... then go to a reputable law school in the region in which you want to practice for a reasonable price. The end.

Not sure why this is rocket science, but it seems like a billion "Pepperdine w/$ vs. W&L vs. UF?" threads have popped up lately. Seriously people, are you pulling these schools out of a hat? Do you have no direction in life, or is it that you don't understand the nature of legal hiring, or both?

ETA: This should almost always be the area in which you have ties, particularly if 1) the school is lower ranked, and 2) the market is small.

Amen

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Ah yes, I should have included this in my OP.

Relocating for law school is usually a bad idea. Relocating for law school to go to a mediocre T2/3 school in order to break into some hyper-parochial market? Just awful.

Indeed, there are very few destination law schools. If you really want to live somewhere, there are probably a million easier and cheaper ways than enrolling in the local law school.

how much evidence is available for this? i don't really doubt it, but every lawyer i've spoken with, including in the supposedly insular PNW, said attending a school in the area is a sufficient "tie."

Maybe for him, but I go to school in Philadelphia. Our legal market is super-fucking-skeptical of people without ties, especially for biglaw. Many of my friends had trouble during interviews.

Partly depends on the market. For some markets, it will be okay assuming you have the grades. For others, it is a huge barrier to overcome.

Also, I think relocating to law school to try and aim for a new region is more risky because it requires you to have better grades than your "hometown" counterparts. If you are top 5% at the local T1, you're gonna get some looks regardless of where you're from. If you're top 1/3 at the local T1 with strong ties, you're probably gonna get some looks. But what about top 1/3 with no ties and no tangible reason for sticking around? Good freakin' luck.

anecdotal evidence is not your friend

TCR

that's why i was wondering if there was any evidence available, so i wouldn't have to rely on my anecdotal evidence. was that not clear?

makes sense, i just thought i'd ask

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What if you're born and raised in one of those markets but have gone to college/law school outside of the region (yet still have family there)?

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OP's original post should be required reading for every 0L before they post in the "Choosing a Law School" forum.

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Fuuuuck I have been on this site too long. Tso mad at 0Ls.

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i think you should clarify "national" school to mean one that places into NYC, and to a lesser extent, DC. No school will open doors on a national scale if you don't have ties to all those places.

/pathetic thursday night poast

Yale, FTW

I'm not even sure Yale would open doors ITE in some of the more parochial markets I'm familiar with (MS, SC).

nah...even from HYS, you'll generally need ties in the secondary markets.