[bruinaphi]

Warning...I am very tired right now so I may be rambling in this post.

I posted about this in another thread a while back but some states still have apprenticeship programs. I know in CA we have one. We also have a program for people who go to unaccredited law schools. If your school is not accredited you have to take the baby bar (I can't remember if that is after each year of law school or just one year). Like Rudey said there are a lot of fly by night law schools and online law schools that are pushing people (many of whom don't have undergrad degrees) through the system.

UPL statutes, in my experience, are really there to protect the rights of those charged with crimes and underserved communities such as immigrants and those living below the poverty level. When I worked at the DA's office we prosecuted a guy who had been claiming to be an attorney and defending members of certain communities in criminal court. It was a huge nightmare. While the free market may work for the average American based on my experience I don't believe that the free market protects the same population that is served by the UPL statutes. Until we have legal aid programs that serve these communities we need statutes like the UPL to ensure that they are represented.