March 30, 2009
Alternative Career Guest Blogger
Periodically throughout the year the CSO posts blog entries from guest bloggers about various topics. Please note that the views expressed by our guest bloggers are the personal opinion of each blogger and are not necessarily the views and opinions of the CSO. The CSO guest blogger entires are intended as an opportunity for attorneys currently practicing in the legal field to share their insight and advice with law students.
Our guest blogger for the month of March is Alan Yanowitz, JD, (class of 1985). Mr. Yanowitz is a Partner at Cedar Brook Financial Partners, LLC. You can find his biography and more information about Cedar Brook Financial Partners here. In his blog, Mr. Yanowitz shares his non-traditional career path experience.
"Law school is a journey. Like all great journeys in life, it’s begun with a destination in mind. However, as you travel on this journey, you may find that there are multiple destinations which appear. Some of these destinations are ones which you never could have imagined at the beginning of the journey. In law school my focus was in the areas of taxation, corporate, and real estate law. Upon graduation my goal was to work at a small law firm which focused on these areas and I “fished my wish.” I worked at a boutique law firm where my practice focused on all areas of taxation, transactional law and estate planning. It appeared I reached my destination.
However, after a few years I realized I was not enjoying the practice of law. In addition, I didn’t want my income tied to a formula based on billable hours. I embarked on finding a new career. I set new parameters for my search which was designed to take me to the new destination. At the time I didn’t know where it would lead. I did know I wanted to use my legal skills and education, as well as the attributes of being a lawyer that I enjoyed. I enjoyed working with clients and helping them solve problems.
I considered a number of non-legal careers, but ultimately focused on two areas. One was real estate. The second was financial planning. Ultimately I chose financial planning. I am self employed, yet am in a firm with over 40 other planners. Financial planning lets me interact with clients on a daily basis. My practice helps them focus on reaching their personal and financial goals. I draw on my legal education to help them with estate planning and charitable planning issues. I use my research skills to help develop successful strategies. I am also a resource to others in my firm in estate planning as well as the occasion tax or other legal question. My compensation is no longer tied to a billable hour formula. It’s based on fees charge for my services as well as commissions and money management fees. My clients truly appreciate the work I do for them.
My law school journey led me to becoming a practicing lawyer for less than 4 years. I have now been a financial planner for more than 18 years. As a law student I never would have expected the journey to lead me here. Any yet, now I can’t think of a better destination."
Posted by cld30 at 09:21 AM
March 19, 2009
Alternative Careers Panel
Are you interested in learning for about opportunities for JDs outside the traditional practice of law? Join the CSO and four guest speakers on Wednesday, March 25, at noon to talk about other career paths.
Frank Ford, Sr. Vice President for Research and Development at Neighborhood Progress, Inc.
Alan Gross, Vice President at the Jewish Community Federation and Director of Endowment Development
Shana Marbury, General Counsel & Manager, Inclusion Initiatives at Greater Cleveland Partnership
Andrew Plumb-Larrick, Assoc. Director for Public Services at the CWRU Law Library
The panel will take place in room 157.
Posted by kcc17 at 02:33 PM
November 16, 2007
Alternative Legal Career: The Congressional Research Service
Are you interested in a job that requires you to use your legal research and writing skills on a daily basis, but does not necessarily involve active legal practice every day? Do you have an interest in politics, government, and working in Washington, DC? You might want to think about opportunities available at the Congressional Research Service (“CRS”).
Housed within the Library of Congress, the CRS provides nonpartisan analysis and research on legislative issues for Congressional members and staff. The Director of the CRS is appointed by the Librarian of Congress with the consent of the Joint Committee on the Library and the CRS employs attorneys to act as experts in specific areas of the law and to answer any and all questions that arise about legislative proposals. On a day-to-day basis, attorneys at the CRS may be meeting with Congressional members and staff, researching complex legal issues, or writing reports and memoranda. For more detail about the CRS, go to: http://www.loc.gov/crsinfo/whatscrs.html#about
Both paid and unpaid summer internships are available at the CRS for 1Ls and 2Ls. Information about paid intern hiring is available at: http://www.loc.gov/crsinfo/internships/volunteer. Information about volunteer internships is available at: http://www.loc.gov/crsinfo/volunteer/ .
The CRS also has a hiring program specific to third year law students – the Law Recruit Program. Through this competitive hiring program, law students can obtain permanent employment with the American Law Division at the CRS. Recruitment, application, and salary information can be found at: http://www.loc.gov/crsinfo/lawrecruit.html.
And if the work of the CRS sounds interesting to you, but Washington, DC, is not where you want to be, consider doing similar work at the state level – many state legislatures have a similar research arm, where attorneys conduct research, draft bills, and interact with state legislators dealing with state legislative issues.
Posted by kcc17 at 09:32 AM
October 29, 2007
Interested in Politics? Lobbying?
Have you ever thought about the possibility of a career in politics? Does a career as a lobbyist pique your interest? If so, you'll want to check out the new Politics & Lobbying binder in the CSO. We've gathered plenty of useful information for anyone slightly interested in what a career in politics or lobbying is all about. The binder includes information on various political and lobbying organizations, internet resources and website information for your job search, a sampling of some opportunities available in politics and lobbying, relevant articles, and much more! Please make an appointment to speak with a CSO counselor for additional information on careers in politics and lobbying.
Posted by cld30 at 01:38 PM
February 20, 2007
Alternative Careers Panel
Don't miss this opportunity to hear licensed attorneys discuss their alternative career paths. Listen as our speakers discuss their work and the types of things you can be doing if you are interested in pursuing alternative careers. Speakers will represent such alternative careers as planned giving and fundraising, the FBI, higher education administration, diversity initiatives and more!
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Room A57, 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Please feel free to bring your lunch to this session
Posted by kcc17 at 04:58 PM
October 19, 2006
Not sure if you want to practice?: Alternative Careers
For those of you not interested in practicing law following graduation, there are numerous options for you to consider. Whether you actively practice law following graduation, or decide to utilize the skills acquired while in school for another purpose, there are numerous careers and opportunities for those with a law degree. In fact, by examining the possibility of following a different career path than most, you may find yourself in a job that better suits your skills and interests.
Many of the skills you are learning in law school (analytical skills, advocacy, writing, research, counseling etc) are applicable to different careers and industries. While there are some unique challenges that you must be aware of before you pursue an alternative career, being prepared before commencing a job search is the best way to anticipate any potential hurdles and utilize them to your advantage.
The CSO has numerous resources which focus on Alternative Careers and if this is something that interests you or if you have any questions about alternative careers, please speak with someone here at the CSO!
Posted by naa3 at 03:40 PM
October 10, 2006
Interested in Exploring Alternative Career Paths? Take Advantage of Our Self-Assessment Tools!
If you are wondering how exactly you want to use your law degree after you graduate from Case, you may want to start by utilizing some self-assessment tools.
As a law student you have access to two personality type indicators. The first is the Kiersey Temperament Sorter-II (KTS-II) that can be taken free on-line http://www.advisorteam.com/temperament_sorter/register.asp. In addition, we administer the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) by appointment in the Career Services Office.
Once you know your personality type, we have an excellent resource called "Do What You Are" by Paul Tieger & Barbara Barron-Tieger. This book can help you identify career choices that may be especially interesting to you.
Posted by asa13 at 02:05 PM