Summary: Law is a difficult and sometimes cruelly demanding profession. If you are thinking of leaving law, read this article featuring attorneys who have left their law practice for other careers.
The practice of law isn’t for everyone. Long hours doing work that can sometimes be tedious, not to mention working around personalities who tend to hover more in the dark than light, can take a toll on a lawyer. If this summarizes your situation, check out the professions these ex-attorneys landed as their new careers.
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Inarguably one of the "hot" areas of law, real estate law has recently become a very attractive choice for law students and established attorneys looking to switch practice areas. We talked to real estate attorneys in various situations to see what this field can offer you. Real estate attorneys often start off doing something else. Possibly this is because real estate law is a natural compliment to many other legal specialties - from international corporate law, to divorce law, to environmental law. Click Here to Read BCG Attorney Search’s Guide to Corporate and Finance Job Search Categories for More Information. Real estate law could add more to your growing practice. Or, this specialty could be a good way for you to move to another legal neighborhood if you are not happy with the one you're in right now. That's what John O'Brien did. O'Brien, alumnus of Loyola Law School in Chicago, has been practicing law for 32 years, 20 of those in residential real estate law and estate law. Now in solo practice, he is also the Chair of the Illinois Real Estate Lawyers Association. O'Brien handled many divorce cases as a young attorney. It was "no fun" to work in such an angry environment, he says. Now, working in residential real estate law, O'Brien sees clients taking a step up in life, most of whom are happy with the process of buying a house. Since most people buy houses on the weekends when they are not at work, a typical work week for O'Brien involves checking his fax machine at 8:00 on Monday and Tuesday mornings, and usually finding two or three contracts there waiting for him. Then he gets to work. O'Brien contacts new clients, advises them of the requirements of the home-buying contract, his fees, and other details. In the standard Chicago-area home-buying contracts (which O'Brien wrote), there are five days in which the buyer can have an inspector look at the house, and for the buyer's attorney to contact the seller about any changes requested before the sale goes through - a repair to a leaky faucet, or roof repairs, for example. Another part of the contract includes an "attorney approval clause," which says that the contract is subject to attorney approval. O'Brien has only had to invoke this a few times. Once, a buyer loved the house, but the local schools could not meet the needs of her autistic child, so she had to change her mind about the move. When the house is in the right condition for sale, and everything else is in place, then O'Brien will attend the closing personally. He handles about 700 real estate deals a year, which means that he could easily have more than one closing a day. Overall, O'Brien says his work is a "family-related practice that has real rewards." This article first appeared “The Pros And Cons Of Practicing As A Real Estate Attorney “ on LawCrossing, also on Wordpress. LawCrossing is the world leader in "pure" monitoring and reporting of legal jobs, through its active and growing research into all legal employers throughout the world. You might still be planning a career in law or you might be a law student or a recent graduate. Have you thought about your long–term career goals? Have you considered all the career avenues that a law degree can open for you? This article will brief you about all the career options that you have after law school.
