Elle Woods, the bubbly blonde Beverly Hills sorority girl who won our hearts in the 2001 film Legally Blonde, has inspired many law students in their pursuit of a law degree – surely I’m not the only one!
Elle proved that law school isn’t only for those who are “boring, ugly and serious.” Here are a few things that we as law students and future lawyers can learn from the excellent Elle Woods…
Think outside the box!
While Warner argued legal precedent in Callahan’s class, Elle managed to win her in-class case by arguing her own form of logic: “Well, unless the defendant attempted to contact every single one night stand to determine if a child resulted in those unions, he has no parental claim over this child whatsoever. Why now, why this sperm?”
The same applied when negating Brooke Taylor-Windham’s motive for shooting her husband: “Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands…they just don’t!”
Elle shows us that sometimes we need to look beyond the bounds of our law textbooks to find that winning argument.
Build your client’s trust
“Are you crazy, just tell him the alibi.”
“We’re going to lose this case if you don’t.”
Elle: “Well then, we’re not very good lawyers.”
Despite criticism from Callahan and the rest of his team, Elle stayed true to her word and kept Brooke’s potentially career-ending alibi confession a secret. Elle shows us how important it is to respect client confidences and to stay true to your values.
Know your non-law facts
“The rules of hair care are simple and finite. Any Cosmo girl would’ve known.”
Elle teaches us that it is important to be ‘in the know’ about things that are not necessarily law related – whether that means regularly reading gossip columns, fictitious books or watching trashy reality television. You never know when the latest celebrity news may come in handy in court!
Have faith in yourself
The most important lesson that Elle Woods teaches law students is self-confidence. Despite being rejected by a study group and being laughed out of her first law lecture, Elle only used this to fuel her motivation to succeed. You have the power to succeed, so don’t let anyone tell you otherwise!
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