The LACBA Student Lounge Blog

The ABA Comission on the Economic Crisis: Paying Law School Loans Without a Job

The cost of completing a JD program certainly hasn't gone down, while the pressure of paying law school related loans has gone way up. As the legal profession shifts in response to the economic downturn, many recent law school graduates are left holding a very heavy bag. The question remains: How do you pay a hefty student loan when you either can't get a job or the job you can get doesn't pay enough for you to manage?

Enter Carolyn Lamm, the recently installed ABA President and a partner with the White & Case office in Washington. Lamm is expecting feedback from the newly created ABA Economic Crisis Commission. Of course there's nothing new about how the recession has played out in the legal profession. The profession has been adjusting for some time now. However, according to a recent National Law Journal article, it appears that the ABA will explore the issue of how graduating law students are supposed to pay off student loans when they can't find a job. Here, the ABA has established an all-new commission: The ABA Commission on the Economic Crisis.

It appears that the Commission will be focusing on how the legal profession can respond to the economic crisis as it relates to both the public and the legal profession. On the public side, the Commission may work towards legislation that will provide federal funding for local programs that address the legal needs of home owners facing foreclosure. On the profession side, among other issues, it's law school debt. The immediate plan is a list of law school debt relief programs to be listed on the ABA's Economic Recovery Resources website within the near future.

The Commission already has an impressive list of members, including at least two from California. Both Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the UCI School of Law and Matthew Nelson, a Wells Fargo attorney and graduate of UCLA School of Law, have joined the Commission. The six million dollar question here will be whether this dream team will roll up their sleeves and develop practical solutions for recent graduates.

Get a Job! The Legal Public Service Corps

The Legal Public Service Corps, created by the Los Angeles County Bar Association and its Litigation Section, brings public entities and nonprofit organizations together with recent law school graduates and attorneys whose careers have been disrupted by the current economic conditions. The goal of the Corps is to promote public service through pro bono activities and externships.

On Friday, September 11, 2009, LACBA will host a Legal Public Service Corps Career Day, where candidates will be able to meet face-to-face to discuss opportunities with organizations and entities with whom they would like to serve. The career day will take place at the LACBA offices at 1055 West Seventh Street in Downtown Los Angeles.

While no advance registration is required, candidates are strongly encouraged to contact the organizations for which they would like to serve and to provide them with the information requested in advance of the event. All inquiries should be addressed directly to the organizations.

Job Opening in Downtown Long Beach, CA

A small but mighty law firm by the name of Felahy & Associates is looking to hire a full-time law clerk starting this August. The firm focuses mostly on plaintiff-employment law, but offers a variety of services to its clients. It has a friendly, yet professional, atmosphere that makes working there a wonderful experience. The firm is looking for either evening law students that can work full-time, or newly graduated law students awaiting their bar results. Located in the heart of Downtown Long Beach, this firm provides ample opportunity to meet new people.

For more information, of if you're interested in applying, please send your contact info (along with resume) to: felahy.associates@gmail.com. Interviews will be held over the next few weeks. Good luck!

Starting Salary for 2008 Law School Graduates: The Gap Widens

It shouldn't be a big shock to current law students or recent graduates, but the National Association for Legal Career Professionals is reporting on the salaries of 2008 law school graduates and the results are in. Curious yet?

You'll have to dust off your statistics dictionary to get all the details here, but the general conclusion is that the gap between 2008 graduates who landed a large income job upon graduation and those on the opposite end of the earning spectrum is getting wider. Here, it looks like the prevailing starting salary at large law firms is at $160,000, while the median starting salary overall is at $72,000, which of course means that half of the 2008 law school graduates who were involved with the study started at $72,000 or less. A few more ways to break this data down: 42% of 2008 law school graduates started between $65,000 and $40,000. 23% of all salaries reported were $160,000.

Predictions for 2009 graduates?

NBA Draft Eligibility: Cashing In

California law schools and undergraduate programs are increasing tuition in response to the budget crisis, which is creating a hardship for many potential students.  Still, some high school student athletes with scholarship offers are considering avoiding college altogether.

The National Basketball Association (NBA) requires potential players entering the draft be at least one year removed from their high school graduation.  The league instituted this rule in response to the increasing number of recent high school graduates entering the draft.  Still, the NBA provides the opportunity of million dollar salaries, while its traditional alternative, college basketball, prohibits players from receiving any salary. 

