2. Any and all feedback is appreciated.
3. Main body of the essay is the same for all schools, except for the second to last paragraph, where I discuss particular interests in each school.
4. LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK OF THE QUOTE PLEASE!
“At his best man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst.” – Aristotle
At age 18, during my first year at university, I joined the six percent of Americans who run their own businesses. I bought a franchise of the student-run painting company College Pro Painting and became an entrepreneur. My sales and profit were both entirely dependent on my motivation and commitment to my business. Running a business taught me why laws are needed to govern business transactions. At first, I viewed the law as a device that could be used for leverage in my business dealings, but personal experience taught me otherwise.
While running my business, I began to read business, consumer protection and labor laws. Whether I was assigning work hours to employees or signing contracts with clients, I was always looking for ways to use my knowledge of these laws to my advantage. However, I learned the hard way that the law ultimately exists in order to ensure justice.
During my second season, I signed a contract with an affluent client to paint the interior of his home. Midway through the project, he decided to make several changes, which led to additional costs. The two of us shook hands on the amount of the additional work at $2,000. Nevertheless, when the project was completed, he refused to pay the overcharges. I threatened to sue him if he did not pay. The fellow responded that due to the backlog of two to three years in our states’ civil court and the difficulty of proving a verbal agreement, I should simply take the original amount and go. I saw no other option, so I took his offer.
Being taken advantage of led me to an epiphany. The truth is that knowledge is not a tool to be used to grant an advantage over others. Instead, those who are knowledgeable have a responsibility to ensure fairness. I believe that this notion is particularly important for transactional attorneys who are negotiating, researching, drafting contracts for, and advising clients on a large range of legal issues. As an entrepreneur, I learned many valuable skills – accounting, marketing, management and sales. However, the most important skill that I learned came from my dealing with the fellow who cheated me. Trust. I learned to trust the law. Although most people are good-natured, people have a tendency to be self-interested and will act in ways that are in line with their own interests, even if doing so is detrimental to someone else. The law, on the other hand, is certain and does not waver. It does not take sides in a dispute. It has no preference for one party or the other. The law only seeks to ensure that fairness and justice are both respected. It is for this reason that the law and its constituent parts, such as contracts, lawyers and judges, are important in the world of business. We place our trust in them because they promise a fair outcome.
I am pursuing a law degree because I now understand the importance of the law when conducting business; I intend to use my law degree to become a corporate attorney. I am confident that the University of California Davis School of Law is the right school for me because of its location in Northern California, where I have family ties and, ultimately, intend to practice law. I am also interested in the emphasis that UC Davis places on experiential learning. In particular, I am interested in the law journals and externships that are available to students. For instance, I would like to participate in the Business Law Journal as an editor so that I can learn the research and writing skills that are necessary to be a successful corporate attorney. I am also interested in externships at UC Davis such as the Federal and State Taxation Externship so that I can gain practical, hands on experience regarding taxation law that will be beneficial during my career.
The law exists both to protect individuals and to hold them accountable for their actions. Lawyers have a responsibility to use their knowledge to interpret the law and insure that their client receives all that the law promises them. Yet, as I have learned, it is also the duty of lawyers to work within the bounds of the law in order to ensure that a fair settlement is reached and that justice is respected. My time as a business owner has given me the skillset that will allow me to succeed in law school and as an attorney. It has also given me a unique perspective on the world of business and an appreciation for the role that the rule of law plays in it. I want to be a lawyer so that I can enter a profession where I can combine my business skills with my respect for justice.
