Any law school students or grads here?

[Neosutra]

Thanx for the help guys. Im going to probably study from now till September and take the test then so I can get in early apps for Universities and still have plenty of time to maximize test studying.

Additionally, one reason I chose patent law is due to the way the market is. Patent law seems to be one of the few law fields that isnt hurting due to so few lawyers having the needed science background. But we will see!

Thanx again!.

[Kaslo]

Thanx for the help guys. Im going to probably study from now till September and take the test then so I can get in early apps for Universities and still have plenty of time to maximize test studying.

Additionally, one reason I chose patent law is due to the way the market is. Patent law seems to be one of the few law fields that isnt hurting due to so few lawyers having the needed science background. But we will see!

Thanx again!.

Well remember, the job market is really only SUPER shitty on the coasts. In the heartland its a lot less felt, but you can still feel uneasiness. (For instance TU Law has like a 95% hire rate within 6 months of passing the bar)

[*Shinzon*]

Ok I have a question for those who actually applied, and were accepted not to hijack Neo's thread. But What kind of recommendations did you get and when did you get them? I ask because I've never really had any professor more than one semester and the one that I had for two semesters wasn't exactly please with my performance even though I averaged the same grade in the class, a B for two years. She thought I could do better.

I plan to go to a personal statement workshop with a professor in my school, but I haven't actually taken the LSAT yet, don't have a job and I'm just now preparing to apply in my last semester of college. How would I go about asking professors who have only known me one semester? D: Really recommendations and preparing for the Lsat are my only concerns I'm fine with my GPA and the way my grades for every semester went.

I've been told you can't or shouldn't get recommendations early and then use them in your applications later. So I'm a little confused on that point because there are so many different opinions. I really just want to know what approach would work at this late stage. Since the job market took a hit it really messed up my original plans, although I've always wanted to go to law school and shouldn't be in this position in the first place.

[Talus]

I'd say you have a good chance with your GPA. You're over a 3.0 in physics which is not an easy major. I would even say not a lot of physics majors apply to law school - you see a lot of Political Science, English, Management/business types, but not a whole lot of sciences/engineering types. [Edit: admissions officers look at where you did your undergrad and what you majored in. A 3.5 in art history is not as impressive as a 3.2 in physics.]

Take the LSAT when you're ready to take it. Get familiar with the format of the test, study, and do practice tests. While you can void your score for a short window after you take the LSAT, it's better to one and done it.

As far as patent law, it's a competitive field, just like any other area of law. Most IP firms have a pyramidal structure, with the partners at the top sharing profits, then the associates, technical specialists (people that work to prosecute patents the same as the associates and partners but they usually have a PhD in a related field like physics, chemistry, or some kind of engineering), patent agents (people that have passed the patent bar, i.e. have a USPTO registration no.), and law clerks (recent or soon-to-be law school graduates who have not passed the patent bar and/or have not been admitted to a state's bar).

I don't know about IP in Tucson, but I know the Washington, D.C. area has a lot of firms, considering the USPTO offices are in Alexandria, VA, along with a bunch of IP firms in NYC, Chicago, and LA. Most of the smaller boutique firms that do IP only are in the DC area, and if I had to guess a starting salary for a 1st year associate, it's probably around $160k/year and maybe 1800-2000 billable hours required.

Hope this helps.

[Edit: not a lawyer, not a law student, just know about IP. Took the LSAT in 2006 and got a 164 (90th percentile).]

[SwampdonkeyPLD]

Thanx for the help guys. Im going to probably study from now till September and take the test then so I can get in early apps for Universities and still have plenty of time to maximize test studying.

Additionally, one reason I chose patent law is due to the way the market is. Patent law seems to be one of the few law fields that isnt hurting due to so few lawyers having the needed science background. But we will see!

Thanx again!.

When you study for the test don't fall into that trap of not studying on the sections your good at. I don't know if that's what happened to me, but completely bombing my best section cost me big time.