[quote=squat250]one way law school could make sense:
you just get an A.A. degree (you do NOT need a 4 year degree to sit for the bar in CA; check the rules); and then go to a super cheap small law school. say 8k a year. pay as you go and pass the bar.
if you’re debt free, you can maneuver better out there…graduating law school with zero debt could work out very well…
flu, if you tell that plan to other tiger parents, they will think you are super low class…[/quote]
scaredy, I looked into this about 11-12 years ago.
At that time, WSLS (located in LM back then) was about $~18K or for tuition for all three years to law school (now it is ~$30K). At that time, a candidate could have submitted letters of recommendation from attorneys they worked for in lieu of a “bachelor’s degree” for admission purposes.
I decided against spending the money and time (until midnight 1-2 nights week), because, in real life, I could (seriously) successfully argue a motion before a judge w/my hands tied behind my back. But that wasn’t the point. The reality is, (at least here in SD) that no firm wants to hire an over-50 newly-minted lawyer (or “experienced” paralegal, for that matter). Among other concerns, their health insurance premium is much too high.
Regardless of how I feel about it, I have to accept reality.
******
I think it would be *difficult,* at best, for a young person to be able to be admitted to law school (even Western Sierra) on attorney recommendations alone. There is no way they’ve had the time to work long enough under attorney(s) to obtain the type of “recommendations” who would be sufficient to get them admitted into law school, IHMO.
On the surface, it “sounds good” that there are schools out there willing to take law school candidates without a bachelor’s degree. But the “experience requirement” for admission is a “catch 22” for the multitude of candidates that would actually apply to a school like this (20-somethings).
I think the window to be admitted to a school such as WSLS is about 35-40 years old, where the non-bachelor degree candidate is old enough to have ~15 years of experience in law firms but young enough to recoup their investment in law school by way of getting hired … hopefully immediately upon passing the bar exam.