Brandon Jennings, a high school basketball phenom and 2008 high school graduate, therefore, spent the last year playing professional basketball in Europe, where players can receive a salary without an age requirement.  Jeremy Tyler, a current high school basketball star scheduled to graduate high school in 2010, likewise plans to spend his first year of college eligibility playing professionally in Europe.  Tyler, however, also plans to forgo his senior year of high school, which will allow him to play in Europe for two years before entering the NBA draft. 

This new trend of playing in Europe provides American athletes with a lucrative temporary alternative to the NBA.  It permits them to play professionally at nearly any age and bypass the unpaid college basketball system.  Representative Steve Cohen from Tennessee, therefore, sent letters to the NBA requesting the league eliminate the rule. 

The NBA remains satisfied with the eligibility rule, so continued efforts by Cohen and others could lead to a potential lawsuit.  Meanwhile, due to the poor economy, many law firms are requiring recent law school graduates to either defer their salary or their previously agreed upon employment for up to eighteen months.  If the court decides the matter, the attorneys fighting for the players’ rights to earn an NBA salary without restriction, may, therefore, ironically be working without pay. 

Law Grad Alternative Career of the Week: Cupcake Truck Driver

With the options of driving a cupcake truck around New York or studying for the bar exam, Lev Ekster decided to drive the truck. Ekster is now running a business called CupcakeStop. Finishing up at New York Law School, Ekster established the company, acquired a professional cupcake baker and plans to sell between 1,200 and 1,500 cupcakes a day at $2.50 a pop for full-sized cupcakes.

Here's how it works. CupcakeStop runs promotions like mini-cupcake giveaways, then Tweets the CupCake Stop truck location to followers on Twitter.

More on this story.

Summer Asociate Pro Bono Training: Business and Corporations (Free event)

Wednesday, June 10 / 3:00 - 5:00 p.m.

Join Summer Associates from major law firms around the greater Los Angeles area for the Third Annual Summer Associate Pro Bono Training Program (Corporate Edition).

Attendees will get an overview of tax exempt organizations and the basics of forming and advising nonprofit organizations, as well as opportunities to get involved in transactional pro bono representation.

Topics:
- Overview of tax exempt organizations
- Basic steps to for a tax-exempt nonprofit public benefit corporation in California
- How to apply for Federal and California tax-exempt status
- Opportunities to get involved in transactional pro bono work this summer

THIS EVENT IS FREE
ADVANCE REGISTRATION IS MANDATORY

Register by email: amy.friedman@skadden.com
Register by phone: 213.687.5605
Space is limited

Parking: Valet at Omni Hotel - $12

SPECIAL OFFER
All law student attendees of this event will have the opportunity to receive complimentary 2009 LACBA Law Student membership and complimentary 2009 membership in the LACBA Business & Corporations Section.

Event sponsored by the Los Angeles County Bar Association Business & Corporations Section, Skadden and Public Counsel.

Video of the Week: The LA Legal Market and How to Find a Job in the Midst of an Economic Downturn

On April 29, LACBA produced a very well attended program called The L.A. Legal Market: How to Find a Job in the Midst of an Economic Downturn. The program was video taped and is now available to view online.

The program was created by the LACBA Barristers, the young lawyers division of LACBA.

LexisNexis Offers Free Access to Deferred Graduates

Did your post-graduate offer happen to get deferred? If so, LexisNexis, the online legal research giant, is stepping up to the plate. To respond to the growing trend of associate deferrals, Lexis announced its ASPIRE program (Associates Serving Public Interest Research), which provides complimentary access to LexisNexis services to 2009 law school graduates who received a first year associate offer, were deferred, and who are working for nonprofit or public interest companies during the interim. ASPIRE details and registration.

Latham / Orrick Offer $75K to New Associates for Taking the Year Off

Latham & Watkins, after firing 190 lawyers and 250 staff recently is pushing back the start date for incoming lawyers from Oct. 18 to mid-December. Here, compensation is being offered to those who wait one year to start work. Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe (based in northern California) is also offering $75k to incoming lawyers who begin in the fall of 2010. That's a little less than half of what new associates at Latham and Orrick can expect out of the gate.

According to a The City Paper article, a managing partner at Latham explained that it is hoped that new attorneys who participate in this program pursue volunteer and community service work in the meanwhile.