The Third Year

On the third minute of the third hour of the third day God made the third year of law school. And God saw that it was good.

But then a heathen from the Northwestern part of the world looked upon the third year and banished it, or at least squeezed the three years into two. The Tribune spread the word across the land.

And the deacons of the faith, hearing of this horror, gaped in despair. "Irresponsible," cried one to the Tribune.

Perhaps the critics did not notice that the Northwestern heathen had actually added important content: Required courses in quantitative reasoning, covering accounting, finance and statistics, and teaching how to deliver legal services, including teaching teamwork, social networks, project management – all skills lawyers need.

Also, the program selects students with work experience for the program. This, plus the students' willingness to take on a more difficult task helps send a signal to future employers.

And even if the Northwestern heathen charges a full three years' tuition, the program reduces the effective cost of a legal education by enabling students to get a several-month head start on earning a lawyer's income.

So other voices could be heard in defense of the heathen. "Other schools are likely to follow," said GMU dean Dan Polsby to the Tribune. "I heartily endorse these changes. Well done, Northwestern!" cheered Gordon Smith.

Now some students will choose the traditional route, either because the two-year program is too hard, or because they don't want to miss the standard hiring cycle.

So this is simply an experiment.  Will it work?

"What about relying on the market to answer this question?" asks Bill Henderson.

Amen.

Comments

[save_the_rustbelt]

I will vote for the quantitative studies.

In one expert witness deposition I got into a battle with an attorney who used the words revenue and income as having the same meaning. He went psycho when I asked him to clarify his questions.

In another an attorney told me the concept of "opportunity costs" could not possibly exist because he had never heard of it. The next day when the depo resumed I gave him excerpts from three managerial accounting texts and three econ texts explaining the concept. He still refused to acknowledge the concept.

And a lawyer can be a "tax attorney" without ever having studied accounting!?!?