Qualifications to Be a Lawyer
Becoming a lawyer requires many years of schooling and involves graduating with a bachelor's degree, finishing law school and passing the bar exam. Lawyers represent individuals and advocate on their behalf. Lawyers advocate for their clients in criminal and civil trials and argue to support their claims. This profession requires that lawyers fight for the legal rights of individuals and apply the intent of law into judicial and jury proceedings.
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Bachelor's Degree
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There is no specific law degree that students must major in to become a lawyer. Many prospective lawyers take classes in English, public speaking, government, history, economics and mathematics. Excelling in economics or mathematics enables students to find success in tax law, while students who do well in public speaking may succeed as trial lawyers.
LSAT
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The Law School Admission Council administers the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) four times a year. The test measures applicants' verbal and logical reasoning skills. The LSAT is a required exam that all accredited schools look at when determining admission into their programs. The test is broken down into three sections: Reading Comprehension, Analytical Reasoning and Logical Reasoning.
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Law School
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States require that lawyers have a Juris Doctor (JD) degree before they are allowed to take bar exams. A JD degree is earned from a law school program, which can take a full-time student three years to complete. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, while in law school, students will learn the basics and fundamentals of law procedures, contracts, constitutional law and legal practices. Many students spend summers clerking in law firms, corporate legal departments or government agencies to secure jobs after graduation.
Bar Exam
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The bar exam determines whether a law school graduate is qualified to practice law in a given jurisdiction. The bar exam varies from state to state, but most states use the Multistate Bar Examination (MBE) and Multistate Essay Examination (MEE). The MBE covers a wide range of issues and may include additional material supplied by a specific state. The MEE is a three-hour test and, according to the National Conference of Bar Examiners, consists of a collection of 30-minute essays.
Skills
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Lawyers need to be proficient in speaking, writing, reading, analyzing and thinking logically and critically. Lawyers need to have excellent interpersonal skills, because they will be meeting with clients, associates and judges on a daily basis. Lawyers need to demand the respect and confidence of the people around them through intelligence, hard work and persistence.
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