Hanging up my badge and gun and going to Law School

[Mjolnir]

Hanging up my badge and gun and going to Law School

I have a deep love of the law and for years I have done my very best to evenly, fairly and honestly enforce it. Its been a very rocky road and I have seen the best this career has to offer and the worst, I've worked with the brightest as well as the dullest which has brought me to a point where I have made a decision to take the next step.

I have decided to hang up my badge and gun and go to law school. I feel that I can make a bigger difference this way. I feel that far too many people on both side of the court room are abusing the system and instead of standing by and allowing it to happen I am going to do more about it.

The ball is now rolling and I am very eager and anxious to get started.

Congratulations and thank you for your service (and honesty ). We need more like you.

[ZDL]

Congratulations and good luck.

[kmrtnsn]

My hope is that after passing the bar you take a position as a Deputy District Attorney or Assistant United States Attorney. Good luck. We need prosecutors with your background.

[Outrider]

Law school is a miserable experience but the people who want to make it through do. At first, it can be a little confusing because you are being instructed about what the law is not what you feel it should be or thought it was. Once you develop an understanding for the law, your friends and family will notice how you will start to process things differently. You'll see the problem in its legal context and then go from there instead of the knee jerk "it ought to be this way" method.

The thing to watch out for is your significant other. Many relationships blow apart in law school because people are unable to prioritize properly. If you are married or dating, do not neglect the other person because you are in school. Do the little things like asking them how their day is. Set aside some time for them where you are not discussing law school stuff.

The advantage you have is that you are someone who has already had a real job and been out in the world. That will allow you to keep your head screwed on when some of your classmates (kids fresh from college) start spouting nonsense or start getting wrapped up in petty vendettas. In some ways, law school is like an awful soap opera that you are stuck in when you are a student. Some professor is having sex with a student, some other student is caught cheating on a final or paper, someone says something that is insensitive and is labeled a racist, someone gets arrested, etc. Lots of drama and lots of competition for grades.

The most important advice I can offer you about navigating law school is to never discuss your grades with your classmates. After the first set of finals, students will self-segregate based on grades. You do not want to be in a position where you are ignored because you get a C+ in one class or that no one will help you because you get an A- in another. Also, people will lie about getting high marks so there's no point in discussing your marks with your classmates. Someone told me that little tip before I went and it made things much smoother. If someone asked how I did, I told them I did fine and I was happy with the result.

I must tell you that you are not going to any paradise when you graduate. The field has a high attrition rate due to the "up or out" dynamic at many law firms as well as the high rate of personal and professional dissatisfaction among lawyers. When I was in school, I was told in two years 1/3 of new lawyers would leave the legal field due to being unhappy with the practice of law.

If you are unhappy with some of your fellow officers, come back in three years and let us know what you think about some of your fellow lawyers. There are jerks in every profession that make the whole profession look bad. I have no problem with you wanting to be involved in the system at a different level but as a new lawyer you will find new problems you were completely unaware of previously.

Good luck.

[mechelaar]

I've done both the badge/gun thing and the law school thing. If you have any questions, need any (admittedly questionable) advice, or just need to bitch (you will, believe me), feel free to PM me.

[ThirdWatcher]

There is a lot of wisdom in this post.

A friend of mine got hurt on the job, went to law school, and now serves as a deputy prosecutor. I doubt it if he's making any more money than he did as a patrolman, but he's still able to serve.

My oldest daughter plans on going to law school after she completes her enlistment in the Army (JAG). She has ridden with me several times on patrol and she has chosen (wisely, IMHO) to one day prosecute criminals rather than chase them like I do.

I wish you the best.

[au1776]

As someone who just graduated, good luck (not being sarcastic, despite the following).

I dissuade most people from going, but that isn't to say it is a worthless endeavor. I just see far too many people throwing 100k at a second tier school expecting with the sole ambition of making a lot of money. Law can be lucrative, if you can do well at a good school. But, considering that 200 law schools is about 100 too many in this country, at all but the top schools (read- top 30 or so) you need to do pretty well if your only motivation is financial. That said, if you can go instate to a reputable school or can otherwise afford the high price, and especially if you're truly passionate about some area of the law, it can be a great experience.

I won't lie, law school has disenchanted me and most of my friends with the legal profession. My school was a tier 1, and most of us finished in the top third of our class. I say this mainly as a disclaimer that in a better legal market, our viability may have been different, and thus our impression of the law school experience may have been different. But, 3 years of a crashing legal environment and academia wears on folks with conservative leanings, and several of my closest friends (and myself) are now looking to more service oriented careers (federal courts, justice dept, intelligence community, military, etc).

My advice: Recognize that the ability to practice law is a powerful tool, but don't be indoctrinated by those around you who assert that our "rules" supersede those of the rest of society. With your life experience outside of academia, this probably won't be a problem. People will try to convince you that legal education is somehow the jumping off point for an entirely new existence as a lawyer, but I would recommend viewing it as merely an opportunity to become a somewhat more capable version of whatever you think of yourself now.

Congratulations and good luck. You'll find that you're expected to use this education for causes you may not support, but that certainly doesn't mean it cannot be put to great use.

[SeriousStudent]

Best of luck to you, and thank you for your service.

May your contribution to the legal field reflect well upon you, and your family. I agree with Mr. Green and the others, we need more good lawyers on "our side".

[JSandi]

Thanks for all the encouragement and words of wisdom from all who have been there, done that. Its good to get first hand accounts before doing something life changing. I have a good friend, he and his wife are both attorneys and I plan to pick their brains when the time comes.

I'm not doing this for money, in fact if I can make enough to pay my rent, the car payment, food and fund the occasional gun purchase I will be very happy.

Presently I have no family, just me and my girlfriend who is part of the motivation. She said she was tired of hearing me talk about it and said just do it.

I am in a position (financially) now ironically because of my recent divorce where such an undertaking is very possible.

Thanks again guys!

[SCL]

Presently I have no family, just me and my girlfriend who is part of the motivation. She said she was tired of hearing me talk about it and said just do it.

I am in a position (financially) now ironically because of my recent divorce where such an undertaking is very possible.

I was in a similar situation a few years ago after my divorce. I didn't go to law school, but picked up my M.A. from a civilian school while working full time and then I knocked out graduation from the Navy War College. It was a lot of work but well worth the effort. Strike now while you can, especially since your girlfriend is supportive because it is far more difficult to do any kind of academics when you have a wife and kids to worry about and/or support.

Good luck!!

SCL