Goodman Firm Blawg

Are Law School Graduates Ready for Law Firm Life?

Apparently more and more young lawyers are deciding against the pursuit of partnership at big law firms. According to this Wall Street Journal article:

According to an NALP Foundation study unveiled last year that looked at law firms for the three years from 2002 through 2004, nearly 60% of all entry-level associates at firms with more than 500 lawyers had left their firms by the end of their fourth years. For firms of all sizes, it was 62%, a record since NALP began tracking it nearly 10 years ago.

Those numbers are fairly impressive; especially when you think about the time and money spent by law firms on new associates. As a recent law firm to solo lawyer, I can definitely relate to some of the points raised in the article.

 

The Truth About Law School Graduation

As noted in this article, the truth is the majority of newly minted lawyers are in deep debt well before they ever handle their first case. This was true for me and many of my law school brethren. I really do not see how some youngsters can afford to attend private law schools with huge tuition fees and and then work in smaller cities and legal markets. I guess supply and demand will eventually put a stop to the absurd rise in law school tuition and the ever increasing starting salaries for law school grads.

Become a Lawyer and Bypass Law School

California allows individuals to bypass law school and sit for the bar once they complete a self-directed study of the law followed by an apprenticeship. Mississippi used to follow this procedure, but the current rules require bar applicants who have graduated from an accredited law school.