California School of Law

I'm not simply suggesting we blow open the doors and create a nationwide system of California style law schools. My desire, which I have expressed here many times, would be to see the entry level credential for practicing law revert to the LLB and have it actually be an undergrad degree.

Add in a mandatory year or two of clerking in order to be admitted to the bar. Otherwise, enjoy your LLB for roles where a license isn't required in various corporate settings.

The present system was not designed to protect the consumer or crank out a higher quality lawyer. It was designed to create unnecessary barriers to entry that would keep lawyer compensation on par with doctors, dentists and other professionals with 8 years of education under their belts. At least pre-med and pre-dentistry makes sense. You need foundational coursework so that you have the baseline knowledge to grasp medical school level coursework. Law schools don't have a coursework requirement. You can get in with a BA in Philosophy, a BS in Accounting or a BS in Mechanical Engineering.

But the real reason why the lawyer bubble burst is because the Internet revealed an inconvenient truth; most of the things commonly associated with lawyers can be done on your own for a fraction of the cost. Sure, if your Neighbor sues you it might be a good idea to hire a lawyer. But the conventional wisdom for years was that you needed a lawyer to incorporate your business. Recently I saw a local lawyer advertising an incorporation and LLC formation package for $999 (plus filing fees). The LLC paperwork is in the state website with instructions. The Unified Court System makes all of their forms available as well, again, with instructions on how to complete it all yourself.

There's frankly no need for seven years of education when only three of them are dedicated to the study of law. And corporate business would probably be served better with freshly minted college graduates emerging from school with a solid understanding of how law works rather than a mountain of 4+1 graduates with MBAs in Entrepreneurship and Social Media.

 

Plus one. I agree 100% and it's pretty comprehensive.

I incorporated without a lawyer. I used a service provided by a company I was subbing to. I filed my taxes each year with the support of a CPA, but it was pretty simple. Still do, even though I dissolved the corporation.

 

I can see the value of a non-ABA law degree, especially if the school is RA.

There have been many people who have gone to law school with no intention of taking the bar exam or practicing law, they just want the legal education for personal knowledge, to hone their writing skills, etc. For those people, a RA law degree, at a much lower cost than ABA-accredited, makes sense.

One example of someone not taking the bar I know offhand, because of his local (to me) connection, is Theo Epstein, formerly the GM of the Boston Red Sox and now President of Baseball Operations for the Chicago Cubs. He graduated from the University of San Diego Law School, but never took the bar exam, and he's done just fine. I'm certain that his legal education is invaluable when negotiating/reviewing player contracts.

 

Back when creating a California university was a matter of some paperwork, almost every DL law school offered a 4-year Bar-qualifying curriculum AND a 3-year, non-Bar program. (You just skipped the 4th year.) Both led to the JD.

I have to think they graduated more than a few people from the non-Bar programs, and that those people saw value in earning such a degree. This would support your point about RA-but-not-ABA law schools' JD programs.

 

This is an area where I think even an NA JD might do the trick.

We're talking about jobs that don't require law degrees. It might require an MBA or another Masters. But take a person with an RA BS and MBA. Their RA MBA should suffice. The JD is just a bonus.

Naturally, if you start going for jobs that require a JD (but not a law license) like a law librarian position you might run into an issue. Then again, any non-ABA degree in a position like that might cause problems.

 

I see your point, and if someone really wants to get the training for the practice of law but not practice, who am I to try to bar the door? But a law degree includes courses in civil and crim pro, and teaches students a case study research method that makes practical sense only in the context of the appellate advocacy unique to the legal profession, it also often includes courses in trial advocacy; on the whole, much of it is stuff that only makes sense in the practice of law, wouldn't their thirst for legal knowledge be met by a Masters in Legal Studies which many universities offer online or onground, such as the for-the-most-part online Harvard MLA? A lot cheaper and more efficient way to satisfy those goals.