Charlotte Law Reputation? Charleston Law Reputation? Forum

[rebeccawal]

Just wondering if anyone is aware of the reputation that Charlotte Law has in Charlotte or neighboring areas in NC/SC?

Same for Charleston Law - what is its reputation in Charleston and the rest of SC?

I was always told to ignore the rankings if you know what city you want to practice in. I will be spending my life in one of these cities or South Carolina so I am trying to get a feel for strong or weak reputations. I am completely aware that I would be "better off" at UNC or USC, but I do not have the LSAT score to get in.

I am particularly curious about reputations rather than rankings after finding out that John Marshall in ATL actually has a terrible reputation in Atlanta and offers zero job prospects, while, on the other hand, Capital in Columbus, Ohio has a great rep and gets you jobs alongside OSU grads (I know this for sure as I am in Columbus right now, but not intersted in staying here forever.) Both are Tier 4 schools, but one obviously provides a better situation in its home city than the other.

Any info on Charleston School of Law or Charlotte Law would be greatly appreciated!!

[SoxyPirate]

Just wondering if anyone is aware of the reputation that Charlotte Law has in Charlotte or neighboring areas in NC/SC?

Same for Charleston Law - what is its reputation in Charleston and the rest of SC?

I was always told to ignore the rankings if you know what city you want to practice in. I will be spending my life in one of these cities or South Carolina so I am trying to get a feel for strong or weak reputations. I am completely aware that I would be "better off" at UNC or USC, but I do not have the LSAT score to get in.

I am particularly curious about reputations rather than rankings after finding out that John Marshall in ATL actually has a terrible reputation in Atlanta and offers zero job prospects, while, on the other hand, Capital in Columbus, Ohio has a great rep and gets you jobs alongside OSU grads (I know this for sure as I am in Columbus right now, but not intersted in staying here forever.) Both are Tier 4 schools, but one obviously provides a better situation in its home city than the other.

Any info on Charleston School of Law or Charlotte Law would be greatly appreciated!!

I would do Charleston over Charlotte. Charlotte competes against Carolina, Campbell, Duke, Wake, Central, and now Elon...ALL of which will NO DOUBT place better than Charlotte law (in the state). Not to mention that Charlotte is one of the hardest hit cities in the banking/financial crisis.

Charleston competes against South Carolina in the state (and a handful of students from other NC/GA/FL schools), is in a better city (to live and go to school for 3 years), and has been around a bit longer.

Neither of these schools should be your top choice.

[carolinainmymind]

Yeah, I'd go with Charleston Law. At least anecdotally I know some Charleston grads who have done well in the state. I read a stat the other day that 70% of the SC bar are USC grads(on this site?), so I'm sure the few Charleston grads out there surely stick together (just my presumption). Here are some stats I got about Chucktown law:

"Among the 183 students from the class of
2007, 95 percent were employed as of June 2008:
• 50 percent were employed in private law firms;
• 25 percent were employed in the judiciary;
• 12 percent were employed in government;
• 5 percent were employed in non-legal positions;
• 3 percent pursued LL.M. or other graduate degrees;
• 4 percent were employed in public interest law;
• 1 percent were employed in in-house counsel positions."

As for Charlotte Law, it's brand new and they are trying... but North Carolina, and especially Charlotte, is a much more competitive law environment than anywhere in SC. Law firms in the QC are packed with UNC and Wake grads, and I would guess that you would need to be THE stellar student from your class at Charlotte law to get many opportunities. Here is an article I found about the difficulty this year for Charlotte Law grads:

http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlo ... tory3.html

I'm very familiar with Charlotte and Charleston, and IMHO Charleston is a safer pick. Charleston Law was established, I believe, on a more grassroots level by prominent, well-established Charleston lawyers. I think Charleston Law, while still very young as well, has far more connections within SC than Charlotte does in NC. Lawyers in South Carolina do not make as much $ as NC lawyers, but I think doing well at Charleston will afford you the opportunity of landing a job (at least a better chance than Charlotte), and probably will allow you to live rather comfortably within the state.

[soullesswonder]

I agree with both of the above, but I would emphasize that unless you REALLY love the law and are totally informed about the limits of those two schools, you shouldn't set foot in either of them. If it's just your LSAT score that's keeping you from the state schools, you should do yourself a favor and retake.

[LawandOrder]

Did someone mention Charleston?

[James Bond]

[Cupidity]

If you want to live in Charleston you will have to learn how to Shag.


It's a great city though.

[TheCommish]

If you want to live in Charleston you will have to learn how to Shag.


It's a great city though.

I lived in Charleston for a few years and I never shagged in the way that you're talking about.

[pink_law14]

I REALLY REALLY REALLY want to go to Charleston. Waiting to hear back for what seems like forever! Anybody have any info about an application timeline?

[princepointe]

@ OP. Your "information" about John Marshall is totally false. I've worked in the sports and entertainment industry for almost 10 years and can assure you that John Marshall grads are veryyyyy well received. Some of the post successful and powerful lawyers in Georgia are from John Marshall. This year they had Clarence Thomas ( whom I hate but he's still a Justice) speak at their graduation. They also have an externship program with many amazing firms including the number 3 sports management firm in the country Profile Sports. Charlotte has a similar reputation in NC. Especially if your intrested in PI or Sports Law (clearly the hub for NASCAR). What you have to remember about this board is that 75% of what people say is BS and hearsay (at times blatant lies to throw people off). Whatever school you go to regardless of the numbers comes down to your commitement and dedication. ESPECIALLY in regards to the Bar Exam. Thats an individual sport. UT-LAW is at 89%. With the high rank you would expect it to be a bit higher. I believe bar passage rates and "reputation" are reflections of the students, no necessarily the school. But thats just my opinion. Good luck on your choice.

[livinginsc]

Good luck!

[Grizz]

I know this thread is old, but don't go to Charleston. Charleston is a miniscule market. There aren't enough jobs for the USC grads that want them. Bad job prospects overall. Exception if you have a job waiting for you after.

[Magnolia]

I'm also contributing to the necromacy, but for the love of god don't go to Charlotte law either. The market in NC is really fucking bad right now. The market in Charlotte, specifically, is even worse. Charlotte Law is the worst law school in a small state with six better law schools and a small, crippled legal market. You won't just competing against Duke, UNC, and Wake Forest grads. You'll also be competing against grads from the entire t13 plus Vandy, and possibly several other regional schools who have ties to the area. There are very few jobs and an unbelievable surplus of jobs.

Seriously, my mother and all of her friends are lawyers in NC. The market is so bad that every single one of them have told me that I'm a fucking idiot for going to law school. And they're probably right.

If you really want to be a lawyer, then retake the LSAT and go to a better school. I understand needed to go parttime for financial reasons, but I don't understand spending any amount of money for a degree that can't help you get a legal job. Neither a degree from Charlotte nor Charleston will give you any reasonable chance at a legal job. Seriously.