Law School

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by unspokenone25

I concur with this advice.

I do as well. The only thing I would add is this: If you have a pretty sure idea where you want to settle/practice, you might take that into account by picking a school in that state. Even if it's not Yale or Harvard, going to a "local" law school might lead to more open doors and connections if lots of the lawyers where you want to end up are also alumni of that school.

[GeekyPenguin]

shinerbock gave good advice here. I went to a tier-3 school for free but I have classmates who paid the full 30k and don't have jobs. Yikes!

[KSigkid]

Originally Posted by shinerbock

The most important advice for people interested in law school (IMO, of course):


-Be smart when deciding where to go, or whether to go. If you can get into a top 20 school, then sure, take the leap, take the big loans if necessary, and go ahead and do it.

-If you're looking at top 25-50 schools, just be smart. If you can go to the 35th best school at in state rates, and the job prospects are strong, don't go to the 30th best school with similar prospects at 3x the cost.

-If you're looking at schools in the 50-100 range, be careful. You want to go to the best school you can, for the cheapest amount. In this range jobs will be a little harder to come by. Pay attention to location. The 50th best law school located 250 miles from the nearest major city may mean nothing compared to a school ranked 65 in a major metro area, if that school has a strong reputation there.

-If your realistic range is 100-200, be EXTREMELY careful. Try for scholarships, and consider financial info carefully. Again, consider area. If you are in a situation where you're looking at 100-150k of debt for one of these lower tier schools, I simply wouldn't recommend going unless:
A) You have a guaranteed job coming out, or have substantial personal wealth.
B) You want to be a lawyer, regardless of the cost or how much you end up making.
C) You're 99.99% positive you can finish in the top 15% of your class (be realistic).

Great advice. I got into a higher ranked school, but I wanted to continue to work in New England, and in-state tuition was a HUGE bargain, so I ended up at a state school at the back of the top 50. I know that if I continue to do well, I can get a job in CT or Boston, so it worked out ok. Where I wanted to practice was a huge part of my decision-making process.

When it comes to local rankings, I keep referring back to Suffolk Law in Boston. It's not ranked all that highly, but if you want a big-firm (or well-respected small firm) job in Boston, most of them hire Suffolk grads. It has a pretty solid faculty, and does a really good job of networking in the Boston legal community. Quinnipiac in CT gets a lot of their students into good judicial clerkships because they expose their students to the process early, and have a good relationship with the state appellate and federal courts. There are examples like that all over the country; like Shiner said, you just have to be careful.

[KSigkid]

For those currently studying for the bar; if you're on Facebook, there's a "Bar Exam Lolcats" group that's pretty funny.

Good luck to those of you studying for the bar!

[GeekyPenguin]

Originally Posted by KSigkid

For those currently studying for the bar; if you're on Facebook, there's a "Bar Exam Lolcats" group that's pretty funny.

Good luck to those of you studying for the bar!

Thanks, I needed another distraction.

[CarolinaDG]

Question: Do they look down on you if you only apply to one?

I ONLY want Emory. My dad went there, it's in Atlanta, it has organizations in both Intellectual Property Law AND Entertainment Law (my two big interests), and it's one of the top schools in the nation. I know that getting in is a long-shot, but I just plan on applying every year until I get in. But I'm just wondering when they see how many other schools you're applying to (i.e. ZERO) they'll think you're not serious enough about law.

Does anyone know for sure?

[CarolinaDG]

Originally posted by Mz Destiny
GeekyPenguin...I love your sig! Are you a "Grease" fan as well???

I've taken the LSAT and I bombed. I have my paralegal certification, yet I can't even get into a law firm or the law department at my company. I had an interview at a satellite office of a firm in my area today, and he actually told me that I am over-qualified in what he was looking for,he can't afford me, and that I should shop my resume to some of the larger firms in Philly. Good idea, but it's already been done.

I've always dreamed of going to law school and practicing entertainment law, but I am now really starting to believe that Law isn't for me.

Question #2: I'm trying to get a job as a clerk or assistant at a law firm... how much money should I look for in, say, Charlotte? He said he couldn't afford you... What exactly was he looking into paying?

[deadbear80]

Originally posted by CarolinaDG
Question: Do they look down on you if you only apply to one?

