Non-ABA versus ABA

[JDGuy86]

There are only two reasons I could think anyone would consider a non-aba school:

- the applicant 100% intends on staying in that state for good
- the applicant doesn't intend to actually practice law, but to use the non-aba degree in a related field

In such cases, the financial savings could be worth it. However, the lower reputation of non-aba schools school strongly acknowledged.

[profejordan]

First, go read http://www.ncbex.org/fileadmin/mediafiles/downloads/Comp_Guide/CompGuide_2010.pdf   carefully and compare it carefully to the 2005 or 2000 version and you will see substantial liberalizations that will continue.

Second, hear me out this i fear shall be long but my purpose is to help...

I do not disagree with that posted following my last post, nor does it seem authors of those posts disagree with mine. To clarify, I came here because it was introduced to me by my students who were understandably confused by all that is on the internet about aba v non aba v state accredited v non state v on-line v correspondence v regional and detc accredited  ..... blah blah blah.  I am all accredited
Ph.D., J.D., M.A., M.P.A......(not bragging or chest thumping) life long learner and have worked all over the map geographically (domestically and internationally) and professionally (private and public) in education, law and business.....let's just say I get bored (and don't begrudge me typos and run ons, I know, get over it, on the fly here) (clarify, only licensed in California, but it is BM ABA but i would probably on line it today, but it was not around in my day, but then JD is not all I have, already had Ph.D. and employment etc....anyway... in one day I might be tag teaming a deposition with a short handed lawyer friend who must be in court while drafting a pleading and doing case research on a lap top, i make loads doing research for others, but then thats what a Ph.D. is, I do go by Dr.  but because of Ph.D. not J.D., don't confuse the difference please, sorry ego gets the best of me on that, anyway..... not much to do in a depo than sit and listen and object, not because the objection will matter, but because you want it on record and want to remind the client to stick to the script even if they are being asked the same bloody question for the tenth time, by night teaching pre law, cj  or poli sci students (not every night but i do adjunct for fun), and in between doing my part on a real estate deal in Dan Cheng, China all the while trying to schedule when I will do an in service training for local law enforcement on proper report writing so that cases stopped getting kicked because of bad writing and so on....and telling my assistant yes i will drop in and proof and sign off on whatever template thing she has filled out per my instruction such as standard will or maybe new llc and yes i remember i got a 4:30 for a divorce case and a 5 for a dui. btw a real day...again no bragging. So no I am not a hard core practicing attorney in the litigation sense, I am a business man....and a i make money because i am pretty good at what i do.  and thats the point i want to make here, there are loads of good lawyers, heck great lawyers out there who are making way less money than they should because they have no business plan. 

So my advice here, decide what you want to do, and set forth a real business plan and implement it. Bottom line, no matter who you work for, your owe one man/woman show or huge firm or corporation or university or government or whatever....in the end you work for yourself and family at the pleasure of whomever is willing to pay you for your time, skill, knowledge, ability, experience etc. Truth be told, most of my money has been made as an office manager for smallish law firms that want to grow but have no clue how to run a business.  And that my young friends who want answers to the confusing wold out there is the bottom line, whether a lawyer, doctor, accountant, realtor, insurance agent, even teacher or contractor  and on and on. the objective its, acquire the very best education/training that YOU, not others, but YOU are able to acquire given your life circumstance, set your business plan in motion and pursue it.  If  portability is important then maybe ABA is the way to go, but look at above link, maybe where you want to port to is already covered by some years of experience etc.  just remember, the best lawyers realize that they ain't worth a hill of beans there first several years after bar passage.  What you need is a seasoned lawyer that will take you under their wing and teach you the ways of locality and beyond.  whether that is big firm or one man show, to be sure you will feel abused and underpaid but with the right mentor you will reap the reward and with the wrong mentor you will be ridden hard and put away wet.  So go get that license and then pick your mentor well,  i'll give you a hint, lots of us oldies out there who earned our stripes and are ready to pass them on to an appreciative go getter regardless of pedigree so long as you got the license that says it wont be for not, and even if you dont got the license we will try to help you get it be it ivy league or on line, just make us believe.....cheers to all, not likey to return Holiday over and back to work I go.  but may check in for a specific question from time to time.

[MikePing]

If you want to live and practice anywhere other than CA, you need to go to ABA school.  If there is no shot in hell at an ABA school, you can go to on unaccredited school.  But, you will have to spend at least 3-5 years in CA practicing before you can even take a bar exam in a different state.  Non-ABA can't usually waive into different jurisdictions even if they have experience.  Check out http://www.law-schoolcoach.com/Considering-Law-School/Choosing-Law-Schools.htm

[like_lasagna]

and suddenly you are a serious international and domestic tax and business attorney that can pretty much practice anywhere in the world.

No, you aren't.

[nealric]

No desire to be long winded here. Simply put, pass the California Bar say through famous on liner Concord or other many non-ABA california schools or Alabama or elsewhere, get your fully ABA accredited LLM on-line from Thomas Jefferson or other BM school and suddenly you are a serious international and domestic tax and business attorney that can pretty much practice anywhere in the world. 

I am a tax attorney at a large law firm, and I have never ever come across another tax lawyer who did not go to an ABA school. It may be theoretically possible, but it's highly unlikely. 

[FalconJimmy]

I am a tax attorney at a large law firm, and I have never ever come across another tax lawyer who did not go to an ABA school. It may be theoretically possible, but it's highly unlikely.

Don't you think you're being a little unfair, interjecting real-world experience and commonsense reality into this discussion?

[amyis]

I'm not sure if it's a faux-pas to post on someone else's thread, but I was wondering if one of you could check out my post. I have a similar question, only a bit more specific about non-ABAs.
Thanks!