Ok I think i found one...

I should have never partied hard in my early twenties, I am still paying for it.

 

Never look back with regret. The people that did not party are probably saying, "I wish I would have had more fun in my 20's". I did not finish my BS until I was 33 so you are way ahead of me!

 

But you're doing things to rectify it now, so don't get down on yourself. Listen, if the law is what you want to do then go to law school, but you're likely hood of being successful and content are much higher if you do something you enjoy. Law school is a terrible investment right now. Firms aren't hiring, when they do hire the wages are low, and there are more people in law school right now than there are practicing attorneys (it's been this way since the mid-90s).

If you really want to work in the law field I'd advise being a paralegal. Six-month training program for a few thousand dollars and you'd probably start with a salary in mid-40's. Most law school grads with $100k in debt struggle to find a law job that pays $60k a year right out of school. If you enjoy the field, then consider doing the JD degree. Hell, if you do good work your employer might even pay for it.

 

Non- ABA law schools

I am in California and I to have given though for the past 20 years about going to law school. California has a great opportunity for you to practice law, however you can't believe it will get you a job. One of the best attorneys in my area graduated from an unaccredited law school that just cost her a couple thousand dollars to attend.

In California there are 4 ways you can study law:
An ABA school
A state accredited school
An unaccredited school
Training under a lawyer or judge

But going to an unaccredited school is much like taking CLEP exams, there is very little teaching and predominantly you are going to have to learn for yourself. There is no mock court, no big law library, and very little interaction with other students. If you wanted to be a criminal defense attorney, probate or some other specialist you really should know someone who could mentor you, as it would be detrimental to screw up one of these cases. If you don't have a mentor you could still do some of the "light" work; divorces, bankruptcies etc. Not that these couldn't get difficult, but most are template.

Generally, only by going to an ABA school will you be able to immediately sit for the bar exam in another state. This option will also make you more employable.

If you choose any of the other options, you should think of it as being self employed and starting your own business because your chances of being hired on soon after you pass your Bar exam are less, especially in this economy. My wife's cousin has a practice where he only does chapter 7 BK's. All the paperwork is template, he has offices all over SoCal and if a case needs an appearance by a lawyer and he can't make it, he hires one from a service for the appearance.

Now here is the kicker. Many states (not all) will allow you to sit for their Bar exam after you have practiced a certain amount of time in another state, usually 5 years.

So you have to ask yourself, what area of law do you want to practice? How long will you practice in California, and do you even care about practicing in another state within 5 years after you pass the California Bar. I'll tell you , if I were a paralegal I would definitely go to an unaccredited school and become a lawyer.

 

Thanks addison. This is exactly what I was thinking about "If you choose any of the other options, you should think of it as being self employed and starting your own business because your chances of being hired on soon after you pass your Bar exam are less, especially in this economy. My wife's cousin has a practice where he only does chapter 7 BK's. All the paperwork is template, he has offices all over SoCal and if a case needs an appearance by a lawyer and he can't make it, he hires one from a service for the appearance. "

Just offering services where theirs already a template and system for them, and I sign off on them. Has anyone ever been to a law office? It seems the paralegals do everything while the lawyer signs off on stuff.

I am a hard worker and have run many businesses in the past 8+ years(started young). This is why I just want to go to a online law school and take the bar and get my J.D. to start my own practice offering bk's or divorces or other cookie cutter services, what do you think? Oh and no more partying! JK

 

OP: I don't believe you've addressed an immensely important question already posed: What do you WANT to do? What do you LIKE to do? Seems to me you're simply seeing easy $ with "cookie cutter services"; since you're a hard worker, why are you so desperately trying to short change yourself? At 26, you still have the world in front of you - if law is a sincere interest by all means pursue it, but why not try an ABA Law School which will offer the entire nation as your playground, rather than one small stake?

Regardless of how much $ you may (or may not) make, if you don't have passion for what you do, you will regret the choices you make.

 

yes

Yes i understand going to an aba school is good but I work and have bills and also help my family. That is why I went to Uop in the first place, I should have just went their right out of high school but instead opted for cal state system which is the same thing now that I look back. At least Uop students have some sense of experience. A relative of mine goes to a cal state and I visit the dorms sometimes, the students are air heads, lol. Anyways, I have to get into something which will make me money and put me a slight cut above the rest.

That being said, I really have no choice but to go to an online program, unless their is a weekend law program somewhere in california.

