I was talking to my 6-year old the other night, and she said that she wants to be either a photographer or a detective.
“Those both sound fun,” I said, and then paused. “As long as you aren’t a lawyer.”
“Why not?” she asked.
“Because mom and dad won’t let you,” I said. She considered this answer for a second and apparently found it acceptable. She moved on to a different topic.
She knows that mom and dad met in law school. She knows we both practiced law. She knows we always tell her that we don’t want her to go to law school.
But why not?
I’m not sure what I would say if she ever forced the question. Or even if, many years from now, she says that she wants to go to law school.
Should I go to law school?
This is the question that most kids ask. “Should I go?” This question calls for a certain type of response. You have to be more balanced. You have to say that you do or don’t recommend going to law school and then explain your answer. But you also have to acknowledge the other position. “No, I don’t think you should go to law school.” Then you explain why. Then you add, “But of course, you may really enjoy it.” Maybe you mention your friend who does civil rights law and loves it.
This is the same type of question you may ask at a restaurant while looking over the menu. “Should I get the soup?” This question calls for a balanced response. You may say something like, “Of course, soup always hits the spot.” Then you can mention a few reasons why the Minestrone is a great choice. But then, you’ll have to add, “But I’m sure there are other things on the menu too, so its up to you.”
The law school question is of course very different. The stakes are higher. Whether you have soup for dinner is a question that will be resolved and (hopefully) forgotten within a few hours. But going to law school puts your life and career on a trajectory that is not easily altered. You have to live with that decision for a long time. You can of course leave law school at any time. Or quit being a lawyer. But once you commit to going to law school, at some point you’ll have to deal with the concept of “sunk cost” [link] if you ever want to not be a lawyer.
So the stakes are much higher.
That means we should be asking a different question. It is the question my daughter could ask me. It is the question prospective law students should be asking. It’s the question I want to answer now.
Why Shouldn’t I Go to Law School?
Law school is not one of many equal choices, the way that soup is one of many items on a menu. Law school is a bad choice for a lot of people, so the default position should be to avoid law school. The benefit of this position – especially for me and this essay – is that I can skip the equivocating and make a full-throated argument that you – yes, you – shouldn’t go to law school.
There was a study once that said that 7 out of 10 lawyers hated their jobs. This means that there is a 70% chance that you’ll hate your job. But what does this really mean? Does it mean that you’ll hate practicing law? Hate your subject matter expertise? Hate your employer? When prospective law school students talk to lawyers who say that they hate their jobs, it is natural for the prospective student to imagine how they’ll be different. Well, I’ll be happy because I won’t litigate. Or I won’t work for Biglaw. Or whatever reason they’ll come up with to assure themselves that they’ll be different. But even that approach isn’t helpful. You could just as easily conclude that you have a 70% chance of picking the wrong practice area or employer. You’re far more likely to end up in the wrong practice area or with the wrong employer. To go back to the study, you only have a 30% chance of getting it right. Those are awful odds. Nobody would take those, but of course, a lot of people do.
The typical response at this point is to say that most people hate their jobs. What makes law different from, say, marketing or sales or medical school? The short answer is that I don’t know. I can’t compare law to other specific careers because I haven’t pursued those other careers. I’m sure very few people have.
But that isn’t the right comparison. I’m not trying to tell you what to do instead of law. I’m only telling you to not go to law school. Pick anything else on the menu. Just don’t get the soup.
But why? Why avoid law school? Why do I tell my daughter that I won’t let her go to law school?
This is obviously a much clearer position to articulate. I don’t have to balance other potential careers against law. I only have to explain why law school is a poor choice in my mind. And I have a few reasons:
“Those both sound fun,” I said, and then paused. “As long as you aren’t a lawyer.”
“Why not?” she asked.
“Because mom and dad won’t let you,” I said. She considered this answer for a second and apparently found it acceptable. She moved on to a different topic.
She knows that mom and dad met in law school. She knows we both practiced law. She knows we always tell her that we don’t want her to go to law school.
But why not?
I’m not sure what I would say if she ever forced the question. Or even if, many years from now, she says that she wants to go to law school.
Should I go to law school?
