Dive Brief:
- While law school applications have decreased significantly in recent years, mirroring employment trends, there are signs of hope for the industry.
- Law professor Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times that he sees promise in what could be the bottoming out of law school enrollment numbers, indicating a future growth trend.
- Employment and earnings numbers are up for law grads, and, while major law firms are being threatened by a shift toward in-house teams, Davidoff Solomon maintains lawyers are more necessary now than ever to fulfill compliance and regulation requirements.
Dive Insight:
The height of law school enrollment came in the middle of the Great Recession but disappointing employment reports and fear of significant student loan debt has scared prospective law students away since 2010. Not all JD holders become lawyers and many use their knowledge of the law to help govern or inform their work in other important ways. But it is valid for prospective students to question whether their law degree will be worth the cost, especially if they can’t find or don’t pursue jobs in high-paying firms. Davidoff Solomon is optimistic about the future of the field, but there are certainly droves of lawyers and educators who find more reason for pessimism.