July 16th, 2009 at 04:09pm Under Education Law
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July 16th, 2009 at 10:09am Under Education Law
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary the definition of
accreditation is “to recognize (an educational institution) as
maintaining standards that qualify the graduates for admission
to higher or more specialized institutions or for professional
practice.” Law schools generally fall into three catagories of
accreditation, American Bar Association (ABA) accredited, state
accredited or unaccredited.
ABA accreditation – According to the American Bar
Association, “Law schools approved by the American Bar
Association (ABA) provide a legal education which meets a
minimum set of standards as promulgated by the ABA. Every
jurisdiction in the United States has determined that graduates
of ABA-approved law schools are able to sit for the bar in their
respective jurisdictions. The role that the ABA plays as the
national accrediting body has enabled accreditation to become
unified and national in scope rather than fragmented, with the
potential for inconsistency, among the 50 states, the District
of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and other
territories. The Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education
and Admissions to the Bar is the United States Department of
Education recognized accrediting agency for programs that lead
to the first professional degree in law. The law school approval
process established by the Council is designed to provide a
careful and comprehensive evaluation of a law school and its
compliance with the Standards for Approval of Law Schools.”
State accreditation – Most states have their own
accreditation process and in most cases give accreditation
status to ABA accredited schools. However, there are many law
schools that for one reason or another do not meet all of the
ABA accredition requirements. Some of these schools, however, do
meet the states requirements. Note: State requirements can vary
by state. If a school meets state requirements it can apply to
that state for state accreditation.
Unaccredited – According to the California Bar
Association “An unaccredited law school is one operating as a
law school in the State of California that is neither accredited
nor approved by the Committee, but must be registered with the
Committee and comply with the requirements contained in Rules
XIX and XX of the Admission Rules, applicable provisions of the
California Rules of Court and relevant sections of the
California Business and Professions Code. A law school operating
wholly outside of California is unaccredited unless it has
applied for and received accreditation from the Committee or is
provisionally or fully approved by the American Bar
Association.” Rules in many other states are the same.
Most states require that you meet certain requirements
prior to being eligible to take their bar examination. The
California Bar states “To be eligible to take the California Bar
Examination, one must have completed at least two years of
college before beginning the study of law or must have passed
certain specified College Level Equivalency Program examinations
before beginning law study and must have graduated from a law
school approved by the American Bar Association or accredited by
the Committee of Bar Examiners of The State Bar of California or
have completed four years of law study at an unaccredited or
correspondence law school registered with the Committee or
studied law in a law office or judge’s chambers in accordance
with the Rules Regulating Admission to Practice Law in
California.” Most states have similar requirements.
The foregoing suggests that many states will not allow,
non ABA accredited out of state law school graduates to take
their bar examination, unless they attended school in that state
or a school that is certified by that state. Therefore students
graduating from non ABA accredited law schools may not be
allowed to practice in any state other than the state they
attended school. Note: Some states have reciprocal agreements
with other states allowing attorneys registered in one state to
become a member of the bar in another state without taking a bar
examination in the new state.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, there are many fine law
schools in this country that are not ABA accredited.
Additionally, many ABA accredited schools do not offer night
time or part time classes. Finally, there are many more
applicants that spaces available in ABA accredited schools,
forcing many good students to attend other schools. Therefore,
accreditation should not be your only criteria in choosing a law
school or in deceiding whether or not to hire a particular law
school graduate.
Permission is given to reprint this article providing credit is
given to the author, David G. Hallstrom, and a link is listed to
Resources For
Attorneys the owner of this article. Anyone or any company
reprinting this article without giving proper credit and the
correct link, is doing so without permission
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July 16th, 2009 at 04:09am Under Education Law
The most important point to keep in mind before beginning to home school your child is to find out various home schooling socializations and homeschooling laws. This is the legal aspect of homeschooling your child and it can not be neglected. Parents who have taken these laws lightly have landed in jails. Therefore it becomes very essential to realize the importance of these laws for your child’s bright and safe future. To avoid confusion of finding these laws, please consult an expert for the legal procedure of homeschooling your child.
Do these Homeschooling Laws differ from place to place?
The homeschooling laws are more or less similar every where, but there can be dissimilar feature depending upon state to state.
The first step is to apply to the state’s department of education to ask for all the information you require to the degree that the requirements, rules and regulations are fulfilled when it comes to home schooling your child. Also ask for local resources that can lend a hand to you to work contained by the home schooling laws.
