LOWERING THE BAR

via ABA Journal:

Law Schools Could Be Admitting 80 Percent of Their Applicants This Fall, Statistics Suggest

If you are an aspiring law student with low grades and scores on the Law School Admission Test [LSAT], this could be your year. 

Seventy-five of the 197 law schools ranked by U.S. News & World Report, or about 38 percent, suffered from triple declines in 2011--in enrollment, and test scores and grades of entering students[.] 

The Law School Admission Council is estimating the number of law school applicants will drop by 14.4 percent this fall. The decline in interest has been greatest among those with higher scores on the Law School Admission Test. As a result, law schools should expect further declines in enrollment and further erosion of test scores and grade point averages[.] 

It will also become easier to get into law school. "The admit rate will be the highest it has been this millenium, probably exceeding 75 percent and possible exceeding 80 percent (after increasing from 55 percent to 71 percent between 2004 and 2011)," [University of St. Thomas law professor Jerry] Organ says.

The Instapundit has been talking about the Higher Education Bubble for quite some time now. It seems like things are proceeding as predicted, starting with law schools. A professor from my alma mater, Brian Tamanaha, has a great book on the subject.

So what? Admissions standards are dropping as applications decrease. Big whoop. Well, OK, but stories like this are becoming increasingly common. Applications are down because potential students know that a law degree no longer guarantees a job in the legal industry, much less one that pays the exorbitant salaries that have been so shamelessly plugged by admissions departments for the last few decades. Instead of recognizing the tidal shift that has occurred/is occurring in the industry, schools who lower their standards are acting like the proverbial ostrich, heads buried in the sand. The value of a law degree is being diluted. While some schools are going against the grain, the majority will continue to struggle to preserve the status quo and hope that everything will be OK if they can just wait out this rough patch. With more and more bad news for new grads, those ostriches might get their eggs cooked. Stay tuned.

ABA Considering Doing Something to Benefit Young, Unemployed Lawyers It Wishes Didn't Exist

OK, that's probably not really fair. I mean ... there might be some (unpaid) interns working at the ABA that really do care. Anyway, hundreds of news stories about the undeniable shit storm facing law school grads for the last few years appear to have been taken into consideration.

via ABA Journal:

ABA House to Consider Ethics Rule Changes to Help Young and Mobile Lawyers

The measure would amend the ABA Model Rule on Admission by Motion to say that lawyers seeking to practice in a new jurisdiction through this procedure need to have actively practiced law for only three of the past five years. The previous version of the rule required active practice for five of the last seven years. 

Another new model ethics rule would allow lawyers moving to a new jurisdiction to practice there for up to a year, subject to some restrictions, while seeking admission to the bar.

As a recent grad, I welcome this change in the ethical rules. The limitations imposed by the outdated model of parochial bar associations in every state make very little sense in our increasingly global economy. In the current job market (read: desolate wasteland) for new law grads, being forced to choose one jurisdiction before you even begin practicing law leads to a severe limitation of potential jobs. Even when I do see a job that looks perfect for me, I won't be able to apply if it's out of state.

This makes no sense.

But wait! Don't individual states have an interest in making sure that lawyers practicing in that state know the laws of that state?!?!? Well, sure. But I can tell you this: most of the law that you learn for the bar is forgotten by the time you get your results. The only way to be competent in a particular area of practice is to practice in that particular area. Studying a BARBRI outline might get you through the MBE or an essay, but it's not enough to prevent you from committing malpractice.

Now, with jobs, particularly in certain markets (San Francisco comes immediately to mind), being hard to find, this change to the ABA Model Rules on Admission by Motion is a step in the right direction. This will increase mobility and help grease the gears of the legal industry, leading to fewer attorneys languishing in tight job markets when their skills could be put to use in other regions.

UPDATE: The revision has passed!

A COUPLE OF CHARTS TO SET THE TONE FOR THE WEEKEND.

via Instapundit:

A COUPLE OF CHARTS TO SET THE TONE FOR THE WEEKEND.

From James Pethokoukis:



And from the House Republican Study Committee:



"Just a reminder that there’s a lot more at stake than who pays for birth control."

Well put.

On The Horrors of Getting Approval For An Ice Cream Parlor in San Francisco

via Instapundit:

THE NATURAL RESULT OF THE BLUE MODEL: Cory Doctorow: On The Horrors of Getting Approval For An Ice Cream Parlor In San Francisco. Yet the lesson from this continues to elude.

"Ms. Pries said she had to endure months of runaround and pay a lawyer to determine whether her location (a former grocery, vacant for years) was eligible to become a restaurant. There were permit fees of $20,000; a demand that she create a detailed map of all existing area businesses (the city didn’t have one); and an $11,000 charge just to turn on the water."


Look, a lawyer with a job!

Why the official 8.3 percent unemployment rate is a phony number—and what it means for Obama’s reelection

via The Enterprise Blog: Why the official 8.3 percent unemployment rate is a phony number—and what it means for Obama’s reelection "In January 2011, the unemployment rate was 9.1 percent with a participation rate of 64.2 percent. If that were the participation rate today, the unemployment rate would be 8.9 percent, instead of 8.3 percent. As an analysis from Hamilton Place Strategies concludes, 'Most of the shift of the past year is due not to the improvement in the labor market, but the continued drop in participation in the labor force.'" [Emphasis in original]

I commute every day to a temporary job where I work with 20 other people who, like me, would rather have a permanent position. On the weekends, I work at a part-time job that doesn't even require a high school diploma. I graduated magna cum laude from a top 20 law school and, according to everyone willing to speak to me about it, I have an excellent resume. What I don't have is anywhere to send it. From my experience, the "surge" in job production has yet to change the terrible lack of opportunities available out there for recent graduates. It's nice to know that someone out there is getting hired, but I won't feel better until I find something myself.