The semiotics of non-verbal communication in the attorney, client consultation process
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Date
2011
Authors
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Publisher
University of Zululand
Abstract
In 2010, the Law Society of South Africa, expressed concern over the number of
law graduates that were lacking in essential skills and they stressed that clients
in legal matters are placed at risk if new practitioners are not properly equipped
to assist them.1 Many lamented the academic nature of the LLB programmes at
most tertiary institutions as concentrating only on the “knowledge of the law”
rather than the enhancement of important skills and abilities. The “radical
dichotomy” that exists between theory and practice in the law curricula at most
tertiary law schools is at the root of the problem
Whilst there is no denying that the ubiquity of doctrinal development is central to
legal studies, law is no longer seen as a “technique of professional practice” only.
Legal Realism has highlighted the fact that law permeates all facets of life and
should therefore be studied as an embodiment of knowledge that permeates the
“real” world.
The focus of my study is on one key area of communication that has been largely
ignored thus far in the legal arena, i.e. non-verbal communication. Effective
communication is a fundamental dexterity to the attorney and a lack thereof can result in the likelihood of psychological and emotional long-term difficulties. My
study furnishes some insight into the challenges facing most attorneys during the
consultation process.
The study outlines the importance and ubiquity of the different sign systems
(semiotics) that regulate human interaction. The growing body of knowledge
about non-verbal communication has illustrated that it is the main sign system
that parallels verbal communication in the human interactive process. The aim of
this study was to establish the attorneys’ perceptions of implementing non-verbal
communication into their daily lives and the legal system in South Africa.
A qualitative approach (where attorneys were interviewed) broadened my
understanding of the attorneys’ experiences and I was allowed to be privy to their
personal interpretations and perspectives on non-verbal communication in the
legal arena. By recording and documenting their experiences, valuable insight
was gained into their emotional and psychological responses to their legal
experiences. The analysis of their experiences yielded unique and distinct
themes to emerge, which was then formulated into a theoretical experience
The attorneys were unanimous in their call for training in non-verbal
communication. It was anticipated that this would serve as a means of alleviating
some of the challenges facing them during the consultation process. Successful implementation would require attorneys to have a positive, flexible and creative
approach to using non-verbal skills in consultations with clients.
The study finds that legal realism combined with a semiotics methodology offers
the law student an apposite approach to researching and analysing systems of
meaning within the communicative legal framework. A framework that integrates
realism, semiotics and non-verbal communication contains all the ingredients
needed to improve the communicative legal skills of the attorney. The
amalgamation of non-verbal communication skills with traditional legal skills
would go a long way in removing the deep-seated dichotomy that still exists
between theory and practice in the LLB curricula.
Description
Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Laws (LLD)
in the Department of Law Faculty of Commerce, Administration and Law, at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2011.
Keywords
Law education