These home schooling laws make your child’s education quality and acknowledged. As a rule, the only way to pursue all home schooling laws put into place by a State is to get registered as a private school. On the occasion this task is completed, you are liberated to try out in the ways you have an inclination to instruct your child.
What are the penalties of not following the Homeschooling Laws?
Not getting registered as a private school can create problems in your way. You can be panelized heavily under the State’s homeschooling laws. These penalties may include heavy fines or legal orders to put your child’s name down in some public school. In some sever cases parents can even be sent to the jail.
How can you benefit from these Homeschooling Laws?
Many home schooling support groups and socialization circles are formed that support homeschooling by parents. Loads of parents discover that participating in a homeschooling support group has helped to remain alive and thriving in imparting quality education to their child. It also provides companionship among many home schooling parents, and provides a standard for introducing your children to new friends. This gives children an opportunity to gain knowledge of team spirit and outgoingness. Also, this can give you guidance to go about your child’s education. This kind of home school socializing has helped the parents to learn these homeschooling laws in a better manner. Also be updated with your department of education as this gives you the perfect idea of any change law or any new course structure. These homeschooling laws are not always there to create trouble for you.
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July 15th, 2009 at 10:09pm Under Education Law
Although I understand that this can be very difficult to do, you must view the popular published law school rankings, skeptically. These rankings are not only untrustworthy, but mislead students into thinking they need to attend a highly ranked school or they will be second rate lawyers do to their “substandard” law school education. This is simply not true.
What is true, in my opinion unfortunately, is that going to a highly ranked law school can have an enormous financial (note: NOT educational) impact on your early legal career. That is why I wrote Covert Tactics for Getting Into the Law School of Your Choice. As I explain in that book, however, even if you do not attend a highly ranked law school, you are not absolutely doomed to suffer professionally and financially for the rest of your life. Indeed, many times you may be well-served, both educationally and financially, by attending a lower ranked law school.
But back to law school rankings. In addition to a number of studies suggesting that the data underlying the rankings is inaccurate, due to schools trying to misrepresent the true data in order to achieve a higher ranking, it is impossible for any ranking to consider all of the relevant factors, which may vary from individual to individual.
Also problematic is the fact that most of the ranking are based, at least in part, on the subjective opinions of individuals at the various schools. Of course, such subjective opinions are likely to simply reinforce the historical opinions regarding the “top tier” law schools. Indeed, if you look at these rankings historically, you will find that they really haven’t changed much over the years.
The reason that it is important that you understand the invalidity of the rankings is that you should understand that the quality of your legal education is likely to be nearly as good, and in some respects may be better, at the University of Idaho as opposed to Harvard.
Depending on who you are, you may be much better off, for a variety of reasons, attending even a very low ranked school. This may be the case even if you have the opportunity to attend a higher-ranked school.
For example, if your intent is to establish a small town practice in rural South Dakota immediately after law school, it may be unwise to attend Stanford Law School over the University of South Dakota School of Law.
Why? Let me give you three good reasons, though there are likely many more. First, you are not going to be particularly highly paid in rural South Dakota, regardless of where you attended law school. As a Stanford Law graduate you are likely to either be saddled with a high debt load or have spent a significant amount of your savings getting through school. Although few law schools are cheap, you should carefully consider whether it is worth spending and extra $100,000 to have a fancy name on your wall.
Second, as a small-town practitioner, you are going to be very reliant on relationships with other attorneys, the business community, and potential clients in general. Spending three years in Palo Alto, far away from the center of your future universe, will do very little to develop those relationships, so law school rankings are virtually meaningless.
Finally, the education isn’t going to be much better at Stanford than at USD. Believe me, in writing this I have prepared myself for the inevitable barrage of criticism that will inevitably be hurled my way. I say this with confidence, however, because I know lawyers from a wide variety of law schools and find a relatively equal distribution of idiots among alumni from top 50 and bottom 50 schools. It really depends on what you are willing to put into it – not what they give you.
There are even some law schools not approved by the American Bar Association that may be worth considering in limited situations. Depending on what you want to do, and the particular laws of the jurisdiction where you intend to practice, a non-ABA accredited school may be a worthwhile choice.
At the end of the day, you need to make a wise choice that you will be happy with for the rest of your life. Don’t put a school on your list just because it is a highly-ranked law school or fits a formula or because you think it will look good on your resume.
Even if we find a cure for cancer in the next decade, you are not likely to live much more than 90 years on this earth. Don’t spend 3.5% of it in the wrong place.
This article may be freely reprinted or distributed in its entirety in any ezine, newsletter, blog or website. The author’s name, bio and website links must remain intact and be included with every reproduction.
