Taft or Concord Law School

[sollicitus]

Taft is DETC accredited, which (while not regional) is better than nothing - some of the online schools have no legitimate accreditation.  I work for state government, in my experience the precedence for consideration for those legal positions which do not require admittance to the bar is as follows:

1) B&M ABA accredited law degree and bar passage.
2) B&M accredited (not ABA) law degree and bar passage
3) B&M ABA accredited law degree without bar
4) Online accredited (not ABA) law degree and bar passage
5) B&M accredited (not ABA) law degree without bar
6) Online accredited (not ABA) law degree without bar
7) Any law degree without any accreditation and without bar (generally not even recognized)

For positions requiring admittance to the bar (assuming otherwise bar eligible):

1) B&M ABA accredited law degree and bar passage.
2) B&M accredited (not ABA) law degree and bar passage
3) Online accredited (not ABA) law degree and bar passage

Education not acceptable for positions requiring admittance to the bar (even if otherwise bar eligible):

1) B&M ABA accredited law degree without bar
2) B&M accredited (not ABA) law degree without bar
3) Online accredited (not ABA) law degree without bar
4) Any law degree without any accreditation, either with or without bar

This just reflects my experience and talking to other working professionals in state government who have knowledge in this area – YMMV.  Good luck in whatever you do.

which govt positions for which agency do these apply? That info would save the OP a lot of guessing since the govt is a huge umbrella.

[jonlevy]

Either one is fine if you want a California law license.  Taft traditionally gives low grades, I graduated with something like a 2.79 and passed the bar on the first go.  Your odds of actually getting through such a program are about 10-1 against though.  The Feds or State will not likely hire you though you can likely work as contract Public defender. As for getting jobs, be ready to fly solo unless you have relatives in the business.  If it is geographically possible to attend an ABA or non ABA state accredited law school, do so instead.

[calgal27]

Hi.  Taft has an online interview.  However, I do not think they turn anyone away.  The biggest reqirement to get into law school is the LSAT.  That is not required at Taft so as long as you have the credentials they want, they will take you.   I attended Taft in 2008, I think. 

[sollicitus]

people often mention the lack of an lsat as a perk to a non-aba school. I fail to see why or how. It is not a flesh eating monster (no worse than any other exam) and if you can't get a passing score on it, you should realize that those 9/10 that Jon mentioned will be you. (truth)

[sollicitus]

Most government legal jobs will probably not consider graduates of either school. I recently worked a government law office in California and all of the recent hires were either former interns from ABA schools or experienced attorneys from ABA schools. Hiring is so competitive right now that government offices have the luxury of being very picky.

If a Taft or Concord grad passed the baby bar, passed the bar, worked solo for, say, five years and built up lots of good trial and transactional experience, then applied to government job . . . well, maybe. Still a longshot. I would contact each school and ask how many graduates are working in government.

I don't know where the OP is located, but many ABA and all CBE school offer part-time programs for students who work full time. I started law school in my early thirties with a family, a mortgage, the works. I'll graduate from an ABA part-time program in a few weeks. It is a grind, but it can be done!

all that for a govt job? No.

If you have 5 years experience as a solo practioner and havn't had to eat your own shoes for sustenance at that point, then why would any sane person close shop and go work for a govt job? That wouldn't make any sense in reality since the first 5 years are where you go into debt building the thing. That would be like making all your mortgage payments just to burn your house to roast marshmellows on. No sane person would start out day one with that as their game plan. 

[passaroa25]

The five year game plan is, in actuality, what some state bar agencies require before they will allow a JD grad of an online school to even take their  exam.

Don't knock government jobs.  Most federal agencies require some pretty hefty credentials.

[Maintain FL 350]

People leave private practice for the public sector all the time. Fewer hours, good benefits, predictable pay increases, a pension (possibly), no office rent, no secretary/paralegal to pay, no bar dues, no need to carry malpractice insurance, and no Westlaw/Lexis subscription are just a few of the reasons.

Depending on the particular government agency the salary may not be too bad, either. At most DA/PD offices in my area starting pay is $65-70K, reaching about $100k within five or six years.

Minus all the overhead I just mentioned, can the average solo practitioner really expect to make much more?

[Paramedic]

I've worked at a two California state agencies (SCIF and CDCR). SCIF hired CBE's and CDCR had so many openings that many of those positions went unstaffed.

[Maintain FL 350]

I'm not familiar with SCIF or CDCR, what agencies are those?

Certainly there is competitive variation among government agencies when it comes to hiring. A position with the Attorney General's office in San Francisco is going to be more competitive than a job with an unknown agency in a small town, for example. Nonetheless, recent law grads are struggling to find work right now. Any work.

My local PD's office recently had eight positions to fill. They received something like 300+ applications. When I recently interned a government agency we actually had "Volunteer Attorneys" who had passed the bar and were working for free hoping that a position would open up.   

[sollicitus]

The five year game plan is, in actuality, what some state bar agencies require before they will allow a JD grad of an online school to even take their  exam.

Don't knock government jobs.  Most federal agencies require some pretty hefty credentials.

She says to the veteran......

Hard dosn't make better. (common mistake)
As for the 5year that is to transfer. It is a weeding out process. It is a floor not a ceiling.