Ohio Law Library

In the 19th Century, people still "read" for the bar exam. When was the law school restriction put in, and on what was the reasoning for changing the law?

Like someone has already said, there are NO LAWS mandating someone have a JD to sit for the bar. The field of law is regulated by each state’s supreme court – the legislature has nothing to do with it. I’m licensed in two states. In both states, the process of becoming licensed was overseen by a board, the members of which were appointed by that state’s supreme court. The field is regulated, not legislated. It’s the judiciary that decides the requirements for being licensed.

Some state judiciaries decided that reading into the law is sufficient to sit for the bar. But like someone else said, it is a sucky way to learn the law, and people who do it have a high likelihood of not passing the bar. In the 19th century, dentists were trained by watching other dentists, and then practicing on their patients. I think it’s a good thing that my dentist was required to get a degree in dentistry before he was allowed to drill my teeth.

I would like to prepare for my first year in law school. I am looking to purchase books on torts, contracts, civil procedure, constitutional law, and criminal law. Any recommendations on which books to read? I’ve heard Gilbert’s Law Reviews have good outlines, but is it easy to read and understand? Please advise.

Emanuel’s is a good outline – I liked it better than Gilbert’s. Examples & Explanations is also good. For class, you should get High Court Case Notes, which are keyed to your textbooks and summarizes each case in the book. You do not need to purchase any books on the above topics until you get your book list though. The books are very expensive and you do not want to get the wrong book.
You should take it easy before heading to law school. Maybe read 1L or watch the Paper Chase. But, to begin reading textbooks is not something I would advise you do. You will be doing enough of that when school starts!!!!!

I work full time for a nonprofit, and I got into law school at night and I want to go, but nonprofit work doesn’t pay very much and law school is pretty expensive. The school I’m going to doesn’t have any scholarships available for its night program, so I’m wondering about the possibility of outside funding. I’ve looked at fastweb and those sites, but there aren’t very many scholarships out there for law schools, most of the financial aid is for more academic programs. Can anyone help me out?

Does your school accept the FAFSA?
You should be able to get financial aid through the federal government. As for scholarships, fastweb is really the biggest database out there.

I am a history major going into my senior year of college this fall. At first I was planning on taking the GRE and going to grad school but have recently been contemplating law school. I would really love advice from people in law school or lawyers themselves because I don’t know where to begin with the application process, and information on achieving the law degree in general. Any tips or guidelines would be appreciated. Thanks.

1) Register with the Law School Admission Council. They run the law school Data Assembly Service, which is how most law schools process their applications. You will fill out applications online through their website, and they will send your transcripts, LSAT scores, letters of recommendation, and personal statement to the school for you. Most law schools will not accept any of these materials from you – they only take them through LSDAS. http://www.lsac.org/

2) Study for the LSAT. If you do poorly and have to take it again, both scores will be sent to the law schools. Some law school take your best grade, but some average the two grades, so you don’t want to mess up and then be handicapped by that lower score.

3) Start doing research into law schools. You want to start by casting a broad net – consider rankings, tuition, job placement rates after graduation, bar passage rates, and how many students receive financial aid. If you are a minority, you may want to look at how diverse the student body is, as well as the faculty. Do they have a Dean that oversees diversity issues? Do they have an active chapter of the Black Law Student Association, Latino American Law Student Association, or the Asian-Pacific American Law Student Association?

4) Attend a Law School Forum (hosted by LSAC) – this is like a college fair, but only for law schools. You can talk to admissions officers, and some schools also send current students. This is a great way to talk to representatives from the schools you are considering. This is when the school puts its best foot forward – if they are rude to you as a potential application, this speak worlds as to how they treat their students.

5) If you can, visit the schools. Not entirely necessary, but it can be good if you are having a hard time deciding. Check out the student lounge and library – are the students friendly? stressed out? look overworked? If it is a stressful environment, it may not be the right school for you.

6) APPLY EARLY. Law schools have what is called rolling admissions – you’re probably familiar with this from grad schools. Basically, the earlier you apply in the cycle, the better chance you have to be accepted and to receive financial aid.

Good luck!

I must be honest with this post, I received a B.S. Poltical Science degree, however, I graduate with a very low gpa. Well, lets just say it is below a 2.5( terrible right)? Although my last two years of college I bounced back with my grades but we all know once you dig that hole it is hard to get out. Well, I decided to attend graduate school and I just finished getting my MPA degree with a 3.41 graduate gpa. I have always want to go to law school but I am somewhat deterred due to my low undergraduate gpa and academic probation and expulsion. I do understand that I will have to take the LSAT and do well on it to have any chances in getting into any law schools. In addition to my graduate degree, I have two years of work expereince in the law enforcement field(non-officer). Well, any suggestions that anyone can give will be great. Thanks!!!

You need to take the prep classes to be extra-sure you do well on the LSAT, and then I think you’re fine.

Law schools take grade trends into account, so they’ll see that, since you’ve been older and more mature, you’ve done really well.

I think you’ll be accepted multiple places, if that LSAT is competitive.

I will be applying to law school next year and I am concerned about my lack of job experience. I’ve been working consistently since I was 16, but either in sales or in the childcare industry. Will these type of jobs badly affect my chances of getting into an excellent law school?

I attend a very prestigious school with a decent GPA and am an athlete as well as a board member of a large club.
Should I try to get a job in another field in order to boost my application? If so, what type of positions should I be looking for.

Thanks!

