As I prepare to network with colleagues who are either enrolled, about to be enrolled in the Bar School or recently admitted to the Legal Bar, I am inspired to put pen to paper on a certain perspective of thought.

When I was a learner of law and its practice, one of the things I thought would be life changing was how I was expected to conduct myself as an advocate. I observed that aside from the course called “Professional Conduct and Ethics”, every other course had an aspect of expected conduct of an advocate.

The purpose of this article is not to propound principles of professional conduct and ethics but to stimulate and motivate a sense of identity with the profession. I also endeavor to relate the personality of a lawyer that is built by the norms of the profession with the one that we grew up being.

From my reading in organizational behavior, I came across a school of thought that as human beings, our character and values are influenced by those imparted in us between the ages of seven and ten years old. When I tried to apply that theory to myself, what immediately came to mind is my age-old habit of packing up cutlery and crockery in a certain manner that my mother taught me. Up till now, I still practice it! What I am trying to say here is that you were someone before you became a lawyer… and that is perfectly fine when you master the art of blending and in some cases separating the two.

My recollection of the day I was called to the bar can only be described as profound. From the age of twelve, I had always wanted to be a lawyer for reasons that matured over the years to what I think I am today.

After taking my oaths, His Lordship the Honorable Chief Justice said “Leya Mtonga, do you move?”. I took my deep bow, with so much pride and sense of loyalty to the profession and then took my seat at the Bar.

After the whole group was successfully admitted, there was the sherry party in the Supreme Court foyer where we interacted with the Bench and members of the Bar of different experience in a friendly and respectful manner. I quietly observed and (to some extent!) participated in the occasional chuckles of laughter and humor among us. That was a fine balance, in my view.

I now ask myself what it meant to be asked whether I “moved”. I think that having satisfied the conditions precedent, this was an invitation to be listed on the Roll of Practitioners…to move to the legal profession…to agree to be subject and amenable to the law and norms associated with the practice of law.

At all times, the conduct of lawyers must preserve the integrity and status of that particular community in the wider community, and to many of us, may be a conundrum of sorts. Does this mean that you cannot “hang out” in certain places or behave in a manner that brings out your wild side? Do you cease to be a “normal” person?

My proposition is that this calls upon introspection as well as self-regulation. I say so because life is largely about choosing one thing over the other. The nature of choices is that they come with certain consequences which one has to embrace and take responsibility for. That is why you petition to be admitted to the Legal Bar, requested to take oaths and asked if you will move to the profession. Bearing that in mind has helped me to determine how I should behave and sometimes what I should forgo to keep the balance between my persona as a lawyer and a social being.

I have selected the title to this article by referring to the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, not because of the contrast between good and evil as plotted by the celebrated author Mr. Robert Louis Stevenson, but as an attempt to illustrate the differences in conduct by the same person in different situations and whether it can be reconciled.

Enjoy the practice…and your life!