My Friend H. Jefferson, Jr. is an expert on on law school admission, having applied to and been admitted by 11 of the top law schools in the United States. To learn more about the the techniques and strategies you can use to get into the law school of your choice, visit lawschoolacademics.blogspot.com,
.
By Law Article Add comment
July 15th, 2009 at 10:09pm Under Education Law
Although I understand that this can be very difficult to do, you must view the popular published law school rankings, skeptically. These rankings are not only untrustworthy, but mislead students into thinking they need to attend a highly ranked school or they will be second rate lawyers do to their “substandard” law school education. This is simply not true.
What is true, in my opinion unfortunately, is that going to a highly ranked law school can have an enormous financial (note: NOT educational) impact on your early legal career. That is why I wrote Covert Tactics for Getting Into the Law School of Your Choice. As I explain in that book, however, even if you do not attend a highly ranked law school, you are not absolutely doomed to suffer professionally and financially for the rest of your life. Indeed, many times you may be well-served, both educationally and financially, by attending a lower ranked law school.
But back to law school rankings. In addition to a number of studies suggesting that the data underlying the rankings is inaccurate, due to schools trying to misrepresent the true data in order to achieve a higher ranking, it is impossible for any ranking to consider all of the relevant factors, which may vary from individual to individual.
Also problematic is the fact that most of the ranking are based, at least in part, on the subjective opinions of individuals at the various schools. Of course, such subjective opinions are likely to simply reinforce the historical opinions regarding the “top tier” law schools. Indeed, if you look at these rankings historically, you will find that they really haven’t changed much over the years.
The reason that it is important that you understand the invalidity of the rankings is that you should understand that the quality of your legal education is likely to be nearly as good, and in some respects may be better, at the University of Idaho as opposed to Harvard.
Depending on who you are, you may be much better off, for a variety of reasons, attending even a very low ranked school. This may be the case even if you have the opportunity to attend a higher-ranked school.
For example, if your intent is to establish a small town practice in rural South Dakota immediately after law school, it may be unwise to attend Stanford Law School over the University of South Dakota School of Law.
Why? Let me give you three good reasons, though there are likely many more. First, you are not going to be particularly highly paid in rural South Dakota, regardless of where you attended law school. As a Stanford Law graduate you are likely to either be saddled with a high debt load or have spent a significant amount of your savings getting through school. Although few law schools are cheap, you should carefully consider whether it is worth spending and extra $100,000 to have a fancy name on your wall.
Second, as a small-town practitioner, you are going to be very reliant on relationships with other attorneys, the business community, and potential clients in general. Spending three years in Palo Alto, far away from the center of your future universe, will do very little to develop those relationships, so law school rankings are virtually meaningless.
Finally, the education isn’t going to be much better at Stanford than at USD. Believe me, in writing this I have prepared myself for the inevitable barrage of criticism that will inevitably be hurled my way. I say this with confidence, however, because I know lawyers from a wide variety of law schools and find a relatively equal distribution of idiots among alumni from top 50 and bottom 50 schools. It really depends on what you are willing to put into it – not what they give you.
There are even some law schools not approved by the American Bar Association that may be worth considering in limited situations. Depending on what you want to do, and the particular laws of the jurisdiction where you intend to practice, a non-ABA accredited school may be a worthwhile choice.
At the end of the day, you need to make a wise choice that you will be happy with for the rest of your life. Don’t put a school on your list just because it is a highly-ranked law school or fits a formula or because you think it will look good on your resume.
Even if we find a cure for cancer in the next decade, you are not likely to live much more than 90 years on this earth. Don’t spend 3.5% of it in the wrong place.
This article may be freely reprinted or distributed in its entirety in any ezine, newsletter, blog or website. The author’s name, bio and website links must remain intact and be included with every reproduction.
My Friend H. Jefferson, Jr. is an expert on on law school admission, having applied to and been admitted by 11 of the top law schools in the United States. To learn more about the the techniques and strategies you can use to get into the law school of your choice, visit lawschoolacademics.blogspot.com,
.
