Hipsters and Yuppies and Frat Bros, Oh My!

[JacksonPanther]

Originally Posted by rparz

My uncle is a partner for a firm in Chicago and he doesn't want to teach any of the associates anything because he says 'Why? So they can take MY job?'

How can they take his job if he is a partner?

Sent from my SPH-M950 using Tapatalk 2

[JacksonPanther]

Originally Posted by rparz

I'm just purely speculating, but I'd hazard a guess that if you went to law school and passed the bar, even if you couldn't land a gig practicing law, you could apply and have a shot at many other positions totally unrelated to law.

Smart, good work ethic, and knows enough about law to keep the company out of trouble?
Sounds like a universal skillset any company would value.

Exactly. Not to mention, a great many people go through law school and realize that it's not the career they want. It's not all litigating in front of a courtroom. Most of the time is spent writing endless documents.

But that doesn't mean there's a surplus...

It's like getting a degree in Computer Science because you like to write programs. In the business world worrying programs is a small part of the job.

Sent from my SPH-M950 using Tapatalk 2

[rparz]

Originally Posted by JacksonPanther

How can they take his job if he is a partner?

Sent from my SPH-M950 using Tapatalk 2

I didn't say it was rational, I'm just repeating his feelings. He's close to retirement, paid very well. He's probably not looking to wrap it up just yet.

[JTW2013]

Originally Posted by JacksonPanther

Exactly. Not to mention, a great many people go through law school and realize that it's not the career they want. It's not all litigating in front of a courtroom. Most of the time is spent writing endless documents.

But that doesn't mean there's a surplus...

It's like getting a degree in Computer Science because you like to write programs. In the business world worrying programs is a small part of the job.

Sent from my SPH-M950 using Tapatalk 2

I'll admit I haven't followed this entire thread so don't know who here is thinking about law school. DO NOT GO TO LAW SCHOOL!

There is a huge surplus of lawyers. It's ridiculous to look at a few high salaries and conclude there is no surplus. That's like saying that there isn't a surplus of people who can play football because a few NFL players make huge salaries.

Read this forum for more information about the realities of the legal profession, especially for recent grads. Law Forum Also Above the Law: A Legal Web Site – News, Commentary, and Opinions on Law Firms, Lawyers, Law Schools, Law Suits, Judges and Courts + Career Resources

A law degree is really not useful for anything other practicing law. Non-legal employers will not be impressed by a JD on your resume. They will wonder why you are not practicing law and assume there is something wrong with you.

There was a scandal a few years ago about how Northwestern (top 14 law school) was hiring its own grads to boost their employment stats. That's how bad the legal job market is.

Things aren't getting better. There have been some big layoffs recently in big firms (the big firms are called BIGLAW). See Risky Business: Overcapacity in Biglaw « Above the Law: A Legal Web Site – News, Commentary, and Opinions on Law Firms, Lawyers, Law Schools, Law Suits, Judges and Courts + Career Resources for discussions about overcapacity in Biglaw and the layoffs that are certainly coming.

In summary DO NOT GO TO LAW SCHOOL.

[bryan alan]

Originally Posted by rparz

While I learned a lot as an apprentice myself, that's not the way the world works anymore.

My uncle is a partner for a firm in Chicago and he doesn't want to teach any of the associates anything because he says 'Why? So they can take MY job?'

This. I work for a small-ish firm in the loop and the partners do not hire young attorneys for basically the same reasons. They don't feel like "training" some fresh out of school lawyer, so he can up and leave in a year for Jenner & Block.

Originally Posted by JTW2013

I'll admit I haven't followed this entire thread so don't know who here is thinking about law school. DO NOT GO TO LAW SCHOOL!

There is a huge surplus of lawyers. It's ridiculous to look at a few high salaries and conclude there is no surplus. That's like saying that there isn't a surplus of people who can play football because a few NFL players make huge salaries.

In summary DO NOT GO TO LAW SCHOOL.

And this. Almost every young attorney I've worked with for the past five years has said they regret going to law school. Their careers are nothing like they had imagined, they hate the hours, they hate the work, they'll be paying back loans until they're dead, etc...Not sure what exactly they thought they were getting into.

[Chi-town Native]

Originally Posted by JTW2013

A law degree is really not useful for anything other practicing law. Non-legal employers will not be impressed by a JD on your resume. They will wonder why you are not practicing law and assume there is something wrong with you.... DO NOT GO TO SCHOOL.

I agree on the former, for the latter, I would just say don't do it as a "fallback," the economy was so bad in the Aughts that a lot of people decided to just stay out of the job market and pursue advanced degrees.

[TheSunshineKid]

Haha! That's rather cool. I really enjoy maps like these.

[TheSunshineKid]

Originally Posted by chet everett

I wonder what they majored in? And why? There are dozens of folks on the Chicago threads that have told of how they moved here with nothing but a hatred of their cul de sac childhood and through the good fortune of being in the right place have risen up to afford a lovely lifestyle ...

I think The Life In Hell comic strip had a running feature on "tortured genius". I don't hear that too much from him since the Simpsons are now going on their bajillionith episode. Being able to pay bills takes a whole lot of the torture out of things...

life in hell matt groening - Bing Images

Post of the thread.

So far.