Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 28

FEATURE
SPEAKING
UP for Lawyers With
Invisible Disability
By Kiefer Kofman
T
he legal profession cherishes verbal
clarity and accuracy because
they reflect candor and diligence
in practice.
As a lawyer with a stutter, however, I have seen how
revering these values too rigidly can lead to misperceptions
and faulty assumptions in dealing with lawyers
or clients who have speech-fluency disorders.
At the same time, faithfully applying candor and diligence
in my legal advocacy as a person who stutters
places heightened responsibility to help educate the
legal profession and bridge gaps between it and the
disability community.
As defined by the American Speech-LanguageHearing
Association, stuttering is " an interruption in
the flow of speaking characterized by specific types
of disfluencies. " There is no known " cure " for stuttering,
and it remains a frequently misunderstood and
stigmatized condition.
While stuttering is the most common type of fluency
disorder, its physical manifestation in speech and
the adaptive communication techniques that individuals
use to keep up with the verbal speed and
clarity of the general public vary significantly. For
example, some people who stutter may find it easier
to speak fluently when they are reading aloud, whereas others may
seek to avoid challenging sounds by ad-libbing, which allows them to
pick and choose the sounds they voice. The latter adaptation is more associated
with " covert stuttering, " which an October 2018 article in the
American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology describes as " a type of
stuttering experience that occurs when a person who stutters conceals
his or her stutter from others, attempting to be perceived as a nonstuttering
individual. "
28 WASHINGTON LAWYER
* MARCH/APRIL 2024
ADAPTING BY HIDING
Before law school I was intensely covert, convincing myself I could hide
my stutter sufficiently by circumventing particularly physically challenging
words and blaming any verbal repetitions and other disfluencies on a
casual California surfer drawl, or on the fact that I was thinking a lot while
talking. This covert behavior is partly explained by my stutter not surfacing
until I was around 9 or 10 years old. As an outgoing child, I sought to
Courtesy of Kiefer Kofman

Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024

Notice to Members
From Our President
Calendar of Events
Practice Management
Toward Well-Being
Defending Diversity: Rise of DEI-Focused Practices
Will Law Firms Stay the Course on Improving Diversity?
Unlocking the Potential of Diverse Talent
We Belong: Black Students in the IP Talent Pipeline
Justice Sandra Day O’Connor: Her Legacy Lives on Through Us
Get to Know The Appellate Project
Speaking Up for Lawyers With Invisible Disability
Special Section: 25 Years of the Youth Law Fair
Taking the Stand
Worth Reading
Member Spotlight
On Further Review
Attorney Briefs
Speaking of Ethics
Disciplinary Summaries
The Pro Bono Effect
A Slice of Wry
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Cover1
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Cover2
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 1
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 2
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 3
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 4
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Notice to Members
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - From Our President
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Calendar of Events
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Practice Management
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Toward Well-Being
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Defending Diversity: Rise of DEI-Focused Practices
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 11
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 12
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 13
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Will Law Firms Stay the Course on Improving Diversity?
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 15
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 16
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 17
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Unlocking the Potential of Diverse Talent
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 19
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - We Belong: Black Students in the IP Talent Pipeline
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 21
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 22
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 23
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Justice Sandra Day O’Connor: Her Legacy Lives on Through Us
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 25
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Get to Know The Appellate Project
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 27
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Speaking Up for Lawyers With Invisible Disability
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 29
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 30
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 31
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Special Section: 25 Years of the Youth Law Fair
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 33
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Taking the Stand
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 35
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 36
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Worth Reading
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Member Spotlight
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 39
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - On Further Review
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Attorney Briefs
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Speaking of Ethics
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 43
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Disciplinary Summaries
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 45
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - The Pro Bono Effect
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - 47
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - A Slice of Wry
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Cover3
Washington Lawyer - March/April 2024 - Cover4
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