[OT] Attorneys on the EnWorld boards

[Mort]

I’m an attorney in the Chicago area, specializing in bankruptcy.

These boards (the original Erik Noah version) actually helped me with the bar as they kept me sane wile studying.

As for Creamstreak’s question:

A computer science degree is a great segue into law school, especially if you have an interest in patent law. There are a few things to keep in mind though:

1. Consider taking some writing classes – most computer science programs will not prepare you for the large amount of writing involved in law school.

2. If patent law is a consideration, investigate it before committing to law school. I’ve had three friends go into patent law that quite their jobs in disgust after less than two years. Then again, my wife is a patent attorney and shows no sign of stopping (though she has been known to chant “boring” while examining files).

Just some thoughts.

 

[Skarp Hedin]

You know, in California [and ONLY California, as I recall], you can be admitted to the state bar without a J.D. (law degree) by serving an apprenticeship at a firm.

I'm not an attorney myself, but I'm a legal assistant. The attorney I work with moved out here to Vermont and learned the following when she arrived:

1) You can be a lawyer in Vermont without going to law school by serving an apprenticeship as described above (which she thinks is the stupidest idea on the face of the earth, but I digress)

and 2) Vermont will not admit you to the bar unless you've served an apprenticeship or clerkship with a Vermont-licensed attorney.

Luckily for her, she works in immigrations, which is federal and doesn't care if you live in Vermont and your license is for Illinois. She was unwilling to serve a full-time three month clerkship, being as she was expected to show up to work at the company we work for at the same time, heh.

This angered her to no end, I might add. I don't think she ever got over it.

Edited note: of course, I have only her word for #2. There may well be other means to be admitted aside of what I described, but they told her that she'd have to do one of them to be admitted.

 

[ruleslawyer]

J.D. 1999. International law, with a focus on human rights and environmental work (mostly for the UN, though I did work for a white-shoe NYC firm in Brussels and Paris for a while).

Amusingly enough, I'm not much of a rules-lawyer, per se. I tend to embrace ambiguity and dislike semantics; not very standard for my profession, I guess, but then I don't really know any "standard" lawyers.

Creamsteak: Good luck to ya. My suggestion would be, as Mort said, to go ahead and pursue comp sci work, but build up your writing skills in the interim. Study hard for the LSATs; since you're not coming from an Ivy, they're quite important. And yes, investigate IP law very carefully before you decide upon it (or any other specific branch of law) as a profession. Talk to people in the business; honestly, you can simply call up most big-league attorneys practicing in a particular specialty, and you'll be surprised how much advice and assistance they'll offer.

 

[Numion]

So now I'm 100,000+ in debt with the degree

Thanks god studying is free in Finland.

 

[Scytax Killbane]

I have been doing commercial litigation for five years now up north in Canada.

I also have to thank D&D, it helped me with a few things that I now use: learning english (I'm from quebec, their was not much french D&D book 15 years ago), reading till my eyes bleed , and most of all argue and bluff...

Happy to meet you colleagues here on the boards

 

[pogre]

I'm a recovering lawyer

Practiced for about five years - mostly family law. Now I teach high school and coach football and track. Far more rewarding and satisfying (except for the $ of course). My main legal thing these days is to do contracts and help out at BadAxe games when I can.
Pogre

 

[Storm Raven]

You know, in California [and ONLY California, as I recall], you can be admitted to the state bar without a J.D. (law degree) by serving an apprenticeship at a firm. So you got that going for you...

Virginia as well: if you serve an apprenticeship and pass the bar exam, you're in.

 

[Marius Delphus]

well do you like desktop publishing?

Why or why not?

If you do like it what is a good route to get into desktop publishing?

Not trying to derail the thread here, but in the main I love my work, because, like D&D, desktop publishing feeds both right and left brain. However, IME, Nathanael and Wormwood are spot on the money with their observations.

I don't know what a good route is, as my route has been indifferent at best. A long hard grind of temping and corporate henching; of course, for a while there was a second income in the family so I could afford to play at it. But I am forecasting a productive move very soon... cross your fingers for me!

It almost makes me want to go back to law! I'd go the IP (copyright/trademark) route in a heartbeat. But for various reasons (including, but not limited to, the time I've spent away from law in any form) I'm pretty sure no law practice/firm around here would give my resume a second look....

But as I re-format all my D&D downloads I am very happy I have the power to go with my finicky nature....

 

[Shard O'Glase]

thanks for the response.

i am in one of those I don't know what to do with my life positions. I'm still in my 20's, though not for long so this isn't a crime against nature or anything yet. But hearing what others do, and what they like and don't like about it may spark an interest in me.

 

[JPL]

J.D. 1999. International law, with a focus on human rights and environmental work (mostly for the UN, though I did work for a white-shoe NYC firm in Brussels and Paris for a while).

Good man. Ever hear of Francis Anthony Boyle? I studied international human rights law under him. He's apparently a big man in the field. That's what he says, anyway...

Is your firm looking for a first-year, Ruleslawyer? One of my classmates would be right up your alley, and she's talked about going east.