This course provides a comprehensive exploration of the business side of the legal profession, focusing on the dynamics of law firms, in-house legal departments, and various career paths within the legal industry. Through a variety of guest speaker interviews, substantive case studies and industry insights, students will gain a practical understanding of how law firms operate, how they generate revenue, what opportunities are available to students after a law firm stint and also expose them to career opportunities available to lawyers beyond the traditional roles. Topics will include the financial and organizational structures of law firms, the role of in-house counsel (both public and private), client relations, building a book of business, alternative legal service providers and how lawyers navigate professional and ethical challenges in a business context. By engaging directly with professionals from different legal sectors, students will gain firsthand knowledge of what it means to be a lawyer in the real world, and how to chart a successful career in an evolving legal marketplace.
This class will focus on practical simulations and discussions based on, or largely derived from, actual legal matters that current lawyers are experiencing today, and will expose students to the range of issues and challenges faced by lawyers in the real world. There will be a number of guest speakers to give students a sense of the profession in practice.
This class will provide a platform for students who want to understand the many drivers of the legal profession and what various career paths in law can look like. It will focus on how and when to make transitions in one’s career as well as the considerations behind taking such a step. This class is suitable for those wishing to work in many different types of legal roles and will survey a wide variety of working attorneys, focusing on practical examples of how to attain the positions one wants.
