Originally Posted by lwildernorva

If I were looking for a summary of exactly what the law is, a newly-graduated attorney might be the most accurate--for that moment in time and in a vacuum. Of course, most folks seeking legal advice are seeking a prediction of what will likely happen based on real-world facts. That's where a good, experienced lawyer of sound judgment can use his experience in a certain area of the law to make a reasonable prediction of how a court would resolve a question that might arise or how to take steps that would help the client avoid litigation in the first place. When I was in law school and now that I've been out for many years, I've realized that the quality of "sound judgment" is something that you bring with you to law school, and other than being refocused a bit through the lens of a legal education, it's unlikely that law school will enhance it. Look at the number of lawyers/law school graduates who end up doing things like tapping into their escrow funds (clearly delineated as a no-no) or even worse, participating in criminal enterprises.

There's hardly any shame in failing to pass the bar, by the way. Keep in mind that if you've gotten that far, you've generally been sure that if you just worked hard enough, you'd score fine, even on the standardized entrance exams for college and law school. I passed the bar on the first try, but I knew a lot of people who were smart and who worked really hard to prepare who failed the bar exam several times. When I took the bar exam in Virginia, the pass rate fluctuated between 65-75%, meaning that even in the best years, 1 out of 4 test takers didn't pass. Some of the bigger firms would keep a graduate who failed on for one or two more passes at the exam before letting them go, a pretty good indication that the profession understands just how hard it is.

All that being said, however, some of the posts Live and Let's Fly puts up regarding his willingness to take legal action based on his grievances show just what you'd expect given the circumstances: an understanding of the law at about the level of someone who went to law school with no sense of how any particular set of facts will play out in the real world.