Students take many factors into account when preparing for a career.
Lifestyle, financial compensation, impact and degree requirements are debated, the necessary test preparations are completed, and applications are submitted.
When it comes to law, the relative rewards seem outstanding: a shorter degree program than medicine, a six-figure starting salary, and job security in otherwise tumultuous markets.
There is, however, a catch.
From movies to conversation to the news, lawyers are everywhere.
They got OJ Simpson off the first time. They help Donald Trump try and sue anyone who utters the words “you’re fired.” They are synonymous with litigation and triviality, clogging our cultural airwaves with negativity.
But law is not all malice and money-grubbing.
Pro bono law is named for the Latin term “pro bono publico,” meaning “for the public good.” Indeed, pro bono law focuses on providing services to those that can ill-afford the high hourly rates that drive most large law firms. This is generally achieved through deferring payment until a particular case is won, billing at a substantially reduced rate, or not charging at all for their services.
Surely there are ambulance-chasing attorneys hell-bent on fighting for any dollar, regardless of whether or not they or their clients deserve it. But to hold these examples as an image of the career as a whole is to make a grave mistake ““ law can be a career of service as well.
In fact, those wishing to engage in philanthropy ““ be it on a local or constitutional level ““ may be best served by two to three years in law school.
Last Friday, the UCLA School of Law hosted a conference on this exact idea ““ that pro bono law is a viable public service.
The school released a statement praising “the growth of pro bono law” as “one of the singular achievements of the modern bar.”
In a similar spirit, UCLA’s pre-law fraternity, Phi Alpha Delta, will be hosting an on-campus event on Oct. 19 titled “Philanthropy and Law,” a breakfast conference connecting students and members of the community with attorneys on the cutting edge of pro bono philanthropic work.
Serafima Krikunova, a fourth-year American literature and cultures student in charge of the event, explained the reason for the breakfast: “Between studying for the LSAT and preparing my personal statements for law school, I began considering the contradictory stereotypes of professionals in the field. While students are discouraged from making the cliche claim that our purpose for pursuing a J.D. is to “˜help people,’ the image of the avaricious attorney pervades sitcoms and anecdotes.”
The event will feature four lawyers (UCLA Law and Harvard Law graduates) who have exemplified the spirit of service in the legal field.
“By sharing their experience and achievements in the community, they hope to encourage pre-law students to keep their civic responsibility in mind as they enter the profession,” Krikunova said.
Beverly Vu, a third-year history student who describes herself as “pre-law,” offers this insight into what some look for in a career: “I look for an easy-going work environment where the people are personable, because work is work, but that doesn’t mean it has to be boring.”
To many, law reads as a 14-hour workday seated in front of a desk, on which case upon case block out the light of day.
Though this is certainly a part of the legal experience, it does not have to define one’s career in law.
It is important to remember that it was lawyers who made many of this nation’s greatest moments possible. Brown v. Board of Education, the Declaration of Independence (Yes, Jefferson was a lawyer.) and the preservation of the Union (Lincoln was also a lawyer.) were all made possible by legal-minded individuals.
Today, with an ever-encroaching government narrowing the right to privacy, financial markets abandoning what Obama and McCain so craftily call “Main Street” Americans, and a plethora of local and global issues needing solutions, good, ethical and apt lawyers are in high demand.
There is an even more pressing need for lawyers willing to provide pro bono counseling in local communities. Students in need of legal advice can visit UCLA Student Legal Services in the basement level of Dodd Hall 70.
So while entries for “lawyer” on UrbanDictionary.com illicit stereotypes such as “a person who’s authorized to lie,” do not mistake the whole of legal services as a bane of our justice system.
Instead, think of the great ideals of this country ““ civil rights, privacy freedoms, enterprise, equality ““ and thank those who protect them.
Ready to arm yourself with the
Constitution and keep America free?
E-mail Makarechi at kmakarechi@media.ucla.edu. Send general comments to viewpoint@media.ucla.edu.