Sunday, September 19, 2010

How to fix what is wrong without getting a Law School education.

The cost to attend law school creates intense narcissism in the students who make it through. Hugely in debt, no real job prospects other than once again starting at the bottom and trying to work their way up, I am of the opinion that many law students develop crappy attitudes.

I think there is a solution however. START YOUR OWN PARALEGAL COMPANY.

An ideal way to break out of the typical law student self-induced narcissism is to help others in your field, and actually make some money while doing it. As time goes on, some interesting things will happen.

You probably will have interactions with various law firms who maybe didn't even want to hire you when you first groveled with them for a job. You probably will end up helping people who are in pro per and pro se get their cases aligned. These clients, who maybe did not have tens of thousands of dollars to beg a lawyer to take their case, may actually have a grand or two available to spend with you.

You will begin to learn the nuances of the law, how different firms handle their paperwork, how judges react to various motions, and you will find out which cases win, and which ones lose.

The key is to not be so far in debt that opening a paralegal business won't even pay your expenses. Eventually, the contacts you make could put you in a position to either continuing to grow your paralegal business, or to step off and into the position at a legal firm that you wanted all along.

It would seem to me that if I were hiring for a law firm, and I saw a year or two of experience successfully running a paralegal business along with a solid law education, that that is the person I would hire.

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