I have been planning on writing on this subject since I created this blog. Now that I have a 2-3 page paper assigned on this same subject, I've been stalling. I fully plan on adapting what I write here for that paper. However, typical of me, as soon as there is an actual purpose to my writing, the procrastination starts. Well here goes nothing.
Answering this question is proving more difficult than I originally imagined. It is not that I don't feel strongly about going to law school. It is that the reasons have changed and so slowly that I didn't notice the change at first. With that in mind, I think I should start with what first prompted me to look into going to law school.
When I started college as a political science major, I was determined that I would not be "one of those poli sci students", the ones in it just to bide their time until law school. In my eyes, these students did not actually love the study of political science like I did and were simply waiting to move on to something that they considered to be bigger and better. I made a blanket judgement without considering other options and held stubbornly to this viewpoint for over two years.
In the spring of my junior year, I interned for the Senate Judiciary and Rules committee in the Idaho Legislature. I did a lot of research mostly on what the other western states were doing or had done with the issues the committee was working on. These issues mostly centered around criminal law, and I was amazed by the depth and intricacies of the many laws that I read. I spent most of my time at a desk in the office of the communications director for the majority caucus. There was a constant parade of lobbyists, senators and other interesting people to this room and question was inevitably asked: "What are you planning on doing with your degree?" At this point, I had decided that I wanted to go into lobbying. During on of these many conversations, I was told that if I wanted to go into lobbying I might want to look at law school as a way to do it. I somewhat dismissed the idea, but began paying attention to the different influential lobbyists I met at the state house. Most of them shared a common theme, they were all lawyers. Dang it! I had to concede that there would be a real benefit to the legal education I had previously scorned.I firmly believe that life is full of irony. Realizing how ironic my decision was in light of my previous attitude, I decided to apply for law school.
While I remember vividly this conversation and the specific moment I decided law school would be my goal, looking back, there were many other reasons why law school all of a sudden seemed so appealing. As I said before, my research in my internship gave me an exposure to law that I had not previously had. I worked mostly with statutes but was able to see how case law affected the whole process. Several changes to statutes were made at the suggestion of the Supreme Court of Idaho and a few proposed changes were the direct result of an unpopular decision. At the same time, I also had a Constitutional law class. Here I was more extensively introduced to case law and how important it is in the United States. I was fascinated by the whole process. Studying law, it seemed, would be more interesting than I had previously allowed myself to consider.
The final nail in the coffin is maybe somewhat silly. In preparation for the LSAT, I purchased a few study manuals. I ended up absolutely loving the dreaded logic puzzles section of the LSAT. I felt like I was playing a game every time I studied. I knew that if law school and being a lawyer required a similar style of thinking that I would be very happy in the profession.
That is how I decided to go to law school. I think that my reasons for attending law school are a bit different and less specific now. I will try to explore those later today or tomorrow. Hopefully, those reasons will be shorter and more to the point or I will how a ton of editing to do for my essay. :-/
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