Right after law school and clearing the state bar, you are all set to get started on your legal career. Until now, you have more of a theoretical knowledge of the working of the legal system. Law school has taught you how to think like an attorney, but to gain practical experience and decide on your options, you need to analyze your priorities. Do you want a job that pays more or something that offers relaxed billable hours? Do you wish to work in all practice areas or would you consider a specialization? Are you a workaholic or do you seek to maintain a work-life balance? Only after you analyze your priorities will you be able to make the most of this prestigious career. After getting a JD degree and state bar licensures, you can opt for a post-JD degree offered at various colleges. These advanced degrees often come with specialization in a particular field of law and give you an edge over thousands of others. Typically, most graduates take up these advanced degrees after gaining some relevant work experience. Some of these degrees include:
Types of Employment Most graduates work in law firms after law school. Apart from law firms, you have the option to take a judicial clerkship, start solo practice, work for government or military, find a position in corporate legal department, work for a non-profit organization, or become a legal professor. There are a few who opt for a non-legal career and various others who pursue further education for advanced degrees. Clerkships Judicial clerkships are described as one of the most important career milestones by various attorneys. Clerkships are usually with a judge and allow recent graduates to see the insides of the legal system. They are considered very prestigious and play an invaluable role on your resume. You gain immense knowledge and first-hand experience working under a judge, and you also get to create a network at the very beginning of your career. This article first appeared “What's Next After Finishing Law School?“ on LawCrossing, also on Wordpress. LawCrossing is the world leader in "pure" monitoring and reporting of legal jobs, through its active and growing research into all legal employers throughout the world. Why should you become a District Attorney (D.A.)? Every city in the United States needs a prosecutor, someone who is devoted to upholding the constitution, protecting the public, and prosecuting criminal behavior when it occurs in their district. Large metropolitan areas typically have a considerable number of special units that hire D.A.s to concentrate on despicable crimes such as homicide, rape, and domestic violence.
One of the most rewarding benefits of beginning a career in the office of a D.A. is the valuable experience gained at trial. Fresh attorneys, who recently graduated from law school, might start doing backup work at an established law firm, while an attorney working in the office of a D.A. will quickly be exposed to the inside of a courtroom. Cases with statewide bearing are generally prosecuted by the State Attorney General Offices. Attorneys who prosecute at the state level usually operate with local D.A. offices. Each state also has a State Attorney General's office, and they are responsible for representing the states interest in court. There are also federal prosecutors who work for the Department of Justice and they have many offices across the United States of America. There are 90 U.S. attorneys who coordinate federal prosecutions and must report to the highest cop of the land, the Attorney General. D.A.'s Education and Training American Bar Association (ABA) certified schools offer students courses that provide a diverse selection of knowledge required to investigate, research, and manage a case during prosecution. As students become familiar with courtroom procedure, they will also be responsible for taking specialized courses in ethics, criminal law, and civil law. The reputation of the law school as well as the students understanding of the courses he/she sat through will determine if they are qualified to work at the local D.A.'s office. While attending law school, students frequently search for an intern position at the D.A.'s office. They want to build hands-on experience while they enhance their resume. After graduation from law school, potential attorneys must go through the grueling process of passing the bar exam before they decide which state to practice in. This article first appeared “Considering A Career As A District Attorney“ on LawCrossing Also on Wordpress. LawCrossing is the world leader in "pure" monitoring and reporting of legal jobs, through its active and growing research into all legal employers throughout the world. Summary: Find out which law firms offer the best balance between work and life for women. Diversity has become an increasingly large part of law and law firms.
Female attorneys have begun to benefit through law firms that offer more of a life-friendly balance. These firms also take into account that some women attorneys want to start families. This reveals that the evolution of law is real and happening for everyone in the legal industry. While law schools and law firms strive to be more diverse in an overall effort to equal the practice of law for all genders and ethnic backgrounds, there remains much to be done toward leveling out playing field of law. Recently, Working Mother, a leading website that highlights and offers support to women in the professional workplace, provided this year’s list of the 50 best law firms that in the words of the Working Mother website that recognized, “U.S. law firms that create and use best practices in retaining and promoting women lawyers.” As Working Mother explains, among this year's winning firms, women make up an average of 20 percent of all equity partners, and they hold over a quarter of the seats on both the executive and the finance committees. The following profiles of the Best Law Firms for Women detail how well women are represented in the partnership of each firm and highlight benefits offered for parents. The website explains that one key takeaway of this list were these firms lead the industry in offering generous parental leave benefits and support flexible work arrangements. All this, along with flexible hours, reduced hours and the option to work from home, would invariably make life far easier for moms and dads who seek to remain in the profession, despite having children. This article first appeared “The 50 Best Law Firms For Women“ on LawCrossing, also on Wordpress. LawCrossing is the world leader in "pure" monitoring and reporting of legal jobs, through its active and growing research into all legal employers throughout the world. Summary: Probate law doesn’t get the recognition of other practices; but it nonetheless is a very important aspect of law, particularly for families.
