I have been teaching a business and tech Bootcamp for a group of very talented law students. Invariably we got to the question of career choices after law school, which I wrote about somewhat here. But, for me, the more important question is, why law school?
Another friend who is a Chinese lawyer recently wanted to get my opinion about getting a JD in the U.S. The first question I asked her was: what do you want to do after getting the JD? I was shocked that she didn’t have a good answer.
It seems that many of us (myself included) decide to go to law school for money, fame, and sometimes peer pressure or pressure from the family. All the wrong reasons. So what would be the right way to think about this question? Here are some thoughts.
1. Determine whether being a lawyer would be your passion and make you happy 20 years down the road
There are many good reasons to be a lawyer. Actually, for many young people, it may be one of the few and fastest ways to develop a career that has high potential in a few years. Established lawyers are highly respected, enjoy a good lifestyle and make a lot of money.
However, that doesn’t mean that being a lawyer is for everyone. I told my class that there are a few key characteristics of being a good lawyer. If none of them or most of them fit your personality and skills, it may be a sign that you shouldn’t consider this career.
Perfect logic
This is one of the key things they test you in the LSAT. To be a good lawyer, be it transactional or litigation, you must have impeccable logic. If you don’t have the aptitude to understand complex issues and break them down and then build them up in a logical way, maybe being a lawyer is not for you. Many artists and creative types don’t think the linear, logical way that lawyers think. Their way is intuitive, creative, and divergent thinking. Lawyers are typically laser-focused, step-by-step, and convergent.
Detail-oriented
To be a good lawyer, you must be extremely detail oriented. Granted, as you progress through your career, it may become increasingly less important. However, as a junior lawyer, you cannot progress to the next level if you lack the ability to focus on every single detail and catch all the potential mistakes. As an IPO lawyers, we used to sit for 48 hours in a row at the “Printer” to review the prospectus on paper for any missing coma. If this is not your thing, then maybe being a lawyer is not for you.
Patience
A related point is patience. Being a lawyer means you will end up dealing with many, many mundane, detailed tasks that require a tremendous amount of patience. Similarly, as you start to become more senior, you can delegate many tasks, but as the supervising attorney, you are still fully accountable for everything your team produces, so you’d better spend the time and have the patience to review everything in detail.
The mindset of an expert
I have written this piece about the difference between an expert and a generalist. In my opinion, in a grand scheme, lawyers are experts. Even general counsels at large companies are ultimately experts of the law. Granted, they may know MANY areas of law, but ultimately you are still bound by the practice of law. Other professions can be entirely different. That’s why in my Bootcamp, I tried to give my students a flavor of a much more diverse body of knowledge such as finance, technology, and procurement, to name a few. So if you think you will be bored with being a lawyer and being a lawyer ONLY, then law school is probably not for you.
2. Be prepared to put in three years, over $250k of expenses, and a LOT of hard work
Great. You have done the soul searching. You are extremely logical, you don’t mind the details, you have patience, and you want to become an expert. Now what?
First of all, you have to take the LSAT and get into the best school you can. More on that on a different day.
Even after you get in, law school is a three-year, very long, and for the most part, difficult journey. You will need to study all these subjects, contracts, torts, constitutional law, civil and criminal procedure, property, and evidence, to name a few. Maybe some of them don’t interest you at all. But it doesn’t matter. You must excel at them all.
Be prepared to get called on and be grilled by the Socratic method. I don’t know about all schools or what’s happening today. But 20(!) years ago, at Emory School of Law, if you didn’t read your case and couldn’t provide a fast and reasonable answer, you would be publicly shamed.
Oh, did I mention the finals that are graded on a curve and will count for ALL your grade for that class? Back in the day, I’ve seen people ripping out pages of books, pulling all-nighters before the exam, and crying in the bathroom after getting their grades. The sad truth is, you are graded to ensure that the average is a B, and you are fighting against the tide to get a 3.5 GPA, even to get an interview for the on-campus recruiting. More on that later.
For me, I didn’t mind the hard work. I thought it forced me to work in a very disciplined and structured way and digest a lot of difficult knowledge in a short amount of time. This experience gave me the confidence to acquire any amount of knowledge when called upon and know that I can do it in an efficient manner.
I didn’t mind the Socratic method that much either, even though I had only spent three years in this country and barely spoke English. I didn’t get called on a lot, mostly because I had a difficult last name. But when I did, or sometimes when I volunteered (that’s what a “Gunner” does), I had fun debating with the professors and showed them my whit of thinking fast on my feet.
What I was forced to learn was not all useful afterward. I also didn’t make so many friends or had much fun during law school. Many years later, when I was getting my MBA, people often asked me which one was harder. I didn’t even bother to answer that question. That’s like the difference between sitting on a cruise ship vs. surfing in the ocean. You go figure.
Last but not least, the finances. Granted, anything is expensive these days, even an undergraduate degree. But to take three full years and spend $250k plus, as opposed to making money, is a huge financial commitment and sacrifice.
3. You got your JD, then what?
Let’s assume you navigate through all these difficulties, and figure out a way to get a 3.5 GPA, then what?
The question remains what do you want to do after you get your JD.
Of course, many law students would say they want to work for big law. That’s the crop of the crop, and if you get a job offer at big law, that means you’ve “made it.”
Except that big law jobs are hard to come by. Unless you get into the “top 14”, for which you only need a modest GPA, for any other schools, you must be at the top of your class even to get an interview. The majority of law school graduates will not get a big law job.
Even if you do get a big law job, the path forward is still an uphill battle. Because of the brutal billable hours and up or our culture, most people quit long before they can make partners. Then you are faced with what you will do after getting your JD, which I discussed in this article.
4. Would I do it again?
I had an unfair advantage when I went to law school in that I got a full-ride scholarship. So I didn’t pay for my law school education.
But, even with that, 15 years and many other degrees and positions later, would I do it if I could go back in time? Probably not.
I don’t say this lightly. Granted, law school gave me a professional career, a high-paying job that I used as a springboard for other things. I learned a great deal, most importantly to think logically and work hard and adhere to a high standard of excellence. I acquired a tremendous amount of knowledge, a lot of which is handy every single day (e.g., disgruntled tenants). I possess a huge amount of credibility when we discuss anything relating to law because I have a JD and am licensed to practice in two states. Last but not least, my career ended up being a CEO of a legal tech company, which, without my legal credentials, I would not be able to pull off and push forward.
However, I went to law school mostly because I was young, foolish, and vain. I wanted to make a lot of money fast and didn’t take the time to understand what being a lawyer meant at a practical level. I was drawn by fame and what people around me would think was good. I didn’t really consider my own interest, aptitude, and long-term goal.
If I could start all over again, I would probably have gone straight to my MBA, which to this day, I don’t regret a single bit about getting. I may have even picked programming or anything relating to technology, as I do see myself having a passion for technology, especially software development.
What I told my students was that you must find that sweet spot overlapping your interest, your capability, and the practicality of making a living. One can only lie to oneself for so long. I was a miserable lawyer, and I hated every single minute of it. So, do yourself a favor. Think all this through. Talk to people like myself. If, after everything, you still want to go to law school, I applaud you. At least you have done your due diligence and know what you are doing. Got more questions? Reach out to schedule a chat with me.
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