There’s no shortage of lawyers in the United States. The American Bar Association reports that there were well over 1.3 million active lawyers in 2022. Not all lawyers seek to provide services for reasons other than to make a profit, like family lawyers.
If you aspire to practice family law, then you’re probably wondering just how to become a family lawyer. As it turns out, the process is relatively straightforward. Read on to learn everything you need to know about becoming a family attorney!
Get Your Undergraduate Degree
The first step toward becoming a lawyer involves obtaining your undergraduate degree. Law schools look at your record from undergrad, combined with your LSAT score, in order to determine whether you qualify for admission. For this reason, you want to be somewhat strategic in your undergraduate career.
Choose a major that you enjoy and in which you think you’ll be successful. Law schools are less concerned about your major than they are about your GPA. Since you know you want to practice family law, consider a major that relates to that area of law such as psychology or sociology.
Study for the LSAT
If you want to attend law school immediately after undergrad, then you need to take the LSAT during the summer before your final year of undergrad. Most law schools require the LSAT in order to consider you for admission, though some are doing away with the practice. Ideal scores tend to be over 170, though anything over 160 is a decent score.
Attend Law School
Everyone who wants to be a lawyer needs to attend law school, with very limited exceptions. Law school is expensive, which is why many applicants use strategy to choose which school they’ll attend.
Look for a school that offers you a generous scholarship, is a top-ranked school, or is located in the area you’d like to practice. Many prospective students utilize scholarship offers from one school in order to get a larger scholarship from a school they’d rather attend. Once you graduate and pass the bar, you’ll be cleared to practice family law!
Summer Clerkships and Clinics
Becoming a licensed attorney is one part of becoming a family attorney. You’ll also need experience in family law in order to get a job out of law school. Most of your experience comes from summer clerkships with law firms or judges and legal clinics at your law school.
Clerkships and clinics are an equal mix of paying your dues by labeling blank tab dividers on legal files and getting hands-on experience in the legal field. Many law students get job offers as a result of the work they do during their summer clerkships, so be sure to take advantage of them!
Learning How to Become a Family Lawyer Is the First Step
In a world full of people aspiring to become corporate lawyers, learning how to become a family lawyer is truly a noble career path. It’ll take a bit of time to get there, but you’re setting yourself up to make a huge positive impact in the lives of hundreds of people. Here’s to becoming a successful lawyer with an incredible career!
Are you on the hunt for more incredible career advice? You’ve come to the right place. Be sure to check out the rest of our blog for tons of cutting-edge career tips!