Probate Lawyer: A Type of Lawyer in a Practice Area That Benefits Everyone Even if you’re in your first, second, or third year of law school – even if you’re not yet in law school, it is always good to know the various practice areas for lawyers who concentrate their legal careers in specialty fields. These fields of law practice include but aren’t limited to: Corporate law – which usually involves issues regarding business transactions that usually take place within large corporations. Family law – which focuses on protection and representation of family-type issues such as wills, estates, and other legal involvements. Adoption, custody and divorce fall under family law. Bankruptcy law – which concentrates on issues involving money and finance (or a lack thereof). Employment law – which tends to focus on employee and employer rights that regards compensation, termination, harassment and workplace safety, etc. Civil Rights law – in which a lawyer who specializes in civil rights focuses on discrimination, civil liberties, gay and lesbian rights, as well as voting and human rights. Of course, this is just the tip of the legal iceberg. Law has many applications in life, and many applications in life do, at some point, require legal representation. From the military to personal injury, it seems as if there’s a type of lawyer for every facet of life. Probate law may be a type of legal practice that doesn’t get the big exposure as might criminal law, or in some cases when millions, if not billions of dollars are at stake, corporate law. No, probate law entails a small, rather unsung offshoot of the legal tree, yet one that is nonetheless necessary, particularly if you and your loved one have an interest in a deceased relative’s or friend’s estate and/or property. This article first appeared “Probate Lawyers Explained“ on LawCrossing, Also on Wordpress. LawCrossing is the world leader in "pure" monitoring and reporting of legal jobs, through its active and growing research into all legal employers throughout the world. As you begin your career as a paralegal, you will probably not be interested in seeing how your training can prepare you for jobs and careers outside the legal field. Sometime later, however, you might find such information useful. It is very helpful therefore, to consider these options as your career progresses, even from the beginning. For you will realize that your education and training as a paralegal may well serve as a stepping stone to other areas that may be of interest to you.
Many of you may have trained in other fields before becoming a paralegal. As a matter of fact, one of the problems many people face as they begin this new career is how to explain what might be a radical career change to a potential employer. If you can learn how to build on your skills developed in another field and relate these skills to your paralegal training, then you will benefit from the broad range of your talents and experiences, rather than be at a disadvantage. Eventually, you may find that you can use this combination of skills and training if you wish to move on to another field. Consider the following examples: 1. Depending upon your specific interests and talents, you can makemany moves within the paralegal profession, as well as outside of it. 2. Management skills could enable you to become a paralegal coordinator, one who trains and supervises other paralegals within an organization. The best route to this position is to demonstrate your capabilities, and you can do this only within the organization itself. 3. Office management is another area in which you can use your management supervisory skills, if you have them. This could be within a legal firm, or once you have gained experience, you may find that many offices need good management, outside as well as inside the legal profession. 4. Administration within a legal firm is also based on strong skills in working with personnel of many departments. An administrative director of a law firm is usually responsible for every non legal aspect of the firm’s operation, including accounting, personnel, and purchasing. Remember that such a position is not a paralegal position, although your paralegal background will be helpful. It is a step onto a different career track, however. This person usually reports to a senior officer. It is a highly responsible and demanding position. The combination of paralegal skills and other administrative skills could lead to a rewarding and challenging position. This article first appeared “Best Alternative Careers For Paralegals: What Other Jobs Can Paralegals Do?“ on LawCrossing, also on Wordpress. LawCrossing is the world leader in "pure" monitoring and reporting of legal jobs, through its active and growing research into all legal employers throughout the world. When one bar admits a lawyer based mainly on his/her membership in another bar, this is reciprocity or “admission on motion.” It is not a standardized process. While the American Bar Association (ABA) promotes guidelines it believes each jurisdiction should follow in accepting outside lawyers, each state is free to accept or disregard those suggestions and make its own rules.
