7 answers
Johara
Student
Ontario
2
Questions
Asked
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Calling all lawyers!
I am debating going into a career that relates with law. I wanted to be a corporate lawyer, then a criminal defense attorney, but now I'm debating a trial lawyer. Do you have a suggestion on which one I should choose? What convinced you to go into your specific law?
#law #lawyer #lawyers #attorney #law-school
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7 answers
DENNIS BREEN
Lawyer
148
Answers
Cary, North Carolina
Updated
DENNIS’s Answer
Hi Johanna: Upon entering law school you will need to take courses in all these subjects. See which one fits your personality. I played a lot of sports in high school and college. Trial law fit into my person. I tried corporate law but was unhappy sitting behind a desk for extended periods of time. I also started out doing criminal defense law ( remember in New York City ) but found the clients hard to handle. So the journey is one that is unique to you. Once in school find out which course you like the best. Try to get an internship in that field and test it out . If you like it you'll know. I found that trial lawyer was challenging, changing and fun. I was in Court all the time meeting people I liked and having to deal with changing fact paternens all the time. Alot like sports. So take the courses - see which one you like and go for it! Good luck!
Thank you! That's exactly my thought process when I picked my options. Hope you have a great day/night!
Johara
Good luck Johana - you will make a GREAT lawyer in whatever path you follow!
DENNIS BREEN
Tina D
Attorney
6
Answers
Charlotte, North Carolina
Updated
Tina’s Answer
The best way to decide which path to take is to figure out which type of law you enjoy the most. You will learn from the classes, and also when you enter into practice. Some types of law can be more demanding and stressful. Litigation is interesting, and challenging, but not for everyone. There really is a public speaking aspect to it. Working in corporate law is a lot of desk work, but I have found that most companies are more flexible and reasonable to work with regarding work/life balance and high stress/pressure. From my experience, I worked for firms, on my own managing my own firm (where all the pressure is on you), and now in corporate law. It depends on your personality and what you like. In reflecting back on my career so far, I would choose corporate law every time due to the flexibility and work environment.
Thank you for the reply! I appreciate the advice. Have a good day/night!
Johara
Mariana León García
Senior Analyst and Lawyer
26
Answers
Mexico City, Mexico
Updated
Mariana’s Answer
Hello Johara,
From my experience I can tell you that I have dedicated myself to 3 different ones, such as administrative law when I worked in an office, financial and securities law when worked in a bank and currently I am dedicated to corporate law when working in a private company, so this is a matter of trying a little of each one.
It's all a matter of learning and getting to know the different specialties that exist as you go, now a days It may be that from this moment there is some branch of law that may catch your attention but it may happen that at the end of the degree and since you studied all the subjects related to it, they do not attract as much attention as before.
Today this profession adapts to new technologies and therefore incorporates new fields of study, what you can do is do an investigation of the different law schools that interest you, consult the study plan that each one has and see which one. It attracts your attention, you can do an investigation of the different branches of law that exist in your country and see which one best suits your interests.
I hope this can work for you and clarify your doubts.
Mariana
From my experience I can tell you that I have dedicated myself to 3 different ones, such as administrative law when I worked in an office, financial and securities law when worked in a bank and currently I am dedicated to corporate law when working in a private company, so this is a matter of trying a little of each one.
It's all a matter of learning and getting to know the different specialties that exist as you go, now a days It may be that from this moment there is some branch of law that may catch your attention but it may happen that at the end of the degree and since you studied all the subjects related to it, they do not attract as much attention as before.
Today this profession adapts to new technologies and therefore incorporates new fields of study, what you can do is do an investigation of the different law schools that interest you, consult the study plan that each one has and see which one. It attracts your attention, you can do an investigation of the different branches of law that exist in your country and see which one best suits your interests.
I hope this can work for you and clarify your doubts.
Mariana
Kathryn Young
Managing Trial Attorney
4
Answers
Boston, Massachusetts
Updated
Kathryn’s Answer
Hi there. I am a trial attorney by trade. I agree with the advice given above. Try them all out and see which fits your personality. Law school gives the opportunity to take classes in all of these areas of law, but I'd encourage you to take an internship, clinical, part time position or shadow an individual in these areas to see which one is the best fit. And do not be afraid to reach out to someone if you want to know what their career entails. Most people are more than happy to talk about what they do - particularly if they love it. And you don't have to wait until going to law school to do these things.
Get an internship.
Kathryn recommends the following next steps:
Michael Serra
Attorney
4
Answers
Detroit, Michigan
Updated
Michael’s Answer
Hi Johara,
Let me start by saying that I love being an attorney. I've always been a "people person," and really enjoy providing strategic advice and being relied on as an expert.
