Cultural competency in the practice of law
By Aastha Madaan
A monolingual Spanish-speaking single mother. A young
professional who recently emigrated from India. A victim of domestic violence seeking
help at a pro bono clinic. These are just a few clients I have assisted over
the last few months. In an increasingly diverse society, cultural competency is
becoming imperative to the practice of law.
The legal industry is primarily a service-based industry,
and the foundation of the practice of law is communication with clients.
Understanding the needs of clients and the cultural differences that may arise
during communications with clients can make delivering legal services more effective.
With the American Bar Association’s mandate to improve access
to lawyers and legal services for those of moderate incomes, cultural
competency will continue to play an important role in the future of the legal
profession, both for attorneys and for clients. With these guiding principles
in mind, below are some practices and policies that every lawyer can learn and
implement in an effort to become culturally competent.
Learn what “culture” means
According to the National Center for Cultural Competence
(NCCC), cultural
competence “embraces the principles of equal access and nondiscriminatory
practices in service delivery.” Cultural competency is achieved by identifying
and understanding the needs and behaviors of individuals seeking help. More
importantly, the practice of cultural competency is driven in service delivery
systems by a client’s preferred choices, not by culturally blind or culturally
free interventions.
In order to be mindful of the cultural differences and
similarities in clients, it is important to be cognizant of the characteristics
that can define different cultures. Culture is often
described as the combination of a body of knowledge, a body of belief and a
body of behavior. Culture not only refers to a person’s superficial features,
such as their appearance, but also to a person’s identity, language, thoughts,
communications, actions, customs, beliefs, values and institutions that are
often specific to ethnic, racial, religious, geographic or social groups.
Although appearances and linguistic differences are clear
indicators of the need to be culturally competent, other characteristics such
as personal identification can be difficult to ascertain. One example of this
is simply the way that we refer to people. If a client introduces herself in a
specific way or using a certain name, keep that in mind. Be mindful of the way
a client refers to himself or herself, and if you are unsure of how to refer to
him or her, ask. Do not assume.
Recently, in a seminar that I attended about providing legal
counsel to homeless youth, one of the speakers mentioned that in her nonprofit
practice, she found that young homeless clients are more likely to feel
comfortable if they are sitting closer to the exit than the attorney. Due to
past experiences, she said, homeless youth are likely to distrust authority and
are less likely to have open conversations in uncomfortable environments – environments
that are too ostentatious or too restrictive.
In learning what “culture” means, it is best to learn what
it means in the context of the community that you serve.
Value diversity
Diversity is a catch-all word for the notable
characteristics in a person. Diversity has many avatars and learning how to
convey information to diverse clients can be a career-defining action. A little
bit of research and understanding can go a long way. Conveying information to
clients so that it is easily understood is an invaluable skill, whether talking
to someone with limited English proficiency or literacy skills, an individual
with disabilities or someone who has never before dealt with an attorney.
Similarly, valuing diversity within the legal profession is
just as important. We can learn important lessons in cultural competency
through each of our colleagues, whether they are disabled, ethnically diverse
or bring a different perspective to the table. Making the effort to attend
events for diverse bar associations can be the first step in learning cultural
competency in the legal profession. LGBT bar associations, ethnic bar
associations such as the National Bar Association and the National Asian
Pacific American Bar Association and religious bar associations such as J.
Reuben Clark Law Society are some of many safe places to ask questions about
certain diverse groups in order to increase cultural competency.
Build and nurture relationships
While speaking with colleagues about cultural competency
recently, I found that one of my colleagues was in favor of learning about a
client’s culture or values beforehand and making it a topic of conversation in
the first meeting to build a rapport. Another colleague disagreed and said that
she would proceed the same way with any client and not make a client conscious
of the differences in his or her background.
I believe the right answer is to set boundaries in
conversation, along with a personable tone, and then assess each client’s
reaction and comfort level before asking questions that could be perceived as
personal, such as country of origin, family background, education, etc. In
certain situations, such as discovery during litigation, questions about
background may be inevitable. In other legal services, such as contract review
or negotiations, the same questions can be irrelevant and intrusive. This can
lead to distrust, especially from clients who come from backgrounds where law
enforcement and legal counsel are seen as more intimidating than helpful.
Engaging and staying attuned to each client’s boundaries and
comfort level can provide a solid foundation to build and nurture relationships
based on trust and mutual respect.
Conclusion
The field of medicine encourages and often requires
professional training in cultural competency prior to communicating with
patients because culturally competent communications foster effective and
honest relationships and trust. Delivering legal services, whether litigation
or transactional, requires the same level of respect and competence in an
increasingly diverse world.
Once we acknowledge the importance of cultural competency,
and the fact that cultural competence is a developmental process that evolves
over an extended period, we can begin to learn and improve the way that we
interact with clients.
Aastha Madaan, founder of Madaan Law, P.C., practices
estate planning and business law, with a focus on franchise law. This article
first appeared in the California Young Lawyer E-News Summer 2015 edition and is
reprinted with permission.