The Red Velvet Lawyer

Some Balance to the Gloom and Doom Stories Brian Leiter, ABA Top 100 Blawger, has shared a conversation among graduates of lower tiered schools here . The conversation started with this question: cheapbrass (Apr 18, 2014 - 2:53 pm) If you are a tier 2 or below grad...and are somewhat successful ($100k+ salary) post here. how far out of school you are and your firm size, or if you are a solo, partner, or associate. Me first: Tier 3, 10+ years out, firm size 5-10, forever associate. The comments, largely stories of success, mirror the stories I hear from most of the alumni of ASL.   If you have your own stories of success, feel free to post them in the comments to this blog.   

A quick review of the postings by scambloggers suggests that ASL grads are a sorry lot.  Too bad the facts say otherwise. Without going into additional detail, which I will happily do in later postings, I can say with great pride that our graduates have already ascended to these professional heights in public service positions: 1 state legislator (2011 grad) 5 judges (2002-2009 grads) 4 judicial clerks (2007-2012 grads) 6 Commonwealth Attorneys (2000-2008 grads) 4 in Judge Advocates General Corps (2003-2011 grads) 1 in federal government (Soc. Sec. Adm.) (2005 grad) 3 in state government (2004-2006 grads) This data does not reflect employment by our most recent grads.   This list reveals that in a very short time after graduation, our graduates assume public service positions that further the service mission of the school, provide financial security for the families of these alumni, and show --  in the best...

Appalachian School of Law is one of the most affordable private law schools in the U.S.  Based on the data I have, it is one of the most affordable private law schools east of the Mississippi River.  Even so, our tuition this coming year is about $31,000 per year. Living expenses in excess of tuition -- of about $20,000 per year -- make law school a significant investment in a student's future. If a college graduate asked me whether to go to law school today, I'd say "yes."  But, here's how to do it. Do not apply to a school that is likely to admit you to fill the bottom of the class. You will pay full tuition to claim that spot. Instead, apply to law schools that will happily admit you to fill the top ten percent of their classes -- they will be one or two tiers lower than your stretch school.  Look at the LSAT quartiles for each school for a hint at how you fit in each school's entering class profile.  Disclose the admission package offered by the be...

Yesterday, I posted about the supply and demand for legal services some time in the future as more Baby Boomers retire.  Today, I want to explore the supply-demand gap existing today. Just recently, the ABA released data on employment rates for law school grads nine months after graduation for all ABA-approved law schools.  On average, for 2012 grads, 56.2 percent of grads found long-term, full-time positions that required bar passage.  These jobs include solo practitioners, law firm positions, business and industry positions, government jobs, public interest jobs, clerkships, and jobs in legal education. In 2011, fewer grads found that type of employment -- just 54.9 percent.  Grads who reported they still sought employment increased a bit from 9.2 percent in 2011 to 10.6 percent in 2012.  ABA 2012 Law Graduate Employment Data -- All Schools This measure of employment success is narrow, but admittedly reflects the aspirations of most students seeking a ...