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Newsflash: ANY profession that's worth getting into has a certain amount of dues-paying associated with it. Check it out. Doctors... insane hours during residency. Architects... big hours, low pay early on. Finance/I-bank types... work a 75-hour work week and you're dogging it. Accountants... you just about live at the office during seasonal spikes. That's just the way it is.
If I had to say one thing, it would be this: Go to law school if and only if you have worked at a profession for 5 years, enjoyed it, and then saw a JD as a necessary supplement to advance your career.
That's what I did. I was a CPA who specialized in taxes. I already had my MBA (and my Masters of Taxation) but I knew that I could get a lot out of that JD if I passed the bar. I paid off my law school debt very quickly because I had a solid plan (and family that helped!).
Go to law school and get a JD if you are called to the law as a vocation. You'll work long hours when necessary and find time for your family as well. You'll be challenged, personally fulfilled, and maybe you'll make some money. You'll be happy and love your career. Law is a profession and a calling - if you're just looking for a job and easy money do something else. If you don't understand what "being called to the law" [or any other profession for that matter] means you either aren't ready or the law isn't really for you.
Go to law school and get a JD if you are called to the law as a vocation. You'll work long hours when necessary and find time for your family as well. You'll be challenged, personally fulfilled, and maybe you'll make some money. You'll be happy and love your career. Law is a profession and a calling - if you're just looking for a job and easy money do something else. If you don't understand what "being called to the law" [or any other profession for that matter] means you either aren't ready or the law isn't really for you.
Most of the guys I know do it for the money, and aren't ashamed to admit it. No one works 80 hours a week unless they are making serious bank.
Most of the guys I know do it for the money, and aren't ashamed to admit it. No one works 80 hours a week unless they are making serious bank.
That's only true for big firms. Most lawyers aren't earning a lot of money these days-- most lawyers can't find work these days. The lawyers that are working 80 hour weeks are court-appointed litigation attorneys that really and truly feel a calling to help the poor receive equal legal treatment.
Civil rights attorneys and lobbyists for things like "The Seal Foundation!" are also hour-heavy and dollar poor.
If you're thinking of the legal profession only for the salaries, I would urge you to consider another field.
FND is 100% right...there are far too many lawyers around here. You can get a lawyer to do your uncontested divorce for little more than the filing fees; that's how hungry some of them are. I've seen lawyers at Jason's Deli (right next to a major hospital) handing out cards to people in wheelchairs/people with casts. It's degrading.
I was considering law school when I first graduated...talked to some actual lawyers...and discovered that it didn't actually sound like something I'd enjoy. I got into I.T. instead and I don't regret my decision. I don't make as much as a lawyer does, but I have a life.
Most of the guys I know do it for the money, and aren't ashamed to admit it. No one works 80 hours a week unless they are making serious bank.
Their, and our profession's, loss.
Over the nearly three decades I've practiced I watched those guys come and go. By and large they either (1) burn out from always chasing the buck; (2) become disillusioned when they realize their career is primarily sticking little guys on behalf of big, soul-less companies; (3) sink into a deep depression and have their lives spin out of control; or (4) climb into a booze bottle and have their lives spin out of control.
Some realize that there is more to the law than making money - and low and behold they find their career and their personal life fulfilling.
So if you're planning on chasing the dollar and you're planning on doing it practicing law - plan on being miserable.
If you want to practice law so you can help the distraught and unfairly oppressed; you want to give real people the ability to avoid serious trouble; you want to advise people on decisions that can effect the rest of their lives; then forget the money - and become a lawyer because you're called to the profession.
Go to law school and get a JD if you are called to the law as a vocation. You'll work long hours when necessary and find time for your family as well. You'll be challenged, personally fulfilled, and maybe you'll make some money. You'll be happy and love your career. Law is a profession and a calling - if you're just looking for a job and easy money do something else. If you don't understand what "being called to the law" [or any other profession for that matter] means you either aren't ready or the law isn't really for you.
Wow!! I came on here looking for some advice about the law profession. It's so funny that I came across this message. I was just explaining to my family why I was making a career change. All I could say is that I have been called to do it. I know exactly what you mean when you say the "calling". I have been ignoring it for the last ten years. I have finally given in. I will be taking the LSAT soon and in law school by next fall, if all goes well. I know that I have made the right decision. I have been working in healthcare for the last seven years, mainly for the pay check, but I hate my profession. This time I will be going into a profession because that is what I want to do rather than just needing the money.
Both of these sites are great resources for the pre-law. They have links to all of the latest research and studies of the profession, salaries, and the "game" of law school. The first site is admittedly pretty trashy, but you can find invaluable information once you sift through - on types of law to practice, on firms to work for, how much debt you should realistically take on, and other stuff.
The other site is more friendly, easier to use, but is also geared more for prelaws and is a bit of an echo-box. But it does have good information on the admissions process, what to expect, the LSAT, rankings, and all that business.
Personally, I saw skip out on the law school route. It's too expensive to wager on a guess. You have to really know you want to be a lawyer - and everything that entails, including what type of law you'll most likely want to do - so that you can do everything you can to get there. I'm not so sure going to law school as a ride to see where you end up is the wisest decision.
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Funny you would say that...
