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2009 Transactions: Tenn. J. Bus. L. 357 (2009)
Transactional Skills Training: All about Due Diligence

handle is hein.journals/transac2009 and id is 361 raw text is: TRANSACTIONAL SKILLS TRAINING: ALL ABOUT DUE DILIGENCE DOUGLAS GODFREY* INTRODUCTION Due diligence is a paramount investigation for civil lawyers. Unfortunately, lawyers do not perform due diligence well because we do not have a systematic approach. We do not identify a case plan, methods, or tools, and we are not conscious of our constraints-time and money. Thus, law schools should teach investigation skills to better prepare new lawyers to effectively perform due diligent work. So, what is due diligence, and how can it be incorporated into the law school curriculum? CHARLES Fox** With respect to training due diligence and doing due diligence, there is good news and there is bad news. The good news is that due diligence is something that thenew lawyer, fresh out of law school, actually does compared to other skills, such as client counseling and drafting complicated agreements. Typically, a first-year lawyer does not get to do the latter, but when it comes to due diligence, they are sent off to do it from the start. Thus, due diligence is a practical requirement that new lawyers must learn while on the job. The bad news is that invariably the first-year lawyer, no matter how smart, is absolutely unqualified to do this job. The primary purpose of due diligence is to find hidden problems, and by definition, a first-year lawyer is not going to have the experience to identify those types of issues. When associates are given a due diligence assignment, they are often handed a box of contracts and asked to summarized each one. Typically, they have no idea what to do because they do not know what is important and what is not important. One approach for due diligence training at a law firm includes four segments. First, demystify the whole practice of due diligence. Second, give the associates a strategy for handling their assignment and how best to deal with the fact that they really do not know what they are looking for or what they are doing. Then, provide some * Douglas Godfrey is an Associate Professor of Legal Research and Writing at Chicago-Kent College of Law. J.D., University of Michigan Law School; M.A. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; B.A., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He may be reached at dgodfrey@kendaw.edu. ** Mr. Fox is a former partner at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, founder of Fox Professional Development L.L.C., and Adjunct Professor at Pace Law School. J.D., Rutgers Law School; B.A., Queens College, CUNY. He may be reached at cfox@foxprof.com.

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