A lawyer typically represents their clients in court during legal battles, or consult with people for legal advice. The job responsibilities of a lawyer or attorney is to study laws and past cases to see how to get the right judicial decision to sway in favor of your client. You may choose to specialize in a certain legal field, like criminal law or environmental law.
Step 1: Get a bachelor’s degree
To enroll into law school you will need a bachelor’s degree. Your major is not considered a deterrent but it is preferable to have done courses that hone writing, reading, public speaking, local and researching skills.
Step 2: Appear for the Law School Admission Test (LSAT)
Your law school application needs to be accompanied by your LSAT scores. This Law School Admission Council (LSAC) conducts this test to evaluate your comprehension, reasoning and critical thinking skills. This test comprises of five parts and contains objective-type multiple choice questions. You can also retake this test if you feel you could score higher at another attempt.
Step 3: Earn Your Juris Doctor (J.D.) Degree
Law school usually comprises of a three-year course, at the end of which you get a Juris Doctor (J.D.) Degree. Your law school courses will consist of subjects like constitutional law, property law, legal writing, contracts, etc. You will also participate in mock court trails, attend legal advisory clinics and write a law journal.
Step 4: Consider a clerkship
Law students have the chance to take on part-time or summer clerkships. Participating in a clerkship will help you become experienced with what it feels like to work in a law firm, corporate or government office. This is a great opportunity for promising students as they can progress form a clerkship to finding employment after law school.
Step 5: Pass the State Bar Exam
You will need to pass your state bar exam in order to earn a license to practice law in the United States. Different states have different exams, like a written bar exam and an ethics exam. You will need to appear for the respective state exam if you plan to practice in more than one state.
