Am I crazy to consider law school in my mid-50s?

[Anonymous]

Sure, a law degree lets you do anything. So says every law school admissions office in America.

Well, except fly a plane, perform surgery, drive a truck, extract a tooth, and all the zillion other things it doesn't let you do.

[Anonymous]

What outcome do you want from attending law school?

[Anonymous]

Do it. You will be working into your 70's regardless. Yes, it will cost a considerable sum. My advice- attend the best law school that admits you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do it. You will be working into your 70's regardless. Yes, it will cost a considerable sum. My advice- attend the best law school that admits you.

It doesn't sound like op is rolling in money. Paying for law school, then facing age discrimination for employment could really impact op's quality of life in retirement.

[Anonymous]

You're wasting a spot. You won't actually do anything with the degree; this is not a whimsical degree or just a brag point for a cocktail party. Don't take a spot away from someone who actually needs it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The age discrimination you mention is going to be a huge problem for you, particularly when combined with zero legal experience. I know people in their 60s with decades of legal work experience behind them who have struggled to find new jobs at that stage.

Ya, that's what I figured. It's impossible to find work in my own field, in my 50s, and with loads of (old) experience.

OTOH, I know a man in his 60s who's in med school. Crazy too, but he did it. And he's in a good med school. They took a chance on him.

I just finished a graduate degree at 59, but it was in a field that complements what I was already doing and adds in-demand skills sets. OP, I wouldn't trade the experience for anything, but I was able to literally get the degree for nothing through in-state tuition, tax breaks, and going on the school's health care, which was $1,000/month less than ObamaCare. There are people who take the CPA exam or go to law school in their 60s and 70s, but they have a clear plan of what they want to do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks, PPs. I do not have a pile of money to burn. I don't need to make a lot of money, but I do need to have something to do for the next 15 years or so. I don't want to get a degree, then do nothing but volunteer work either.

Feeling stuck right now. Mid-50s SAHM is not a good place to be when trying to go back to work. I've always been interested in law. When I was young, people told me to "follow your bliss." I didn't listen then.

Bucket list? Not really. Just thought it would be interesting and maybe I could work for a few years at a low-paying but somewhat interesting job. Pipe dream?

Learn to code and do web/ IT stuff. You can do this for free/ minimum up front cost compared to the $100,000 you'll shell out for law school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You know what’s worse than being a mid-50’s SAHM? An almost 60 year old law school grad trying to find their first legal job.

Ha. I'm an early/mid 50's SAHM who has been out of the workforce for 18 years and the above was the first thing I thought when I read the Op.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't advise it OP. You won't be able to find employment and you'll find yourself $250K in the hole.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m a litigation attorney at a small firm and definitely agree you should go the paralegal route. But make sure you’re serious. No one wants to hire you to pursue your hobby. You need to be committed to working in the job and accepting that if you are the paralegal then you aren’t the lawyer. Some people can have an inferiority complex about that, which is silly because a talented paralegal is worth their weight in gold.

Hm. I am not the OP, but also looking for a change. I worry that if I were in the position of being a good paralegal, I wouldn't have an "inferiority complex", but might be resentful if I felt I were doing the lion's share of the attorney's work, while he got the lion's share of the money.
When you have a talented paralegal, do you feel that his/her compensation reflects his/her weight in gold?

[Anonymous]

How is it that the last response on here is mine, from yesterday afternoon, and this thread is still on top?
C'mon, over-fifty friends, pick up the pace!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a litigation attorney at a small firm and definitely agree you should go the paralegal route. But make sure you’re serious. No one wants to hire you to pursue your hobby. You need to be committed to working in the job and accepting that if you are the paralegal then you aren’t the lawyer. Some people can have an inferiority complex about that, which is silly because a talented paralegal is worth their weight in gold.

Hm. I am not the OP, but also looking for a change. I worry that if I were in the position of being a good paralegal, I wouldn't have an "inferiority complex", but might be resentful if I felt I were doing the lion's share of the attorney's work, while he got the lion's share of the money.
When you have a talented paralegal, do you feel that his/her compensation reflects his/her weight in gold?

This comment reflects your lack of knowledge of the law. No paralegal EVER did "the lion's share of the attorney's work."

[Anonymous]

taketothebank wrote:This is interesting.

I am a CPA and work for one of the multinational CPA firms. I will need to retire soon and should have plenty of money. I was thinking about law school because we (my firm) has always farmed out legal side of the tax work.

If I could practice law, I could do end to end tax work (which I cannot do now.) It would be much easier to go "in house" and work for a client or work for a smaller firm after leaving here.

Just not sure if anyone else has every done this.

This is an entirely different situation than OP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a litigation attorney at a small firm and definitely agree you should go the paralegal route. But make sure you’re serious. No one wants to hire you to pursue your hobby. You need to be committed to working in the job and accepting that if you are the paralegal then you aren’t the lawyer. Some people can have an inferiority complex about that, which is silly because a talented paralegal is worth their weight in gold.

Hm. I am not the OP, but also looking for a change. I worry that if I were in the position of being a good paralegal, I wouldn't have an "inferiority complex", but might be resentful if I felt I were doing the lion's share of the attorney's work, while he got the lion's share of the money.
When you have a talented paralegal, do you feel that his/her compensation reflects his/her weight in gold?

When I worked at a smaller firm, the talented paralegals were paid more than the new associates and the paralegals literally walked on water. They made 6 figures (and this was in the Midwest too). This was in patent law though, and it took them years to develop the skill set they had-it’s a hard area of the law to learn all the intricacies and they would have been almost impossible to replace.

[Anonymous]

and the paralegals literally walked on water.

Do you know what literally means?

OP you have gotten some good advice. Consider why "the law" interests you. Do you need a certain amount of money? Do you have any job prospects at all right now?