Student of Law: An Alternate Approach to Legal Professions in Flashing Blades

Any character who wishes to be a Student of Law must have Magistracy and Latin skills. Gentlemen may choose to start the game as Students of Law. Characters from other backgrounds may roll at the beginning of each year after the start of the game to become a Student of Law: a roll of 8 or more is required to be admitted to a College of Law (+1 to the roll if Social Rank is 8 or above). A character must be a Student of Law for 6 years before he becomes a Lawyer. Each year, a Student of Law must devote 4 months, distributed as he likes, in study. - 5.52 Entering the Bureaucracy, Flashing Blades core rules, page 32

A Student of Law in FB has one of the longest apprenticeships of any player character, so what exactly happens during those six years?

Before I get to that, first I want to expand what it means to be a "lawyer" in Flashing Blades. Advocacy in 17th century France is divided between three different professions: notary (notaire), procurator (procureur), and lawyer (avocat).

A notary handles contracts for goods and services, prepares and executes wills, and attests to and certifies some legal documents. It is a bureaucratic office, in FB terms equivalent to a Minor Official as described in 5.53 Ranks and Positions in the Bureaucracy (p. 32), rather than a legal profession; alternatively, it can be a minor job as in 5.103 Minor Jobs (p. 39), with Bureaucratics skill as a requirement and paying 12 £ per month. Because of the importance of notaries to contracts for business and finance, Banking + Bureaucratics = Notary makes a useful pseudoskill for preparing or examining contracts.

Procurators in 17th century France have two roles. In public service, procurators work with magistrates to prosecute violations of the law; they're responsible for gathering evidence and interviewing witnesses and presenting same to the court. They are not prosecutors per se; inquiries at trial are conducted by magistrates directly, using the evidence and testimony collected by the court procurator (procureur du roi). In private practice, procurators assist clients in preparing and filing necessary affadavits and other documents with the court and conduct pleadings before a magistrate; they do not, however, make arguments before the court. Similar to a notary, procurator is a bureaucratic office, equivalent to an Official of the Realm as per 5.53 Ranks and Positions in the Bureaucracy (p. 32); rather than working as a entry-level bureaucrat and a Minor Official, a player character is a Clerk of Law for six years then automatically becomes a procurator. A Clerk of Law may begin with either the Bureaucratics or Magistracy skill.

A lawyer's scope of practice is focused on interpreting and applying the law before the court. This is most often accomplished not by oral argument but in written briefs; a lengthy brief for an important case may even be printed and bound as a book! Lawyers work closely with procurators; in fact, clients hire procurators and procurators then engage lawyers to argue the client's case before a magistrate.

Okay, now that we know what a lawyer is in FB, I can circle back to that six years a prospective avocat spends in preparation. First, there's three years of study of the law at a university; law students listen to lectures and read cases, much like contemporary attorneys do, but they also attend court hearings and discuss the proceedings with their professors, many of whom will be practicing lawyers themselves. Law students may be a rambunctious bunch; their case studies tend to immerse them in local politics.

Next comes two years of internship - le stage - working in a lawyer's practice; the student of law will assit in preparing briefs and may actually represent, under supervision, pro bono clients such as the indigent, which is an obligation for lawyers throughout France. A student of law during le stage should find themselves meeting with procurators on active cases and preparing briefs, especially for peasants and craftspeople.

Finally, the last year is spent working as a clerk for a procurator. Clerks of law spend much of their time copying documents and preparing pleadings; working in a procurator's office provides the student of law with a practical foundation of legal documentation as well as developing a working relationship with procurators they will need for the rest of their career as lawyers.

The life of a Student of Law should be much more than classrooms and study; they're immersed in local politics and may be active participants as well, work with the poor, and prepare actual cases for court. The referee can use campaign turns spent by the adventurer discharging their student obligations as an opportunity to introduce non-player characters and opportunities for patronage. Their careers as lawyers become an extension of their experiences as students of law.