Top Law Schools

For the 90% of grads who don't get big law, which region/state would be the best to live/practice in in terms of: quality of life, cost of living, employment opportunities.

Assuming one attends a lower T1 or T2 in that region

Where's Chicago?

Florida is a great secondary because it is massive an decentralized. For the size of the population and economy of the state, theres only a handful of major law firms. $60,000 in the sunshine state is like being a millionaire in NYC.

Your regions are severely lacking, but I'm going to guess this poll will come out in favor of TX.

mrtoren wrote:Where's Chicago?

Lulz, I love polls like this. mrtoren, please don't tell the rest of the country Chicago is a cool place to live - it's just fine without the tourists.

ahduth wrote:

mrtoren wrote:Where's Chicago?

Lulz, I love polls like this. mrtoren, please don't tell the rest of the country Chicago is a cool place to live - it's just fine without the tourists.

I did not include Chicago since i figured going to a T2 there probably wont give you the best job prospects, plus the cost of living is high and i can't stand the weather.

BU2013 wrote:Florida is a great secondary because it is massive an decentralized. For the size of the population and economy of the state, theres only a handful of major law firms. $60,000 in the sunshine state is like being a millionaire in NYC.

thanks

imbored25 wrote:

BU2013 wrote:Florida is a great secondary because it is massive an decentralized. For the size of the population and economy of the state, theres only a handful of major law firms. $60,000 in the sunshine state is like being a millionaire in NYC.

thanks

I thought Florida's legal market was heavily over-saturated? Maybe I'm misremembering - it's hard to keep all the various shitty legal markets straight.

As far as T2s in Chicago... I wouldn't go to a T2 anywhere, but that's just me. If you bust your ass out of places like Kent and Loyola you can gin up work.

ahduth wrote:

imbored25 wrote:

BU2013 wrote:Florida is a great secondary because it is massive an decentralized. For the size of the population and economy of the state, theres only a handful of major law firms. $60,000 in the sunshine state is like being a millionaire in NYC.

thanks

I thought Florida's legal market was heavily over-saturated? Maybe I'm misremembering - it's hard to keep all the various shitty legal markets straight.

As far as T2s in Chicago... I wouldn't go to a T2 anywhere, but that's just me. If you bust your ass out of places like Kent and Loyola you can gin up work.

It has a ton of TTTT schools; Barry, Florida Coastal, FIU, FAMU (not even accredited). However, If you can get into Miami, UF, FSU, or Stetson, you can get a pretty solid job. It is also the only market where I've seen tons of people successfully solo out of law school.

Yay localism.

When you mention quality of life, this is going to be highly subjective based on your own personal preferences. I've lived most of my life (full disclosure, I'm in my early 40's) in the Mountain West and love it. Great wide open vista's, lot's of outdoor activities, incredible mountain scenery, etc. Others (not me) really love the deserts of the Southwest with the mild winters, dry air, and lots of open space. Still others prefer the greenery and colorful seasons of the Northeast. It's difficult to provide you an opinion without knowing what you like. My suggestion would be to do some traveling before deciding where to settle down.

Have you ever been to Ohio? Why would that be on you list? It's like the flint michigan of states.

MoS wrote:Have you ever been to Ohio? Why would that be on you list? It's like the flint michigan of states.

It has better weather than Chicago or New England.

Oh wait, New England is listed.

Did I mention how much I love polls where people ask us where they want to live?

What about the Pacific Northwest? Oh, employment opportunities. NM

I would say the best region for someone who doesn't want BigLaw and just wants to practice is a region you already like or are already comfortable with. Preferably a region where you already have family and friends.

IronHBM wrote:I would say the best region for someone who doesn't want BigLaw and just wants to practice is a region you already like or are already comfortable with. Preferably a region where you already have family and friends.

THIS

A region where you have ties. That's where you want to be.

jarofsoup wrote:Yay localism.

+1, punny

rad law wrote:

IronHBM wrote:I would say the best region for someone who doesn't want BigLaw and just wants to practice is a region you already like or are already comfortable with. Preferably a region where you already have family and friends.

THIS

A region where you have ties. That's where you want to be.

unless you hate them.

Mt. West, High QOL, Low COL.

ahduth wrote:

mrtoren wrote:Where's Chicago?

Lulz, I love polls like this. mrtoren, please don't tell the rest of the country Chicago is a cool place to live - it's just fine without the tourists.

+1