I felt that my background in competition (sports as said above), persuasive writing, and public speaking would suit me well as a trial attorney. And, when I became one, I did really enjoy the courtroom aspect. Unfortunately, I fell "out of love" with that practice because of business demands. I truly hated the billable hour (writing down everything I did in tenths of an hour) which is generally how you get paid when representing people being sued. I also had trouble being passionate about some of my clients and what they had done. Eventually, I became a corporate attorney working directly for a single business (i.e., in-house). The work is cool, with unique projects and intelligent coworkers that appreciate my strategic advice. It is true that most of my day is spent at my desk behind a computer. That can be boring. But, overall, I think being a corporate attorney gives you a lot of options for a fulfilling career!
Let me start by saying that I love being an attorney. I've always been a "people person," and really enjoy providing strategic advice and being relied on as an expert.
I felt that my background in competition (sports as said above), persuasive writing, and public speaking would suit me well as a trial attorney. And, when I became one, I did really enjoy the courtroom aspect. Unfortunately, I fell "out of love" with that practice because of business demands. I truly hated the billable hour (writing down everything I did in tenths of an hour) which is generally how you get paid when representing people being sued. I also had trouble being passionate about some of my clients and what they had done. Eventually, I became a corporate attorney working directly for a single business (i.e., in-house). The work is cool, with unique projects and intelligent coworkers that appreciate my strategic advice. It is true that most of my day is spent at my desk behind a computer. That can be boring. But, overall, I think being a corporate attorney gives you a lot of options for a fulfilling career!
Thank you for replying! Being a corporate attorney sounds extremely fulfilling! Especially when you're being recognized for your work. I'm a person who thrives off competition. Which is why I want to research pursing a career as a lawyer. However, I'm afraid the sitting at a laptop for hours on end will make me anxious for change. Thus, "butchering" my work ethic. Anyways, thank you so much for the reply. Have a good day/night!
Johara
Juliana Capata
Attorney
3
Answers
Pleasanton, California
Updated
Juliana’s Answer
From a corporate law perspective, there is a fair amount of desk work but it can also be very interactive. I do both governance and securites work and also transactional work, and there is quite a bit of variety in what I do. I work with a team of corporate lawyers and paralegals and one reason that we selected corporate over litigation is that it is often more collaborative and most of the time less adversarial. One member of our team worked as a court house clerk early in her career and was exposed to all different types of law -- family, criminal, traffic. The work was interesting but also had a sad/stressful element to it. In her view, corporate work was still interesting and also more collaborative and positive.
Another thing to think about is your likes and dislikes -- would transactional work interest you (mergers & acquisitions, investing in companies, financings), do you like numbers, do you like reading/writing/research? There are many varieties of both corporate and litigation to explore that may suit your interests.
Another thing to think about is your likes and dislikes -- would transactional work interest you (mergers & acquisitions, investing in companies, financings), do you like numbers, do you like reading/writing/research? There are many varieties of both corporate and litigation to explore that may suit your interests.
Job Hall
Real Estate Manager
125
Answers
Reno, Nevada
Updated
Job’s Answer
You can study many forms of law but you're lucky if you get to practice exactly what you want to do unless you open your own firm azaria work for a bigger established firm and they will put you where they need you.
I open my own firm with my best friend when we graduated I did land use real estate construction defect and corporate litigation on all kinds of issues for cases up to 50 million as a trial attorney. Working for a large firm you do not have high odds of becoming a trial attorney they get paid the most if I were you I'd actively joined debate and any other place where you're going to do public speaking cuz you're going to have to have your skills very strong to become a trial attorney. In the alternative if you open your own firm and you have a specific type of law that you excel at what you want to do then you can start targeting people in the fields you want to practice in consultants as many ways to market yourself if you do well it becomes very lucrative. It's also very hard to be a trial attorney you have to be very on top of it good luck
I open my own firm with my best friend when we graduated I did land use real estate construction defect and corporate litigation on all kinds of issues for cases up to 50 million as a trial attorney. Working for a large firm you do not have high odds of becoming a trial attorney they get paid the most if I were you I'd actively joined debate and any other place where you're going to do public speaking cuz you're going to have to have your skills very strong to become a trial attorney. In the alternative if you open your own firm and you have a specific type of law that you excel at what you want to do then you can start targeting people in the fields you want to practice in consultants as many ways to market yourself if you do well it becomes very lucrative. It's also very hard to be a trial attorney you have to be very on top of it good luck