Følelser, interaktioner og magt i retssalen

Sammanfattning: The main purpose of this project is to investigate and understand defense lawyers' use of dramaturgy and emotions during court proceedings, as well as how these strategies are employed in their collaboration with clients. Additionally, the project aims to examine the influence of status and power dynamics on defense lawyers' emotions and emotion management in court. The material comprises 10 ethnographic fieldwork observations in Copenhagen City Court House as well as 4 qualitative interviews with Copenhagen defense lawyers. In my analysis, I include theories from Erving Goffman and Arlie Hochschild as well as The Power-Status Theory of Emotions by Theodore Kemper. The results show that the defense lawyers rely on emotion work and impression management to comply with the emotion- and interaction rules that prevail in court. Furthermore, the relationship between defense lawyer and client is largely characterized by a collaboration which aims to prepare the joint performance in court. In addition, I found that the defense lawyers' handling of emotions is, to a large extent, embedded in a strategic assessment of whether a possible emotional expression will benefit a client or not. Feelings such as anger and frustration could arise because of disagreements between defense lawyer and client or if positions of status and power were challenged.