 

An online school will likely do neither. Who are you going to be a cut above with an online law degree? Your playing field at that point will be lawyers, lawyers that likely went to ABA accredited law schools. Plenty of them are doing "cookie cutter type stuff" because it's the only law job they could land. An online law degree will not put you a cut above them, especially not right out of the gate. Then you have to consider the extremely low bar passage rate of students that go to online law schools. The odds are against you with this plan.

You still haven't answered the question, what is it that you LIKE? What are you passionate about? Those are the avenues you should pursue. I'm not sure why you have it in your head that the legal field is extremely lucrative, because for the vast majority in the field it isn't.

 

AUTiger, you are 110% correct.:iagree:

 

:wtf1:

Sorry to break it to you, an UOP degree and an online JD degree will NOT put you above the rest, not by a long shot. On the contrary, you will be hurting yourself. You still have not answered the questions posed here by other members. What is it that you really want to do? IF you think law will make you money, you are solely mistaken. My sister-in-law just graduated from a T14 law school, she graduated 3rd in her class, and you know what? She graduated two years ago, she has not been able to find work as a lawyer, so she is doing paralegal work at a non-profit, her whopping salary, $41,000 a year. Luckily for her she had a scholarship to go to law school, and as a result did not graduate with a huge amount of debt, still a top 14 law degree and no legal (practicing attorney) work sure makes you wonder about the sad state of the legal profession. Having said that, if law is your passion, then by all means pursue it, however, understand that there might be pitfalls along the way.

If you want to provide for your family, don't short change them by going to a non-ABA accredited law school, while it may seem like a good idea now, you will for sure, regret it later on. I think Surfdoctor is correct when he recommended pursuing an accounting career, I have a friend of mine that works a big accounting firm and she is making a killing, has never been unemployed since graduating college, food for thought. Good luck in your studies.

 

Not everyone regrets going to an online law school. I for one do not have any regrets. However, keep in mind I am somewhat older than the OP and am an entrepreneur with a business that is successful and that I'm passionate about. I've always had an interest in the study of law and went the only route that made sense for me at the time. I have no interest in the practice of law but I learned a lot and it's been a help in my business dealings. That said I think there's been good advice offered in this thread and I also think the OP has a somewhat skewed vision of the legal profession. I have met many attorneys in my dealings and some are passionate about the practice of law and of course some are not. It's certainly not like it is portrayed on television. But if the OP is really passionate about the law ignore the naysayers, go to an ABA law school part-time, get that law degree, pass the bar and get on with your life.

 

To put it bluntly, you appear to want an easy route to a job where you do simple work for money. If this is your approach, I wouldn't count on passing the bar.

 

sideman sideman

What online law school did u go to? What is it like?

 

I just need to pass the cal bar exam, then im rocking and rolling to the bank......hmmm.....

 

I'm going to give you some advice that everyone else is probably going to disagree with: screw the degree and go into business for yourself. If I had it to do over again and I was 26 years old, I would have started my own business. You won't get rich working for someone else. You will be a wage slave, working not because you want to, but because you have to. Don't get me wrong; business owners work damn hard. But, if you look at some of the most successful people in the U.S., they are people who work for themselves. Put the profit in your own pocket and retire early, if that is something that interests you. If you spend your whole life simply being an employee you will have fewer options. Figure out what kind of business suits you, find a need, and then fill it.

 

not bad advice if you have the capital to get started, a good idea and a solid business plan. I currently lack 2.5 of the 3.

 

Yes, you're the special flower that will do what only a handful of other graduates from online law schools have done, pass the bar. Then you'll be one of even fewer to make a ton of money in the legal field!
Do yourself a favor, do some real research about the current state of the law profession before sinking your money into this degree.

 

I didn't say there wouldn't be any work or thought involved. Nobody is just going to hand you what you want. This guy can either dump a ton of money into online law school or he can put the money into his own business. Half of all business fail in the first 2 years. How many people fail law school?

 

100% of the people who go to online law school, graduate and fail to pass the CA bar, epic fail law school.
80% or more of the people who go to online law school fit this description according to the published statistics.
This thread has three pages and at most 37 posts more than necessary to discuss the outcomes.

You have better odds of making a living by working at McDonalds than going to online law school. McDonald's management program has a better reputation. You can transfer into Penn State with that shizzle and people eat Big Cracks like mad.

Fo Sho.
ITJD