This is the question that most kids ask. “Should I go?” This question calls for a certain type of response. You have to be more balanced. You have to say that you do or don’t recommend going to law school and then explain your answer. But you also have to acknowledge the other position. “No, I don’t think you should go to law school.” Then you explain why. Then you add, “But of course, you may really enjoy it.” Maybe you mention your friend who does civil rights law and loves it.
This is the same type of question you may ask at a restaurant while looking over the menu. “Should I get the soup?” This question calls for a balanced response. You may say something like, “Of course, soup always hits the spot.” Then you can mention a few reasons why the Minestrone is a great choice. But then, you’ll have to add, “But I’m sure there are other things on the menu too, so its up to you.”
The law school question is of course very different. The stakes are higher. Whether you have soup for dinner is a question that will be resolved and (hopefully) forgotten within a few hours. But going to law school puts your life and career on a trajectory that is not easily altered. You have to live with that decision for a long time. You can of course leave law school at any time. Or quit being a lawyer. But once you commit to going to law school, at some point you’ll have to deal with the concept of “sunk cost” [link] if you ever want to not be a lawyer.
So the stakes are much higher.
That means we should be asking a different question. It is the question my daughter could ask me. It is the question prospective law students should be asking. It’s the question I want to answer now.
Why Shouldn’t I Go to Law School?
Law school is not one of many equal choices, the way that soup is one of many items on a menu. Law school is a bad choice for a lot of people, so the default position should be to avoid law school. The benefit of this position – especially for me and this essay – is that I can skip the equivocating and make a full-throated argument that you – yes, you – shouldn’t go to law school.
There was a study once that said that 7 out of 10 lawyers hated their jobs. This means that there is a 70% chance that you’ll hate your job. But what does this really mean? Does it mean that you’ll hate practicing law? Hate your subject matter expertise? Hate your employer? When prospective law school students talk to lawyers who say that they hate their jobs, it is natural for the prospective student to imagine how they’ll be different. Well, I’ll be happy because I won’t litigate. Or I won’t work for Biglaw. Or whatever reason they’ll come up with to assure themselves that they’ll be different. But even that approach isn’t helpful. You could just as easily conclude that you have a 70% chance of picking the wrong practice area or employer. You’re far more likely to end up in the wrong practice area or with the wrong employer. To go back to the study, you only have a 30% chance of getting it right. Those are awful odds. Nobody would take those, but of course, a lot of people do.
The typical response at this point is to say that most people hate their jobs. What makes law different from, say, marketing or sales or medical school? The short answer is that I don’t know. I can’t compare law to other specific careers because I haven’t pursued those other careers. I’m sure very few people have.
But that isn’t the right comparison. I’m not trying to tell you what to do instead of law. I’m only telling you to not go to law school. Pick anything else on the menu. Just don’t get the soup.
But why? Why avoid law school? Why do I tell my daughter that I won’t let her go to law school?
This is obviously a much clearer position to articulate. I don’t have to balance other potential careers against law. I only have to explain why law school is a poor choice in my mind. And I have a few reasons:
- Law school changes the way you think. Law school teaches you to think like a lawyer, so they say. This is important for practicing law [link], but not helpful for most people generally. It becomes easier – and even required – for lawyers to see things through a lens of skepticism, risk, and conflict. Again, these are great traits for a lawyer, but “thinking like a lawyer” is not something that can be turned on or off. The psychologist ________, who has written about lawyers’ poor mental health and depression in the field, says _____________________. So, from the get-go, law school changes the way you think, and not necessarily in a good way.
- Law school is expensive. Many students go into debt. Paradoxically, they’re then both forced and lucky enough to get a high-paying firm job. It is easier to pay off debt with a law firm salary than a salary from a public interest position. Firms have their own issues, of course, such as the pressure to meet billable hour requirements and develop business. The salaries, while needed to help pay off law school debt, can also contribute to lifestyle creep [lnk]. This can make it harder to leave the law later.
- Law school doesn’t prepare you to do anything beyond passing the bar.
- Practicing law is like having homework due, all the time.
- Practicing law is having somebody pay you so you can worry about their worries for them.