If I want to practice law in Florida, do I need to go to law school in Florida? Forum

[softmer]

Excluding attending a T-14 law school,is it a realistic expectation to practice in a state that my law school is not in? I am from Florida and would love to have the option of practicing here after my legal education is complete. I hear, however, that a lot of law schools are incredibly regional which makes it hard to find jobs that are outside of the law schools sphere of influence.

Specifically, I have been looking at schools such as the University of Cincinnati or American University.

[cavalier1138]

Generally, yes, especially for a market like Florida.

The better question to ask yourself is what you think a school like Cincinnati offers you that one of the similarly-ranked local schools won't.

[softmer]

Generally, yes, especially for a market like Florida.

The better question to ask yourself is what you think a school like Cincinnati offers you that one of the similarly-ranked local schools won't.

The tuition is (relatively) inexpensive and I believe that I can get a decent scholarship package there. If it means that I am unable to practice in Florida, though, it may not be worth it.

[cavalier1138]

Generally, yes, especially for a market like Florida.

The better question to ask yourself is what you think a school like Cincinnati offers you that one of the similarly-ranked local schools won't.

The tuition is (relatively) inexpensive and I believe that I can get a decent scholarship package there. If it means that I am unable to practice in Florida, though, it may not be worth it.

But that doesn't make much sense. The entering class profiles for Miami (or FSU) and Cincinnati are almost identical, but the Florida schools offer much better job outcomes and obviously place better in the Florida market. If your numbers are good enough to get you a decent scholarship at Cincinnati, they're good enough to get you a decent scholarship at FSU/Miami.

If you want to work in Florida (non-biglaw), then you should go to a Florida school. There's no benefit to going to another school in the same rankings band.