Judge Hyman’s Corner : Focusing on a Career in Law
The Honorable Eugene Hyman is a retired Judge of the Superior Court of California for the County of Santa Clara, where for more than 20 years he presided over cases in the criminal, civil, probate, family, and delinquency divisions of the court. He spearheaded the creation of the Juvenile Delinquency Domestic and Family Violence Court in 1999, the first in the country dedicated exclusively to this social issue, and was awarded the United Nations Public Service Award for its success. Judge Hyman is a SCU Law alumni, and he currently teaches a Domestic Violence Minicourse at the law school.
Many students are looking for a job instead of a career, and this is a big mistake.
The law profession is much more competitive today than it was for me or your parents or grandparents. Today’s reality is that many qualified graduates vie for the same scarce opportunities in law, and practice areas are becoming increasingly specialized.
To meet these challenges, you’ll need to be informed, focused, and strategic. You’ll need to stand out from the crowd. Your quest should start on the first day of law school of your first year.
It is perfectly permissible not to know your intended practice area on day one of law school. So exactly how are you to figure this important exercise out?
Judges make decisions based upon the facts, evidence and the law. Likewise, every day of law school is an opportunity to obtain evidence for career decision made through attending classes, guest lectures, and Career Services events, and speaking with faculty, alumni, and classmates. All have perspectives that are helpful.
It helps to develop an idea of a practice area interest in order to chart a course of action. You need to define who you are and what you want to do, and only then can you familiarize yourself with the steps necessary to get there.
Consider and explore what might be considered a nontraditional practice of law. An example might be working for a member of local, county, state, or federal government either in policy or drafting legislation. Working in the corporate world and academia are other possibilities.
One of the first things you should do is to print 500 business cards containing your name, email address, and your intended date of graduation and degree. Phone number is optional. One of your goals should be to hand out these 500 cards to connections – usually attorneys who may be the source of direction toward employment or just really good advice.
It is also helpful to have a resume or a curriculum vitae. You never know when you might be asked to supply a resume and it is helpful if you can email it to a prospective employer right away. This document is of course a work in progress; people at Career Services can advise you how to put your best foot forward when you are just beginning to explore options.
Your professional reputation begins with law school. Safeguard your reputation. Set for yourself a high standard of ethical behavior – not just to protect your employment prospects but also because you never know where this journey takes you in life. A lapse in judgment may come back to haunt you. Exercise caution and discretion with what you post online. Don’t be caught in a “Michael Phelps” moment on social media. The public domain is just that, and permanently so.
Being arrested for driving while impaired, drunk in public, or simple drug possession will delay your opportunity to sit for the Bar and will make your potential employment pool a great deal smaller. It has happened here and at other law schools.
There are issues of “housekeeping” that must be addressed before moving forward. Ignore them and you may be inviting difficulty later which may delay your success.
Many of us come to law school with significant baggage. It might be because of physical or mental harm, or perhaps, we’ve had serious mental and physical challenges. In order to do well in school, as well as life, it is important that this baggage be dealt with. For some of us this will mean taking advantage of school counseling opportunities. For some of us, just acknowledging the challenge will be enough to set it aside and it will no longer be an obstacle affecting our success.
Being positive is crucial. Being negative will affect everything from grades to jobs and friendships. It is therefore important that you limit your contact with negative people who might bring you down and negatively affect your game.
You should also limit your exposure to country-western music. There is a limit to how many pickup trucks one can lose, dogs running away, or cheating hearts. Talk about depressing!
It is helpful to have professional goals and to update them frequently. Brian Tracy has done excellent work in this area and I recommend him for this. Review your goals several times a week. Science has shown that the subconscious mind works on problem-solving, especially while we sleep.
I also recommend Dale Carnegie’s books, first and foremost “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” He has also written a number of books about public speaking that are quite good.
(Editor's Note: This article was originally published in the December 2019 [Volume 50, Issue 2] version of The Advocate.)