Assaying the “top 8 reasons not to go to law school”

The H. Luiz blog presents it’s “Top 8 Reasons to Not Go To Law School.” Elaborations are provided, but I’ll set them forth in abbreviated fashion below. While this post has been forwarded by a lot of legal blogs, my hat tip goes to Adjunct Law Prof Blog, since that’s where I saw it first.

I spend a good deal of time talking with undergraduates about going to law school. I like to think that I provide a neutral and balanced view on the pros and cons –  I am neither of the mind that it’s the best thing in the world to do or a big mistake. It often depends on the student and what they want to do with their life – therein often lies the problem – at 22 you often don’t know what you really want to do and don’t have the experience to make an informed decision. That said, I set forth the 8 reasons below and weigh in with my own thoughts.

1. It is financial suicide.

Not necessarily. Obviously, if you get financial aid, then this makes a big difference and a lot of students I talk with actually do get such aid. Sometime students are willing to go to a lower ranked school with aid over a higher ranked school without. This decision often turns on how debt averse the student might be and what the student wants to do after graduation. If they want to be a federal judicial clerk and/or work at a large firm, then going to the top 10 school might be better. If they want a job that doesn’t require the cache of a top 10 school, then it’s probably a waste of money. Again, the problem with 22 year olds is that they often change their minds about what they want. I know plenty of people who went to law school and emerged with very manageable debt. This means living modestly, working while in school, and, most importantly, going “in-state” to a state school.

2. If you’re a creative person, forget it.

Well, yes and no. I think that you can bring creativity to your work as an attorney and you can certainly bring it to your work if you are a law professor. However, it’s a matter of degree most of the time and this is no exception. Doing well in law school and as a lawyer turn less on creativity than on other skills, virtues and conditions. It may not make you happy as a career if you really require a creative outlet that can’t be handled during your off hours.

3. The break-up rate is nearly 80%

I don’t know if it’s 80%, but it has to be pretty high. Law school takes a real toll on relationships of all sorts – more so, it seems than graduate school or some other professional schools. You’ve probably heard the phrase “the law is jealous mistress” – it is. At least in your first year of law school most of your free time will be killed. If you want to end up on the top of the grade heap at the end of law school, then this extends (to a slightly lesser degree) to your 2nd and 3rd years. For some people, who are without attachments and obligations, this provides needed focus and discipline. However, recognize that you’re going to spend some good years (nay, great years if you go in at 22 like I did) sitting on your rear in a chair in the library. That said, I actually enjoyed law school and met a lot of nice people there.

4. The bar exam is brutal.

It is. Back in the day certain states were known to be “easy roads” on the bar exam requiring only that test takers give a “good faith effort” on the state portion. It is my understanding that no states do this anymore. Occasionally, I hear graduate students complaining about comprehensive exams (you take them to qualify to write a dissertation) and comparing them to the bar exam – there’s no comparison really. Not only is the bar exam a pain, but the bar admission application is a pain – that thing you did when you were 18 – it goes in; know every apartment address and phone number you’ve ever had? better; that credit card problem – a problem. I believe that some states allow you to submit to the character investigation portion of the admissions process before going to law school – if you have any questions on this aspect, then I suggest that you do take this option.

5. Top jobs are hard to come by.

If we’re talking the over 100k jobs, it’s more accurate to say “very hard to come by”. But, it depends on your situation. If you’re in a top 10 law school, then it’s not nearly as hard. If you’re in the top 10% of your top 50 law school, then it’s not as hard. But, in the words of Dirty Harry, “Do you feel lucky? Do ya, Punk?”  Going 100k in debt for a shot at making the top 10% of the class is not really a good strategy. This being said, we have to consider the counterfactual – what is a history/pol sci/english major going to do otherwise? Graduate school may not require the tuition outlay that law school does, but the chances of getting to the end (getting the Ph.D. and getting a tenure track job, then getting tenure) are much, much lower than getting a high paying lawyer job. Also, the lost income years are bigger – 8.2 years is the average time to earn a Ph.D.  - in order to maybe get a tenure track job (if you’re fortunate) to make 45k-70k per year. Of course, graduate school isn’t the only option for liberal arts graduates, but I just think it’s important to compare the investment/risk of law school against the investment/risk of other paths for such graduates.

6. Insane hours.

Here, they are talking about working as a lawyer; we’ve already touched on law school hours. On this, again, yes and no. While most law firms will have you working very long hours, there is a continuum of opportunities and it’s up to lawyers to find them. Some law firms pay a lot and require extremely long hours; some pay not a lot and still require long hours; some pay not a lot and require reasonable hours. I feel confident telling you that very few, if any, require reasonable hours and pay a lot. There are also a good number of in-house and government options that require fewer hours – and pay less. The buffet is there, but the steak and lobster buffet for $2.99 is a fantasy.

7. Law professors are A-holes.

Simple enough – some are and some are not – and every shade of grey in between. If you can’t handle this aspect, then yeah, you shouldn’t go to law school and actually there are a lot of things you probably shouldn’t do. I had good law profs, bad ones, and really bad ones. Such is life. Should law school and some law profs change their tune pedagogically? Perhaps so, but my understanding is that this has already happened (to a large degree) since the middle ages, when I went to school.

8. Harassment (for free legal advice)

For one, asking a law student for legal advice is not a good idea and this should probably be stated to those seeking it, in a nice way. This happens occasionally, but really isn’t that big of a deal. I imagine that MDs, car mechanics and carpenters get hit up more than attorneys. My annoyance was always that people asked me about things that weren’t really within my field of experience. Another annoying aspect is when people act very penny wise pound foolish – as if a complicated legal situation (or any similar situation: medical, business, construction, etc.) could be handled in a 15 minute conversation or handled without an expert in order to save a couple bucks. But that type of behavior annoys me generally, not just as an attorney.

So, there you have it. They missed some valid reasons, but I’ll leave those to your imagination