The short answer is that it isn’t a big factor. Most law schools focus on your LSAT score, your undergraduate GPA, and your personal statement, with each school giving more or less weight to each of those three depending on its philosophy. The vast majority of law students are coming directly from finishing their undergraduate degrees and have had no opportunity for significant employment before they apply to law school. My opinion is that your time would be better spent getting into some additional leadership positions or doing some volunteer work. These sorts of things can help you look like a more "well rounded" candidate to the selection committee. However, one way your job history could HURT you is if you have any kind of negative history, such as having been fired or disciplined by a past employer.

One good reason to consider working part-time in a law office before going to law school would be to see what the nuts and bolts of the practice of law are. Many students choose to go to law school without fully understanding what awaits them after they graduate. Many times these graduates are unhappy with the work they end up doing, but feel stuck because it is the only way they can earn enough to keep making payments on their $100,000+ in student loans.

I’m a prospective law student. My ultimate goal is to work for the United Nations or other international humanitarian organization. What law school should I attend? Does it need to be tier one?

Almost any accredited one will do.

Bet you never heard of Dickinson? it is a small Law School in south Central Pennsylvania. How good are they? Probably not in the same class as Harvard, but when Penn State University decided they needed a Law School, rather than start one from scratch, they just absorbed Dickinson. Dickinson must have been doing something right!
My point is, there are many good ones out there who may not be Harvards or Yales, but don’t sell them short.

I am a freshmen criminal justice major. I plan on going to law school after i finish my undergraduate. I have herd from numerous people that the hardest part is getting in, and the first year, but if you make it through the first year then most likely you will graduate. As for now I want to do criminal cases, but I don’t really know what other types of lawyers there are.
Any info would be great.

Hi fellow Criminal Justice major….

I have also pondered at the SAME exact question that you have in my early college years.

The BEST advice I have to you is to keep those grades at 3.5 or higher for a law school to glance at your application. Also, find places that will help you to prepare for the LSAT (the exam you take to get into law school) as soon as your sophmore year in college. Philosophy courses are a Great way to prepare for some of the material found on the LSAT ( & there is room to take these courses under the Criminal Justice major at most colleges)
There are many law schools out there but it is important to evaluate your school for your undergraduate degree. I was told by not 1 but 5 professors that law schools DO look at where you graduated as a factor in determining whether or not you get in. Sad but true. My best advice to you is if you can & are able to transfer to "well-known" college with a great curciculum for your major then DO IT! If you are not able to, make sure that you keep your gpa at the highest level you can. But most importantly, GET INVOLVED! Experience is excellent way to display your skills on paper. It doesn’t have to be in the biggest organizations, but even the smaller ones count. College is about getting involved, gaining experience, and learning.
Don’t stress about what is ahead of you, just help to prepare for your future by giving it the best you got today.

I always hear from people that law school is much more difficult than a liberal arts undergraduate degree. In what ways?

At my undergraduate program, we read, write, and compose several analyses of books of many different authors, poets, historians, professors, politicians, and many other scholars frequently. How much more comprehensive is law school than an undergraduate liberal arts program?

Here are the differences that I have noticed since enrolling in law school.

1. Amount of work: As the other poster notes, the volume of work in law school is like nothing you have ever seen in undergrad. Law school requires reading about 450 pages a week. The reading is not scholarly works (for the most part). They are cases. Opinions written by judges. Cases are very difficult to understand and many times many cases deal with one principle of law and it can be very difficult to reconcile the court coming out in a different way.

Regardless, the reading is greater in volume and substance. For example, in undergrad (I was also a liberal arts major at a fairly difficult school) I could read 20-30 pages an hour. In law school, especially at first, it is like reading a different language. You have to look up terms constantly and understand many legal concepts before you can understand another more complex one. Reading in law school takes on average (at least your first year) 1 hour per 10 pages of reading.

Furthermore you must be prepared to be called on in class. You may not gloss over the reading and expect to sit through a lecture and pick up the information there. In law school you will be called on and if you are unprepared you will be ridiculed by the professor. Furthermore some profs will asses an absence for being underprepared which is saying a lot as the ABA will only allow you to have 4 the entire semester to sit for the exam.

2. Comprehensiveness: It is much more comprehensive. In undergrad you may take a class that will state some simple legal rules. I once had a friend who told me that he knew everything about negligence in tort law because he had learned the elements in 2 classes of undergrad work. In law school you must take torts and we spent 11 weeks on the elements of negligence alone. In your constitutional law class you will spend 5 or 6 weeks discussing one sentence of the constitution such as free speech. To say it is comprehensive is an understatement. You are learning the law, and will someday advise clients on the law, scholarly reading is just simply not the same as reading opinions.

Furthermore, the analysis that you conducted in undergrad is not nearly as complex as law school will demand. Analyzing a book is a lot different from analyzing legal issues.

The only thing I can tell you is that you would have to experience it to know what I am talking about.

I am planning on moving to France after college, and I want to attend law school there and practice. I was wondering what the process is for applying and what I would need to do now. Current;y, I’m a sophomore and I will graduate in 2012. Possibly 2011. How and for what should I apply?

Phone the educational attache’ at the French Embassy in Washington DC and ask your questions. You may be referred to the legal attache’.

You will also have immigration issues unless you qualify for citizenship or permanent residency in the EU. You also may have citizenship issues, depending on French policy. If you are going to marry a French citizen or already qualify for French citizenship, the process will be much easier. I hope you speak perfect French without a foreign accent. Best wishes.