See the following articles for more information about the bar exam: A Comprehensive Guide to Bar Reciprocity: What States Have Reciprocity for Lawyers and Allow You to Waive into the Bar Taking the Bar in Multiple States The Different Policies of Various State Bar Associations Regarding the Transfer of MBE Scores from One Jurisdiction to Another Of the 50 states and five territories listed on the chart "Reciprocity, Comity & Attorneys Exam" in the ABA's Comprehensive Guide to Bar Admission Requirements 2015, 25 states participate in a form of reciprocity. Eight states and/or regions will allow attorneys to take the Attorneys Exam, which is only the written part of the bar exam, and still others require passing scores on specific standardized exams. Standardized tests offered by the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE) are often components of an application to a state bar. The Multistate Bar Exam (MBE), Multistate Essay Exam (MEE), Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (MPRE), and the Multistate Performance Test (MPT) are the most commonly used tests for bar entrance, and some states require an applicant to pass one or more of these exams despite, or in lieu of, having reciprocity from his/her home state. The MBE and MPRE are the most common exams used, with only three or four jurisdictions opting to use other exams. See A Comprehensive Guide to Bar Reciprocity: What States Have Reciprocity for Lawyers and Allow You to Waive into the Bar for more information. Since 2011, states have had the option to administer the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE). The UBE is an effort among certain states to standardize the bar admission process and make it easier for test-takers to transfer their legal education across state lines by applying for admission to multiple UBE states at one time. The UBE consists of the MBE, MEE and MPT. This article first appeared “Guidelines On Reciprocity Or Admission On Motion Among The States As Per American Bar Association “ on LawCrossing, also on Wordpress. LawCrossing is the world leader in "pure" monitoring and reporting of legal jobs, through its active and growing research into all legal employers throughout the world. Professional Overview
Recent hearings in the House and Senate are showing that GM already knew about some of the recent defects in the ignition switches in some of its vehicles. However, this information was not shared with other parts of the company, which has led to deaths that could have been prevented. We sat down with Richard W. Painter, an influential corporate law professor at University of Minnesota Law School, who has very insightful opinions regarding the case with GM. According to an article featured in Corporate Counsel, GM In-House Lawyers Pulled Into Ignition Switch Probe, Mr. Painter told Reuters that if GM wanted to reassure shareholders, it should hire an independent law firm. "But they may want to disclose just enough to keep shareholders informed, and keep other things private to keep legal defenses available to them." Does he believe this is GM's best option given their current situation? "I cannot answer that question without more information - information that GM knows that I do not - about the company's liability exposure.“ "GM spokesman Selim Bingol told Reuters there is no conflict of interest, and Valukas" [outside counsel Anton Valukas of Jenner & Block who is leading the internal probe for GM] "has been charged to go where the facts take him and give the company an unvarnished report on what happened. He is the ideal person to do that, given his understanding of our business and his reputation for adhering to the highest standards. " Does Mr. Painter disagree with Selim Bingol? "No. For some purposes, Jenner & Block may be the ideal firm for this investigation even if the firm is not as independent of GM as some other firms might be.“ After graduating from law school, Mr. Painter clerked for Judge John T. Noonan Jr., of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He later practiced at Finn Dixon & Herling in Stamford, Connecticut, and Sullivan & Cromwell in New York City. Mr. Painter has served as a tenured member of the law faculty at the University of Oregon School of Law and the University of Illinois College of Law, where he was the Guy Raymond and Mildred Van Voorhis Jones Professor of Law from 2002 to 2005. This article first appeared “Expert Witness And Well Known Corporate Law Professor Richard W Painter Discusses Internal Investigation Of GM“ on LawCrossing, also on Wordpress. LawCrossing is the world leader in "pure" monitoring and reporting of legal jobs, through its active and growing research into all legal employers throughout the world. |
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