7 Ways to Try out a Legal Career Before You Commit
Practicing law sure looks great . . . on TV! Hollywood lawyers like Elle
Woods, the team on Boston Legal, and any of the fantastically gorgeous and
oft-rotating A.D.A.'s on Law & Order lure a lot of people to law school.
Despite what you may have heard about being able to do anything with a law
degree, law school is, at the end of the day, a trade school. Sure, some
of
them -- especially the top ones -- are gussied up with an intellectual
veneer, and their course listings make law school look like an advanced
degree in the liberal arts ("Greek Tragedy and the Law," "Postmodern
Legalisms," "Anthropology and the Law"), but you really have no business
applying to law school unless you know that you want to practice law.
Does that mean that you will end up practicing law forever, or that you'll
practice at all, if you go to law school? No. But chances are that you
will
be practicing, and given the hordes of unhappy lawyers, you owe it to
yourself to find out what you'll be getting yourself into.
Here are five things you can do to educate yourself about the practice of
law before you invest in a law degree:
1. Network
Talk to practicing lawyers, as many as you can find. Ask your parents,
your
friends, your alumni office, and previous employers for contacts and
introductions. If possible, talk to younger lawyers (ideally in their
third
to sixth years of practice), because your practice will more closely
resemble their career trajectory than that of more seasoned attorneys, and
they'll also have more perspective than someone who is only a year or two
out of law school. Also try to talk to people who have left the law.
2. Legal temping
Law firms rarely let random people shadow their lawyers for a few days or
a
week. You'll have access to a variety of legal practices, however, if you
sign up with a temp firm that specializes in legal placements. It's fine
that you haven't been to law school yet -- law firms too have phones that
need answering, envelopes that need stamping, do***ents that need
formatting, and coffee that needs making. The work won't be glamorous, but
you'll get to see legal practice in action.
3. Paralegal/case clerk
Same drill as legal temping, except you'll have more responsibility as a
paralegal or case clerk. These are especially good entry-level, full-time
jobs for freshly minted college graduates who plan on applying to law
school. Contrary to what you may have heard, plenty of firms hire college
students and college graduates without specialized paralegal training.
4. Public interest law firms
There are many wonderful but cash-strapped non-profit legal organizations
that provide free or low-cost services to underserved communities or
advocate on behalf of the public interest. They won't have money to pay
you,
but spending even ten hours a week volunteering or interning there will
allow you to see what public interest lawyers do all day long. You can
find
organizations that cater to every conceivable target community and
political
stripe, whether it's civil liberties, property rights, immigrant services,
religious freedom, gay rights, the environment, or school choice. Whatever
cause you care about, there are likely non-profit legal organizations
working towards the same goal.
5. Government agencies
Intern at a court or prosecutors' office at the local, state, or federal
level. Many government agencies have lawyers on staff, so include
departments like zoning, revenue (tax collection), and education in your
search.
6. In-house lawyers
Most large businesses and publicly traded companies employ in-house
lawyers
who handle their routine legal matters and interact with outside law
firms.
In-house counsel jobs are highly sought after by law firm lawyers, so
working/temping/interning for an in-house lawyer (or in the legal
department
of a company) would let you see what so many law firm associates are
aspiring to.
7. Get a taste of law school
And finally . . . Want to get a taste of law school before you commit? Sit
in on a class -- not the popular topics featured on TV, like
Constitutional
Law or Criminal Procedure, but rather cl***** like Civil Procedure,
Securities Law, or Wills & Estates. Alternatively, you can sign up for one
of the pre-1L boot camps, which introduce incoming first-year law students
to the first-year curriculum (they are open to anyone). They cost several
hundred dollars, but depending on your cir***stances, it may be worth it
--
especially if attending the boot camp convinces you that you'd rather
watch
paint dry for three years than suffer through law school.
Copyright © 2006 Anna Ivey
Author
Anna Ivey, JD is the author of The Ivey Guide to Law School Admissions:
Straight Advice on Essays, Resumes, Interviews, and More (Harcourt;
0156029790; $14.00US). She served as dean of admissions at the University
of
Chicago Law School. She now runs Anna Ivey Admissions Counseling, a
counseling firm for college, business school, and law school applicants.
Please visit Anna's website for more information on her books and tips on
the admissions process annaivey.com.
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