I ONLY want Emory. My dad went there, it's in Atlanta, it has organizations in both Intellectual Property Law AND Entertainment Law (my two big interests), and it's one of the top schools in the nation. I know that getting in is a long-shot, but I just plan on applying every year until I get in. But I'm just wondering when they see how many other schools you're applying to (i.e. ZERO) they'll think you're not serious enough about law.

Does anyone know for sure?

Law Schools have no idea where else you are applying. For all they know, you're applying to 20 other schools! No application should ask where else you are applying and the only time I was ever asked was when I told Law Schools that I was turning down their offer of admission for another school (and then it was only which school I was going to). It's fine if you just want to go to 1 Law School...but you may find what you are looking for at another school. IP and Entertainment Law are popular anywhere you go, to be quite frank and honest. If you choose to limit yourself that's your choice, but it may help you to also see if there is something else out there, IMO (from one sister to another ).

Please don't flame me for this question because I am known as the GC ignoramus.

Question:

Let's say I was licensed to practice law in South Carolina, and I wanted to have a license in, say, New York State. Would I have to take the bar exam for NYS? Or would I just have to take a few CLE classes and, then, provide proof upon applying for my new state license that I took the CLE classes?

[WCUgirl]

Originally posted by CarolinaDG
Question #2: I'm trying to get a job as a clerk or assistant at a law firm... how much money should I look for in, say, Charlotte? He said he couldn't afford you... What exactly was he looking into paying?

I'm a paralegal in Charlotte!

With just a bachelor's degree, no experience and no certification, you could start anywhere from $27,000-$33,000/year. Depending on the firm, those raises could come quickly (more than one per year) as you learn and gain more experience w/ the firm.

[valkyrie]

It's not a dumb question, so don't feel bad.

The answer is it depends on the state -- some have reciprocity with other states and some don't. If you're admitted to the bar in South Carolina, you'd want to check with their board of admissions to the bar (they should hopefully have a website) to see with which other states, if any, there is reciprocity. Illinois, for example, has reciprocity with several other states, so if you're admitted to the bar in Illinois, you can apply for a license in another state without taking the bar. Reciprocity requirements vary, and some require that you've been practicing for X number of years -- 5 years is typical as far as I know -- so if you want to move to a state that has reciprocity with your state and you meet the qualifications, you're all good and just have to fill out the application and pay the $$$.

Originally posted by ztawinthropgirl
Please don't flame me for this question because I am known as the GC ignoramus.

Question:

Let's say I was licensed to practice law in South Carolina, and I wanted to have a license in, say, New York State. Would I have to take the bar exam for NYS? Or would I just have to take a few CLE classes and, then, provide proof upon applying for my new state license that I took the CLE classes?

[kddani]

Originally posted by ztawinthropgirl
Please don't flame me for this question because I am known as the GC ignoramus.

Question:

Let's say I was licensed to practice law in South Carolina, and I wanted to have a license in, say, New York State. Would I have to take the bar exam for NYS? Or would I just have to take a few CLE classes and, then, provide proof upon applying for my new state license that I took the CLE classes?

Honestly, unless you find a firm that really has a lot of practice in those two states, its not the most practical for those two particluar states. You have to pay money every year to upkeep your license as well as CLE hours in those states.

You'd have to take the exam for both states. After you practice awhile, you can get what is called "reciprocity" and get a license w/o having to take the exam, but that varies from state to state. Mr. Kddani practices in WV and is looking to possibly get into the OH bar. But he's been practice for 8 years. Of course, his firm in WV is 5 minutes from the Ohio border.

I wouldn't even begin to worry about that stuff now. You have no idea where life is going to take you

[HelloKitty22]

Generally (although not always), reciprocity tends to be between states that are next to or near each other, like NY and NJ or VT and NH. If you forsee that you are going to be moving across country, like from NY to AZ, it is likely that you'll have to take the bar again in your new state. Unlike other professional licences, bar admission is not freely transferable from state to state. It can be a real bummer if you expect that you'll be moving around a lot.

[GeekyPenguin]

How is everyone in this admissions cycle doing with fee waiverS? I have about 10 right now, and almost all of them are from schools that I wanted to apply to anyway!

Thanks guys! Yea, I know that my life still has a few twists and turns to overcome but I was just asking due to the fact that I am earlybird at "real life". I am only 23.