Friday, December 12, 2008

Almost halfway done

Many of my classmates are celebrating the halfway mark of their law school lives, having finished first-semester finals. It's an exciting moment of relief for many of us, but not for all. Maybe you've heard that the economy isn't doing so well these days. Turns out that matters even to law students, who have found that employers have cut back on hiring, big-time. I blame people like Rod Blagojevich, who can't seem to find the money to pay his $500,000 in legal bills. (No wonder he was trying to sell that Senate seat.) But apparently the problem extends beyond our nation's most troubled governor. "Even the best clients were holding payment," says one law firm chairman. If people can't pay their bills, law firms can't pay their lawyers, let alone hire new ones.

This is troublesome for law students across the country who spent all fall interviewing with potential employers, and still don't have job offers. Many of us came to law school with the idea that taking on thousands of dollars in debt would pay off not long after graduation. These tough times are hitting most everyone hard — even those entering the legal profession, which once seemed a surefire way to get a high-paying, rewarding job.

Fortunately for me, I've landed a public service job in San Francisco next summer, working on death penalty appeals. Though I won't be making big bucks, I'll have a small stipend through the law school, as I did last summer, and I'll be doing the kind of work I can feel good about. More on the job later, though. Must get back to studying. Almost halfway done with law school, and it feels pretty good.

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