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Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 4:56 pm
by Anonymous User
I'm having trouble discerning what legal markets one should avoid.

I am expecting to attend a 50-100 school. My deciding factor will be based on employment prospects within the region.

I always read on here that Chicago, NY, and CA are spots to avoid. I only have "ties" to Chicago, which will obviously not work out very well considering my inability to attend Chicago/NW.

What are other regions that must be avoided? What are more "safe" options? I've heard areas like Kansas and Oklahoma are safe but, I can't imagine living in such a secluded place.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 4:57 pm
by Cavalier
If you're concerned about employment prospects, don't attend a tier 2 school.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 4:58 pm
by lisjjen
Anonymous User wrote:I'm having trouble discerning what legal markets one should avoid.

I am expecting to attend a 50-100 school. My deciding factor will be based on employment prospects within the region.

I always read on here that Chicago, NY, and CA are spots to avoid. I only have "ties" to Chicago, which will obviously not work out very well considering my inability to attend Chicago/NW.

What are other regions that must be avoided? What are more "safe" options? I've heard areas like Kansas and Oklahoma are safe but, I can't imagine living in such a secluded place.
I've heard they've got pretty solid job prospects in Boise and Mobile. Otherwise, the market isn't very good right now.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 5:00 pm
by Anonymous User
Cavalier wrote:If you're concerned about employment prospects, don't attend a tier 2 school.

I am interested in public interest law and have heard, for the most part, that a strong regional school and minimizing debt will suffice. I've already gotten multiple 75% scholarship offers. I'm determined to go, I am just wondering what regions are the best/worst for law right now.

I realize the legal market is terrible.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 5:08 pm
by Citizen Genet

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 5:13 pm
by Anonymous User

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 5:31 pm
by 09042014
Anonymous User wrote:I'm having trouble discerning what legal markets one should avoid.

I am expecting to attend a 50-100 school. My deciding factor will be based on employment prospects within the region.

I always read on here that Chicago, NY, and CA are spots to avoid. I only have "ties" to Chicago, which will obviously not work out very well considering my inability to attend Chicago/NW.

What are other regions that must be avoided? What are more "safe" options? I've heard areas like Kansas and Oklahoma are safe but, I can't imagine living in such a secluded place.
NY is probably the best legal market their is. Though if you only have ties to Chicago they will be a bit suspicious of you.

I wouldn't really go to law school if you are looking T2. Or else maybe go T3 for free if you can.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 5:59 pm
by NotMyRealName09
Have people updated their vocabulary based on usnews new tiers? When you say T2, are you saying the old T2, meaning ranks 51-100, or new T2, which is 100+?

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 6:02 pm
by Bildungsroman
NotMyRealName09 wrote:Have people updated their vocabulary based on usnews new tiers? When you say T2, are you saying the old T2, meaning ranks 51-100, or new T2, which is 100+?
T1 = 1-50
T2 = 51-100

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 7:52 pm
by lisjjen
Bildungsroman wrote:
NotMyRealName09 wrote:Have people updated their vocabulary based on usnews new tiers? When you say T2, are you saying the old T2, meaning ranks 51-100, or new T2, which is 100+?
T1 = 1-50
T2 = 51-100
T14 = 14 schools

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 8:04 pm
by thesealocust
Cavalier wrote:If you're concerned about employment prospects, don't attend a tier 2 school.
Yep. The entire legal market is dismal, and every year dozens of thousands of graduates will fail to find post-law school employment. Your odds are markedly worse below the top 10-20 or so schools in the country. Do not take on significant debt to attend a T2 if you want to be an employed lawyer. Do not go for free or low cost unless you know exactly how you plan on getting a job with the degree.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 2:25 pm
by Gettingstarted1928
If you're going to a lower ranked school, definitely stay out of the larger cities. There's just too much competition.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 2:26 pm
by NoleinNY
Anonymous User wrote:Legal Markets to Avoid?
All of them.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 2:38 pm
by mattviphky
I have that New Orleans is alright. And by alright, I mean at least stagnate.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 2:50 pm
by LawIdiot86
mattviphky wrote:I have that New Orleans is alright. And by alright, I mean at least stagnate.
Too soon for flood jokes? :lol:

Having never looked at New Orleans as a market before, I just scanned through the NALP firms and was surprised to see that most, if not all, of the NALP firms had 1/3 of their summers start the following year in the recent timeframe. Was this no-offers or students declining offers to go to other cities? Any market that, as a whole, no-offers 2/3 of its summers should be avoided as a general rule.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 3:11 pm
by 20130312
lisjjen wrote:
Bildungsroman wrote:
NotMyRealName09 wrote:Have people updated their vocabulary based on usnews new tiers? When you say T2, are you saying the old T2, meaning ranks 51-100, or new T2, which is 100+?
T1 = 1-50
T2 = 51-100
T14 = 13 schools
FTFY

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 4:39 pm
by mattviphky
LawIdiot86 wrote:
mattviphky wrote:I have that New Orleans is alright. And by alright, I mean at least stagnate.
Too soon for flood jokes? :lol:

Having never looked at New Orleans as a market before, I just scanned through the NALP firms and was surprised to see that most, if not all, of the NALP firms had 1/3 of their summers start the following year in the recent timeframe. Was this no-offers or students declining offers to go to other cities? Any market that, as a whole, no-offers 2/3 of its summers should be avoided as a general rule.

--LinkRemoved--–%202010.pdf

just over a 1/3 of Tulane's graduates do stick around in NOLA. I don't think this really explains the situation of no-offers, but it helps address it in some way. But I would feel worse if like 90% of Tulane students stuck around the area and 2/3 of them were no-offered.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 4:57 pm
by Bildungsroman
Either this topic needs to be moved to "Ask A Law Student/Graduate" or 0Ls need to stop posting in it.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 5:03 pm
by MrPapagiorgio
Desert Fox wrote:
Anonymous User wrote:I'm having trouble discerning what legal markets one should avoid.

I am expecting to attend a 50-100 school. My deciding factor will be based on employment prospects within the region.

I always read on here that Chicago, NY, and CA are spots to avoid. I only have "ties" to Chicago, which will obviously not work out very well considering my inability to attend Chicago/NW.

What are other regions that must be avoided? What are more "safe" options? I've heard areas like Kansas and Oklahoma are safe but, I can't imagine living in such a secluded place.
NY is probably the best legal market their is. Though if you only have ties to Chicago they will be a bit suspicious of you.

I wouldn't really go to law school if you are looking T2. Or else maybe go T3 for free if you can.
Sage advice. Also, from what I have heard/read, CA seems to be the worse due to competition and the overall CA economy faltering. While NY is the best in terms of available jobs, don't go to a lower-ranked school to try and break into the NY market; jobs are more plentiful there but competition for NY basically negates the availability factor. For NY, I wouldn't go any lower than Rutgers with a free ride (in-state tuition at most), but even that is a stretch. For the most realistic shot at NY, I would go no lower than Fordham.

Re: Legal Markets to Avoid?

Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2012 5:20 pm
by 20121109
Bildungsroman wrote: this topic needs to be moved to "Ask A Law Student/Graduate"