DECADE IN REVIEW Forum

[MBAtoJD]

The years go by so fast!

2009: Started law school in Los Angeles (Part-time)
2010: 2nd year in law school
2011: 3rd year in law school
2012: Started Masters (Dispute Resolution) program
2013: Graduated law school (JD)
2014: Failed the CA Bar
2015: Passed the Bar & became a CA lawyer
2016: Moved to Nigeria for law school
2017: Became Nigerian Barrister & Solicitor
2018: Moved into townhouse in Orange County California
2019: Started LLM program in London

Good luck with all your endeavors!

[QContinuum]

Congrats on all your accomplishments. If I may ask, though, what's the motive behind attending law school in three (!) different countries?! And, how were you able to afford an OC townhouse after so many years of student-ing, and (at most) 2 years of lawyering, one of which was in Nigeria??

[MBAtoJD]

Hi there!

Thanks.

My interest is International Business Law so I wanted my academic background in law and business to reflect multiple countries.

Dad is a lawyer in Nigeria for over 40 years and his law firm represent international companies who have branches in Nigeria. I’m the international contact here in the US. I connect companies here who are interest in business investment in Nigeria.

I grew up in OC; it’s the place I’m most comfortable so I wanted to live there. Fortunately, I have no student loans or debt so I’m able to live comfortably.

[LSATWiz.com]

Not to take away from your accomplishments but your father being a successful and well connected lawyer seems to have played some role in how things turned out for you. While you undoubtedly still had to achieve much on your own, this path and result isn't plausible for the average law student.

[MBAtoJD]

Absolutely! My dad did have a hand in it financially. I’m happy about that; no doubt. Since he cannot bribe his way into my applications, admissions, exams or grades; I’ve had to work hard to accomplish what I have so far.

Every person has their story and lane. My goal of posting is to reflect on how far I’ve come even highlighting my failure. Hopefully, it lets people know there’s no “traditional” route to accomplishment. You can be successful even if you are not the top student or in a top law school. There is no ‘one size fits all.’ My route is not for everyone; my result is not the blueprint. It’s just how things ended up for me.

My dream was never big law or the traditional route. Heck, law is just one source of income. I do real estate investment too.

[QContinuum]

Many thanks for following up. Congrats on your success and thanks for sharing your experience!

To any 0Ls reading this thread, as LSATWiz points out, OP's situation - where they had an ironclad legal job offer lined up prior to starting law school, in this case through their Dad's highly successful firm, plus financial support from their family - is one of the rare cases where attending a part-time local law school may make sense.

[LSATWiz.com]

Many thanks for following up. Congrats on your success and thanks for sharing your experience!

To any 0Ls reading this thread, as LSATWiz points out, OP's situation - where they had an ironclad legal job offer lined up prior to starting law school, in this case through their Dad's highly successful firm, plus financial support from their family - is one of the rare cases where attending a part-time local law school may make sense.

I'd just add that OP still had to achieve on their own. To anyone reading this who does come from a connected family, family connections don't guarantee success. This is a circumstance where connections and individual achievement procured a good outcome. The quoted post does not say otherwise, but it's important to make this point clear as some young people assume their connections are all they need to succeed.

ABA rules make it difficult to succeed in law in based solely on connections and business acumen. It's among the most difficult professions to coast through. Like OP, you need to be able to work hard and consistently, which is a skill. Not everyone is equally capable of pushing themselves to work hard on a consistent basis. If you have certain skills, it's much easier to coast through the LSAT and law school than through practice. To achieve a result like OP, you need to be well-connected and very hardworking.

[QContinuum]

I'd just add that OP still had to achieve on their own. To anyone reading this who does come from a connected family, family connections don't guarantee success. This is a circumstance where connections and individual achievement procured a good outcome. ... To achieve a result like OP, you need to be well-connected and very hardworking.

Entirely agreed. That is why I congratulated OP on their success. I did not mean to downplay OP's accomplishments at all and am sorry if I inadvertently did so. Many rich/well-connected children in OP's situation would not have accomplished nearly as much. The financial support and connections are critical, but so are work ethic and talent. Many in OP's situation would have burned out and crashed long before making it to where OP is today.