<p>There will always be a demand for lawyers because there are always people to be sued and there are always a bunch of issues that need to be debated in court. Whether a lawyer is hired by the government or by an individual, it seems as if lawyers will always have jobs.</p>
<p>I don't understand why there are so many lawyers complaining about not finding jobs. A lawyer is just as important as a doctor. If doctors are getting sued all the time because they killed a patient or they damaged someone's health, then obviously there is a hand in hand demand for lawyers.</p>
<p>Edit: There's also international law. Law is part of everyday society.</p>
<p>in the current economy, there have not been enough jobs for all the law school graduates of the past three years. Law firms have been cutting back on hiring new graduates, their clients have been putting pressure on them to have the work not done by new attorneys but by more experienced ones, government budgets including district attorneys’ and public defenders’ offices have been cut, and even some in-house hiring has decreased.</p>
<p>And law students who had been hoping for high-paying big firm positions are in a cramp about paying back their student loans.</p>
<p>XaviFM, how are you correlating the fact that lawyers do not find jobs to the opinion that they cost too much? Are you implying that they cannot find work because they cost too much and, therefore, cannot find jobs? Wouldn’t the market eventually even out at a place where those lawyers who are charging less and are finding a lot of work cause those who are charging more and loosing work to lower their prices, meeting those who are charging less in the middle as they raise their prices due to a high influx of work… Isn’t this how economics works in America? Is it different for lawyers?</p>
<p>I personally believe that the biggest reason young lawyers cannot find work is because they are in a saturated market. They do not have many options aside from working at firms because they have to get experience and clientele before they can hang out their own shingle. I mean, that seems like an indisputable reason as to why young lawyers are not getting hired. As for experienced attorneys, I see job offers for them quite frequently. Also, on another note, I find that most people would agree with you, XaviFM, when you say lawyers are too damn expensive; but, in some cases, if your only other option is getting a crappy attorney from the government to keep you from spending thousands of extra dollars in suits, going to prison for the rest of your life, or getting the death sentence, people typically find ways to pay for a lawyer. I mean, I think doctors are too damn expensive, but when I get sick I suddenly make ways to budget for a doctor’s appointment.</p>
<p>If you put your soul into what you do, you will find the right partner who will hire you based not on your numbers but on your character. I have made the most valuable connections to partners in my town over the past year because I am so passionate about everything I do, and the right people have seen that and talked about it – and I am only an undergraduate who knows what he wants to become and, most importantly, why I want to become it. I am not worried at all about my future as an attorney because I know I have what it takes to carry me through the hard times and enjoy law for what it becomes for those passionate about it. I recommend those who do not feel this way, regardless of your “numbers,” to consider entering a different line of work because even the big bucks won’t make you happy if you don’t have a reason for what you’re doing. In my mind, nothing beats a happy lawyer and I’ve been blessed enough to meet some special ones who can guide me as role models.</p>
<p>Anyone who recomends you follow your “passion” when it comes to jobs-sorry, LaBarrister-is giving you terrible advice. It’s a JOB; select one that you’re interested in, or good at, or both-but don’t count on “passion” paying the rent-or your student loans, for that matter. You won’t necessarily find the right partner-instead you may be one of countless law grad waiting tables. And LaB trying to chase people out of law school because they lack the requisite passion is ludicrous. Some of the most curmudgeonly attorneys I know are the most successful, and these are people with no passion, just personal pride in doing the job well.
Law school is a jobs training program. Before entering, do a cold-eyed cost/benefit analysis. If the numbers add up, go. If not, do something else. It’s not worth $150k in debt to follow some fanciful notion of passion. And I’ve been doing this almost 30 years.
And the usual rules of supply/demand don’t apply to lawyers because there’s too much supply(lawyers) and too little demand. The market is saturated, all the more reason to be dispassionate about your career choices. There will be bills to pay, so select a career where you think you can succeed.</p>
<p>There was an article recently about how Duncan Law School at Lincoln Memorial University was trying to find a low-cost model to meet ABA Accreditation standards and how they were mad that, unlike AACSB, they don’t allow you to be guided in setting it up, so you don’t know if they will succeed. The result of the ABA’s actions being that it unnaturally inflates the cost of obtaining that legal education beyond what it would otherwise take to give the JD.</p>
<p>The result is that “First Tier Meconium” like University of Minnesota costs a loot of money and new JDs won’t be free to practice the type of law they need to practice. If the grad wasn’t sitting on a ton of debt then they could charge much less and make more profit.</p>
<p>XaviFM, I enjoy freelance writing and see myself becoming an author, as well, after becoming a lawyer. I guess what I am trying to say is that perhaps entrepreneurial, creative and ambitious lawyers could find ways to make money to pay off the debt on the side, assuming they are okay with really giving away the small portion of personal life they have left after becoming an attorney. I don’t know, but I am pretty passionate and can see myself giving most of my life away to find extra money while beginning my law career. Should more young lawyers look at their life from this perspective, do you think? I totally agree with your post, by the way, and appreciate the link.</p>
<p>A lot of middle class people (and poor) simply can’t afford lawyers, at all. That’s a big reason why there aren’t a lot of jobs for them. Doctors will always have jobs because, well, if you break a leg what are you going to do? Fix it yourself? No. Personally, I don’t understand why everyone seems to think lawyers are all rich and have great job opportunities.</p>
<p>Supply and demand. There are too many law schools and too many law graduates combined with a really bad economy and less hiring.</p>
<p>The AMA has worked hard to restrict the number of med school spots. Hence, the supply of new doctors has been relatively static over the last 20 years despite rising demand. Med school is a lot harder to get into than law school but once you do graduate med school and residency, it’s a lot easier to find a job. </p>
<p>That said, many medical specialties are starting to become saturated as well. New radiology residency graduates are having difficult time finding private practice jobs in desirable cities (NYC, Boston, Chicago, California, etc.) because the older radiologists are not retiring due to the economy. I’m not crying any tears for these new graduates because they can’t find a 500k/yr job in their dream city. They might have to go to <em>gasp</em> Cleveland or Philly and only make 350k/yr for a few years. But, the point is that no sector is really immune from the laws of supply and demand.</p>
<p>millerflower, I think the general media has a lot to do with creating the misconceptions you brought up above. Have you ever seen a lawyer portrayed on television, in the news or in a movie as struggling financially? Shoot, I have not. Why are they not on the news? Because only big cases make it on the news, big lawyers try big cases and big bucks result from big cases. Why are they not on television or in movies? Because a struggling lawyer is not glamorous, and people pay for glamor.</p>
<p>No, my point is that the poor economy affects all fields, even fields (like medicine) where you think a job is guaranteed. It’s not. The job market for many specialties is absolutely terrible right now, as is the job market for new law graduates.</p>
<p>Oh please, do tell. What specifically is “international law” (besides UN Treaties).</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>The short answer is supply and demand. There are thousands more JD’s being printed every year than the market needs (or is willing to pay for). And unlike medicine, where the feds directly or indirectly pay the vast majority of the bills, there is no sugar daddy for the legal world.</p>
and I’ve been blessed enough to meet some special ones who can guide me as role models.</p>