Re: Is not too late to start law school at 40?

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I agree with this article completely; however, not everybody
graduates from a top tier school or top of their class. They
should not despair. The big firms may not be interested, but
keep in mind the big firm experience is not for everyone.
Small firms, mom and pop operations, are always looking for
associates. As are various government agencies. The pay may
not be great to start, but the important thing is to master
the field you are in and try to move up. Show managers you
can make money on a file. Once you show that you are a money
maker, nobody gives a hoot where you went to school or what
your ranking is.

On 10/10/03, cc wrote:
> I started law school(ABA 2nd tier) at age 40, graduated at
> age 43. The most imporatant thing you must know is that law
> is a super competitive field. There is a serious oversupply
> of lawyers. That is why big law firms only want the top
10&37;
> of the class from top schools. As an electrical engineer
> from a top 10 engineering school, nobody cared about class
> rank or school ranking. Over the past 20 years, I have
> worked besides some engineers that did not even have a
> degree. This is because the demand for engineers exceeds the
> supply. Very big difference in law, they do not care about
> your capabilities, only your papers. Be sure you graduate at
> the top of your class. Also, in my opinion, there is lots of
> age discrimination in hiring "old" new lawyers. Law firms
> are very conservative and they do not like to break the
> pattern of hiring 20-somethings for first year associate
> positions. But the important thing is CLASS RANKING. Look
> at some ads on the recruiting sites and you will see that
> almost all firms are looking for "excellent academic
> credentials". This is an oversimplificatiion and there are
> exceptions, but this is true for most people. Just be sure
> you look at both the good and the bad before you decide to
> go to law school.