall, 2022). Indeed, public narratives of lawyers with a conviction history suggest the increasing popularity of the legal profession among those with prior criminal legal system contact (see e.g., Binnall, 2022; Hopwood, 2018; Simmons, 2018), as are programs designed specifically to recruit and support formerly incarcerated law students (see e.g., Seattle U.…”

The Lure of the Law for the Formerly Convicted: Pursuing the Legal Profession as a Resistance Strategy

“…Moreover, multiple programs and collectives now work to mentor those with conviction histories who wish to enter the legal field (Arthur 2021a, 2021b). While these discrete success stories and grassroots efforts have garnered attention from the media, little empirical research has focused on the legal educational journeys of those with prior criminal justice system contact (but see Aviram 2020; Binnall 2022).…”

“…As a result, many students are successfully completing their undergraduate degrees and subsequently searching out opportunities for graduate education (Murillo 2021; Project Rebound 2021). Public narratives of lawyers with a conviction and organizing efforts in this area suggest that the legal profession, in particular, has gained popularity among those with a prior criminal conviction (see, for example, Hopwood 2018; Simmons 2019; Binnall 2022).…”

Desistance, Social Justice and Lived Experience

“…Ugelvik, 2021). Contributions in this edited collection extend the empirical realm of desistance research, exploring a range of issues, from desistance and prison culture (see Utnage,2022), to prisoner reentry (see MacPherson & Whitley, 2022), sports and desistance in prison settings (see Kay et al, 2022), and law and desistance (see Binnall, 2022).…”