Susie Burnett is paid to make lawyers and law students feel challenged, and a little off their game. But she is not cross-examining them in a courtroom, or taking them to task over their testimony. Burnett is not even a lawyer. It’s all an act.
She went to theatre school in Toronto for three years at the age of 18, and has been a professional actor ever since. Burnett does mostly stage work, the occasional TV commercial, film or radio, but is predominantly a live theatre actor.
Offering her services to the Law Practice Program (LPP) at Toronto Metropolitan University, Burnett provides simulated, virtual training with a hands-on work approach. The eight-month LPP is an approved pathway to lawyer licensing in Ontario — equivalent to articling — and is the first of its kind in the province.
“It's live simulation that I do with law professionals or students,” explains Burnett. “Both the cases and the characters I portray have parameters that are adhered to during the role play, and this is sometimes followed by interpersonal skills and communication coaching.” She can play the part of a difficult client, or various scenarios to test the participant being trained.
“We've got criminal cases, civil cases, wills and estates cases, immigration cases … you name it. There's a good mix of scenarios with varying degrees of difficulty,” she says. “I'll just use a civil case for example. We meet virtually with the created law firms who only know the bare bones of the case and whether they’re representing the defendant or plaintiff. We are immediately in character.
“After introductions, they conduct an intake with basic questions about the client and the case. Shall I throw some surprise reactions or questions at them? Maybe my character bursts into tears while telling her story? Some of this depends on the lawyers’ interpersonal skills during the interview as we aim to make these interactions as authentic as possible. We conduct the process as with a real law firm, and meet several times within a few months as the case progresses,” adds Burnett. Regular meetings are needed as “new evidence may come to light” or other similar real-world occurrences arise.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the program would conclude with Burnett and the trainees going to the University Ave. courthouses and actually conducting mock trials of the cases, whereby they would be up on the stand to get that physical experience. The program invites retired judges or other lawyers (who pretend to be the judge) to try the cases.
“It was very exciting — but a bit nerve-inducing — to really give them a good hands-on experience,” she says. “For those types of cases we don't give feedback; it is just an opportunity for them to practise their craft with real people, real responses, and how human beings in a stressful situation might challenge them in different ways emotionally.”
In another example, Burnett works with law students and acts the part of a client. At the end of the interview, she breaks character to introduce herself and talk about how they did from a communications point of view.
“I can't comment on the content because I'm not a lawyer,” she says. “But I do know a basic amount of what the case is about, how they should be interacting with me as the client, and how I have been affected by the law students’ communication skills. I always try to give them both positive and constructive feedback on very specific changeable behaviour that was said or done during our interaction. And if there’s time, sometimes we can even jump back into role to let the participants try and apply what we’ve talked about.”
Depending on the case or program, on occasion a senior lawyer or partner of the firm will listen in and the students will get feedback later from them rather than the simulator. The senior lawyers have initially collaborated with the simulator trainers/writers about what they hope their juniors will accomplish, so the simulation is specialized and tailored to using those skills.
It could be strong rapport-building, obtaining information from a difficult client, or whatever needs to be practised so that similar challenges can be better overcome in future real-life situations. It’s a place to try out different communication techniques, and is a safe space for all concerned.
Sometimes the lawyer won’t play ball, or feels like their time is being wasted. After all, they have years of experience, right?
“We did an examination for discovery simulation where two lawyers were interviewing me,” recalls Burnett. “One of them just sat back in the chair with his arms crossed the whole time, and that’s how he basically conducted the entire interview. Right off the bat that body language is so closed. Needless to say, he did not build a good rapport with me as the client. He wasn’t taking it seriously, joked around, and avoided eye contact. So, I improvised and went with it, and became a more challenging client to deal with. My arms were eventually crossed — as his were — and I was not nearly as forthcoming with my information as I could have been. Just as would happen with a real person’s instinctual reactions in a real interview of this nature.”
Other people that have worked with Burnett to hone their client-facing skills include internationally trained healthcare professionals, medical students, social workers, provincial government new management, radiation and nuclear technology students.
“We don’t often think of how we come across to other people,” says Burnett. “I mean, for example, doctors and lawyers have these great big brains full of technical knowledge, but applying this knowledge to real folks is not fully practised in their schooling. That’s where this work comes in. Our jobs could be performed so much more successfully — or made easier — with better communication tools. I think it’s important work, to help impartially bridge the gap between professionals and the clients that rely on them.”