Employment Hours Limit in Law School

Main Menu

Home

Law School Finder

Articles

Popular Articles Pre-law Prep: Getting a head start for 1Ls Your First Year of Law School Have you been rejected from law school? Love and Marriage while in Law School Recovering from a Low GPA in Law School How To Obtain A Summer Legal Internship The Law Student Checklist	Latest Articles Calculation of GPA by LSDAS Dimitris Lambrou, the Proud Lesbian Man Applying to Law School: Quick Guide Seven Years of Law School. Seriously. Britney Lacks Necessary Mental Element The Law Student Checklist Not to become a lawyer, but to get a law degree?

Employment Hours Limit in Law School

Written by Daryn Pelfry

Sunday, 11 May 2008 11:55

20 Hour Work Limit A very common question among new law students is determining how many hours they are permitted to work while in law school.

Many students who have gone from working full-time to law school may have to make an adjustment if they plan to enroll in more than twelve class hours.

If you go to a law school accredited by the ABA, the ABA says:

"student may not be employed more than 20 hours per week in any week in which the student is enrolled in more than twelve class hours." (Standard 304 from ABA)

Each law school must enforce this rule themselves by having the student commit to this and other rules.

Keep in mind that some law schools restrict this limit even more or prohibit working entirely in the first semester or two. Either way, most will tell you that working your first year at all may effect your performance adversely.

Next >

Comments (9)

Bye-bye steady income, hello debt!

I worked my first semester and I have always regret it. I managed to pull average grades but it was hard to recover since. Get used the adjustment before thinking about working.

I entirely agree with the rule, but it can be hard if you go to a school in a pricy area, like San Diego, without working. For next year, I plan to take it easy on my current job with 10 hours a week, which I think will be reasonable for my first semester.

So, what about legal internships? I thought you were encouraged to do that stuff, or is that not until your second year?

LawSloth: don't do it. I understand that some places are expensive, but I would suggest taking out loans. My first semester was the hardest thing I've ever done. I would NOT suggest adding work to it. You won't have the time. And when it comes time for all your legal writing papers to be turned in, you'll be kicking yourself for thinking you could work and go to law school, no matter how few the hours might be. Trust me.

LawSloth, I would agree with Nicole. Your student loans, both public and private can cover your expenses, even in San Diego. Each school adjusts their financing budget to living expenses.

Edgar, the short answer and maybe someone else can give you a more developed answer is that your first legal internship should be in the summer after your first year. Some do choose to clerk throughout their second and/or third year. Hope that helps.

It looks like it has already been said, but I would definitely agree with everyone about not working your first semester let alone your first year. We'll have plenty of time to work.

I'm not sure if I agree with everyone on this thread. I worked during this whole year (I just finished my fist year) and I did pretty well my first semester and I think I did better this semester. If you are used to managing your time to the minute, than that is all law school is about. I think if you treat law school like a full-time job and any hours you work, realize you are adding it on to a full-time job... if you can do that, you will be fine, otherwise your grades will suffer.

What's the punishment generally for breaking this rule if one is found out? Expulsion? Or is this a prohibition without a real sanction?

Add your comment

Your name:
Your email:
Comment (you may use HTML tags here):

Word verification:

yvComment v.1.16.0

Login

Annoucements

The Law School Finder is still awaiting an update of statistics directly from the ABA. Please stay tuned.

Latest Comments

INFORMATION HEREIN IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE. The opinions expressed in this web site represent only the opinions of the author(s) and are in no way intended as legal advice upon which you should rely. Every person's situation is different and requires an attorney to review the situation personally with you. NO ATTORNEY-CLIENT RELATIONSHIP CREATED. This web site does not create an attorney-client relationship. Do no rely on any information on this site as it may be outdated or innaccurate.

Contact Admin | Link Directory | Submit Link | Search