Law School....

[Fountain79]

Long story short...I am a former educator who is trying to find a new career path. I picked a wonderful time for that didn't I? I am considering law school for next year obviously. The DU'ers out there that are lawyers or that have been to law school what was your experience like? What would be the factors to consider?

[msanthrope]

1. Law school was less stressful than teaching, I found. n/t

[Deep13]

2. The law as a profession sucks ass.

Fair warning.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. I liked law school, though it was a lot of work.

And I got a great job clerking for a state Supreme Court justice - best job ever. But clerksips are temporary and it was all kind of downhill after that. Practicing law is often tedious, and your clients can be even more of a PITA than opposing counsel. After about 17 years I burned out and switched careers. But there are a lot of things you can do with a law degree. It's academically interesting and could be rewarding if you find the right niche. Go for it.

[mentalsolstice]

4. Don't do it...

unless you're really called to do it. It's a sucky career to be stuck in if you find you don't like it (not to mention expensive, and not recession-proof). Do you know any lawyers? Are you familiar with the daily aspects of a law career. Maybe you could get a job clerking for a firm, or take some paralegal courses, get certified, work for awhile, and then go to law school if it still interests you.

[WilmywoodNCparalegal]

5. I work with lawyers

Prior to my paralegal career, I often thought about law school and many professors believed that I was made for the study and practice of law.

But after working with lawyers, I thought why would I want to subject myself to 3 years of law school (or 4 if doing it at night) to end up working 80-hour weeks and meeting unrealistic billable hours or working for peanuts on your own or as an ADA or public defender while trying to pay off your massive school loans and hardly ever seeing your family?

Then again, I've worked with several paralegal colleagues who took the plunge and are now practicing lawyers. Yes, you guessed it: they work long hours, trying to pay off loans and hardly have time to spend with their significant others.

[Sanity Claws]

6. This is a very accurate description

I am/was an attorney. When I was practicing, the work was all consuming. I never had time for anything else. That is no way to live.

Since I graduated back in 1981, law school has grown much more expensive. It is not unusual for people to graduate over $100k in debt. How the hell can you work that off? You have to stay out of the job market for three years, foregoing a lot of income, and then have to repay that debt. Ugh.

Also, while you are in school, you are most likely put other things in life on hold, like getting serious with someone, getting married, or having children. If you are already over 30, do you really want to put these types of things on hold? When do you start living your life as opposed to preparing to live your life?

[Flaxbee]

8. I was a lawyer for 6 years in big LA/NY/DC firms, and that was

all I could take. Law school was terrific, the practice of law was shit. I think maybe one in ten attorneys I met liked their work. Maybe more like one in twenty. And right now, I know tons of colleagues who have been fired because of the downturn. Law firms fire attorneys last, after they've culled all the staff they can, so when you hear about 100 lawyers being let go from a single office you should think twice about entering the profession in the next few years -- all those fired attorneys are going to be looking for work, too.

Do some research on careers that are supposed to grow in the next 10-15 years and see if any of them appeal to you... really think twice about taking the plunge for law school.

There isn't much money in public interest law, either, so unless you have independent means and wouldn't have to take out big loans, etc., I wouldn't consider that path, either.

I hate to be so discouraging, but I really wish I had considered a different, less stressful career path. I loved the education, but feel like I've wasted a decade of my life.

[mentalsolstice]

7. Yup on everything you say.

Besides, unless you're at the very top at your class (in a 2d tier school) or going to a top ivy league school, you're not going to get rich. And if you have hit the jackpot, you'll have to give up any personal life to live in that fine condo, or drive that fancy Porsche.

Go watch "Michael Clayton" about how the profession eats its own. It's a freaky movie, but on a smaller scale, things like that happen every day in the profession.

I don't want to discourage anyone from the profession. However, to be happy, you really have to plan ahead before you even go into law school. You need to have good contacts within the profession. And you need to have an idea of areas you're interested in.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

9. Don't do it.

I went to law school for five years at night and worked full time.
I graduated in 1985. I made enough money at my day job to pay my tuition at a private freestanding law school. I took the bar several times and did not pass it. I still am not sure why that happened.

However, I have been unable to get any jobs with my law degree, even though I have worked in the legal business my entire life, which started with typing for my father.

It's a good education for going into business or doing other things, because it's broad and touches on many areas.

I appreciate the education I got but it was a serious draining grind and very difficult mentally. Nowadays I don't know how kids can pay off their student loans.

However, the practice of it is a grind. Some lawyers do not make much money and others make lots of money doing boring stuff like commercial law (bills and notes).

There are too many lawyers running loose. In Texas they graduate over a thousand new ones twice a year and let them loose on the public.

[flvegan]

10. I wish I could relate my experience.

I wanted very much to go to law school. It wasn't right for me nor in the cards, but I know that not trying will be a regret I will always have.