5 Tips for Your First Day in Court
By Anna Johansson • March 02, 2018 •Careers
A court appearance is a rite of passage for law students, even if you expect to spend little time in court after graduation. Some attorneys will take many cases to court, while others will handle business behind closed doors. But experience in court is worthwhile for all law students. During your first case, your hands might be shaking, your heart racing, and your blood pounding in your ears. Despite the nerves, you know you have to perform well. Time is the best mentor, but a few pointers can make your first court experience a success. 1. Be Thoroughly Prepared Your…
Make Your Presence Known: Tips For Building Your Law Website
By Anna Johansson • March 01, 2018 •Careers
In the competition that is big law, women are more likely than men to opt out and enter independent practice – and there are plenty of reasons for that. First, sexism is still a serious barrier to women’s inclusion in major firms, and second, for those invested in maintaining work-life balance, independent practice is the place to be. If you’re going to break off from an established practice, though, you’re going to need to build your own online presence. Building your professional online presence isn’t easy, but luckily, plenty of lawyers have been there before. Take a few cues from…
The Elephant in the Room: Paying Off Law School Loans
By Anna Johansson • February 06, 2018 •Careers
As someone who has been through four years of undergraduate and another three years of law school, you know better than almost anyone just how expensive student loans can be. The question is, will you pay them off or let them control your life for decades to come? Short-Term Sacrifices Lead to Long-Term Gains When you’re young and starting out in your career, it’s often hard to see the big picture. The palpability of the moment leads you to believe that your present experiences will be indicative of your future reality, when the truth is that you sometimes have to…
4 Tips and Best Practices for Your Final Year of Law School
By Anna Johansson • January 31, 2018 •Careers
Law school is so challenging and time-consuming that it’s easy to lose perspective and forget this is just the beginning. Your focus should be less on surviving and more on preparing yourself for your first job in the real world. 4 Tips for a Better Final Year of Law School The final year of law school is challenging on so many levels. Not only are you taking classes and preparing for bar exams, but you’re also thinking about career opportunities and scheduling job interviews – all while trying to retain your sanity and maintain at least a couple of social…
Because Passion Doesn’t Prevent Burnout – Rethinking Your Path
By Anna Johansson • January 19, 2018 •Careers
Women working in law are often perceived as trying to have it all – a serious career, a relationship, children – but ultimately, this narrative reflects a broader concern about work-life balance and passion. In law, though, even passion doesn’t ensure that you won’t burn out. The intensity of the job makes it impossible to predict. What passion does allow for is a sense of satisfaction, even when you’re overworked. So what if your passion isn’t traditional legal work, defending cases in court and working your way up in a firm? That’s okay, and your education and research can help…
5 Things to Know About Practicing Real Estate Law
By Anna Johansson • January 16, 2018 •Careers
Real estate law has become a popular specialty, thanks to the growth of real estate investments and house flips made attractive by the media. There are abundant rules, guidelines, and paperwork that go with transferring expensive properties from one person or company to another, and most realtors and buyers rely on experienced attorneys, rather than risking errors. Mistakes in legalities can get landlords, investors, buyers/sellers, realtors, brokers, and others in trouble. If you started out in a different specialty, such as corporate or environmental law, switching to real estate law can be simple. It’s a great complement to many other…
When Women Carry Most Student Loan Debt, Is Law School An Option?
By Anna Johansson • January 16, 2018 •Careers
The student loan industry has been in crisis for the past several decades as the cost of higher education rapidly outstripped earnings growth and inflation – but the burden isn’t equally distributed. Rather, of the $1.3 trillion in outstanding student loan debt, women hold two-thirds of it, but are just 57% of the student population. What’s happening to cause female students to land so deep in debt? There are several key causes, but in large part, the answers hinge on unequal distribution of childcare responsibilities and the wage gap. And women lawyers, most of whom have taken on enormous amounts…
Changing Course: 3 Transferable Skills You Learn From Law
By Anna Johansson • January 05, 2018 •Careers
Few like to admit it, but sometimes law school doesn’t lead to a career in law – at least not in the typical sense. Rather, even for those who begin their careers at a law firm, sexism, long hours, and associate-level grunt work can lead to reconsideration. In fact, people leave the legal field in such high numbers that there’s a whole auxiliary field committed to helping lawyers change jobs. Luckily, as a lawyer, or at least as someone with a law degree, you have a lot of “transferable skills.” Using What You Know Transferable skills are exactly what they…
Rethinking Law School Leadership: Beyond The Law Review, Clerkship Path
By Anna Johansson • January 03, 2018 •Careers
Law school is all about opportunities – taking engaging courses, networking with peers and professors, and finding opportunities to prove your leadership potential so that by the time you’re ready to apply for jobs, you’ve got a proven record. The problem: discrimination doesn’t stop at the law school doors. Bias is so prevalent in law school environments that in 2013, the Harvard Law Review began factoring in gender when selecting editors for the next board. The prior year, only 9 of 44 editors were women. Four years later, the majority of the board was women for the first time in…