Paul Rogerson, editor of The Law Society Gazette, writes:
Rising university costs are a hindrance to aspiring black lawyers, the Law Society announced at the conclusion of Black History Month. A timely observation, though Chancery Lane might have gone further. With annual tuition fees predicted to rise to £7,000, an issue that this week is viewed through the prism of race must also be observed through the prism of class.
Soon, students who are not fortunate to be the offspring of monied parents will probably have to take on debts of £35,000 just to get a degree, never mind embark on legal training. The editor of this magazine knows for a fact this is going to further inhibit social mobility, because had that been the case 25 years ago he would not have gone to university. No way.
The number of applicants accepted onto law courses grew to a new high this year, according to research published by admissions service UCAS.
The total number starting a law course at university or college in September 2009 increased by 1.2% to 18,394, after the figure passed the 18,000 mark for the first time in 2008.
This is good news for the universities and vocational law schools. We shall see if these aspiring lawyers get jobs in 3-4 years time. Maybe the legal landscape will have changed for the better with the coming into force of the Legal Services Act and the change in fortunes of the British and global economy? We shall see… in time. I suspect… that quite a few will not get the training contract or pupillage they aspire to.
A snippet from Legal Week:
Law professor sues legal blog for $22m in damages: A prominent law professor has launched a claim against Above the Law, alleging
The case involves coverage of a prominent University of Miami School of Law professor and civil rights advocate Donald Marvin Jones, who was arrested on suspicion of soliciting an undercover officer for sex.
The blog, which is known for its irreverent style, covered the story in October 2007 with a series of posts about Jones, whom it dubbed “The Nutty Professor”.
Jones alleges that the blog’s coverage veered into racism, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court. He alleged that Above the Law portrayed him in a false light, invaded his privacy and infringed the university’s copyright on his faculty photo. Jones is seeking $22m (£13m) in damages.
An online article about the arrest by David Lat, Above the Law’s managing editor (Pictured), “instigated its readers not only to read the post but also to join in what was clearly a viciously racist series of rants” directed at the African-American professor, the suit claims.
Above The Law is a good blog, run by bright people, so it will be interesting to see if this case has legs.
When it comes to 18 year olds choosing law at university, I doubt much reliance can be placed on the assumption that those students want to be lawyers. Chances are that, like most 18 year olds, they haven’t then got the faintest clue what they want to do in life.
It always used to be that the average, reasonably bright, 17 year old being pushed to come up with something for UCCA, as was, would go for one of three subjects based on school work with which they were comfortable. Numeracy meant economincs, literacy led to the law and obnoxious self belief meant medicine. Any one of these at a Russell would do the trick when it came to shutting up the adults, thereby allowing the applicant to get back to important stuff, like partying.
In those days, I do not think people were overly concerned. The freshly minted adult would, more likely than not, stand to receive an old fashioned undergrad education which served them well in whatever field they found themselves wandering aimlessly into after graduation. There was no concern with student debt. The very wealthy were, quite rightly, subsidised by their families and the plebs were was handsomely supported by the LEAs.
Nowadays, an undergrad education is not was it was, it costs a bomb and can be counterproductive in hampering its owner with a lack of skills and a debt burden which can blight their progress in the adult world.
With the stakes being so much higher than they once were, and law now being vocationally oriented, the focus should not be on whether there are insufficent jobs at the end of the process but whether there is adequate careers advice on offer at the beginning.
Truly, I don’t know why I choose law school at first. Since, I think this is just the only course that seems okay for me. But, now, after being a lawyer, I feel this is my way of life. I don’t need anybody to tell me why you choose law course at the moment. It is important to keep the law and justice in its right order. Without law, the nation will be in chaos. That’s what I learn from being a lawyer.