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July 15th, 2009 at 04:10pm Under Education Law
Law is one of the most popular degree topics today and with very good reason. In the modern world, there are many types of law practice that are aired regularly. Criminal law is in more demand than ever, changes to laws in the last fifty years or so have made property lawyers in serious demand, divorce lawyers also get a lot of work put their way, and then of course there is the suing culture that we all live in is to blame for many of the liability and personal injury law firms that exist. With so many opportunities and many jobs going at any given point in time, then it is no wonder why a good percentage of students want to advance in the world of law. However, not all of them get the opportunity.That should actually read that they did not get the opportunity before online education was invented. Law is an extremely popular subject and is offered by a high percentage of the online schools, colleges and universities out there at the moment. Even online colleges have a limited number of places every semester and there are usually very few to spare. Very few people drop out either, because it is so prestigious and an individual will need a law degree to make it into a firm after graduation. You should therefore make sure that you training is as much fun as possible because you will be stuck with it for a few years!It is essential that you investigate all options before tying yourself to one specific online law course. The sheer range of courses online will be mind blowing and you will soon see distinct difference between the content and the structure of one course to another. No two courses are the same so it would be foolish to decide on one before vetting the rest. However, it is not just course content that you should look at. In law, as I am sure you will realise if you want to go into the field, reputation is everything. It counts for far more than past results, and this applies to the place you studied at too. It will rarely make a difference if you trained online, but it will if you do not go to an accredited school and one with a reputation for turning out excellent law candidates.Once you have looked at the reputation of online law schools then you will be able to narrow your list down, but not nearly enough to make a decision on that alone. It may be wise to look at who the different courses are aimed at because some specialize in a certain law, age group or social group. Some may only offer courses designed to give those with a knowledge of law already a boost so that their careers can advance, whereas others will take an individual with no knowledge of law and educate him or her to the highest level. You should make a shortlist of the ones that offer the kind of education that you need and compare that to the reputation list. This will leave you with a few potential schools and make it easier to decide from there. This whole process could take months of research and planning but it will be worth it for your career in the end so you should take the time and make the effort.If you have made the decision to take law at an online university then you have made a big step forward, and one towards changing the rest of your life, and that can only be a good thing. You always reap what you sow and if you put in the effort to find the best possible school and course for you then good things will happen! Just remember that you have to put the effort in when doing to work online as well!
Simple and General Blog Click Here
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July 15th, 2009 at 10:10am Under Education Law
Do you think you have what it takes to pursue a legal education and practice the noble profession of law? Perhaps a closer look at this area of learning can provide you with some clues.
In a nutshell, a legal education is simply the education of individuals who intend to become attorneys and judges or some other legal professional. It is also pursued by those who intend to use a law degree towards some end, such as a career in politics or the academe, or another end which has no relation to law, such as business entrepreneurship..
A legal education covers both academic and vocational studies. A main requirement is for students to acquire an academic grounding in the legal system of their jurisdiction before they can obtain a law degree. For many, this is the hardest part of pursuing law as it entails endless hours of study and analysis, which is not a natural inclination of many students.
Before they can practice as lawyers, law students are required to demonstrate that they have learned professional skills such as advocacy and analysis. For instance, in many countries, law is an undergraduate degree and graduates of such a program can only become lawyers by passing the country’s equivalent of a bar exam. There are post-graduate programs available to help students specialize in a particular area of law.
In contrast, law is a graduate degree in the United States which students can only undertake after completing an undergraduate degree is some other field, whether related to law or not. Most American lawyers hold bachelor’s degrees in the humanities and social sciences. In many cases, law schools are an autonomous entity within a larger university.
Meanwhile, in Canada and other Commonwealth countries as well as in many other places around the world, a law school is referred to as a faculty of law, which is distinguished from a law school in the sense that a faculty is a subdivision of a university and is on the same rank with other faculties.. Also, in other countries, the final stages of a vocational legal education required to qualify to practice law are carried out outside the university system.
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July 15th, 2009 at 04:09am Under Education Law
Millions of children in the United States are homeschooled. In fact, Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) projects that this number will reach over 12 million by 2015. The United States Constitution does not have specific laws concerning education; each state governs education and has its own laws concerning homeschooling. So, if you’ve considered homeschooling your children, you will only have to learn the laws for your individual state.
Homeschooling laws vary from state to state. Each state has a mandate to provide an education for its students; many states delegate that authority to the state’s Board of Education. The state Board of Education wants to ensure that every child receives an adequate education. Because of this mandate, one Federal law was passed, Equal Education Opportunities Act of 1974. This law requires that no state can deny any child an education based on their race, color, sex, or national origin. In other words, every child within every state is guaranteed an education.
While states cannot deny a child an education, it is ultimately up to the parent to choose where that child will attend school — whether public school, private school, or homeschool. Public schools, and some private schools, are regulated by the state. However, since a large percentage of homeschool families do so for religious reasons, there are often few regulations for homeschools.
One state law that appears to be universal is the requirement for children to attend school in some fashion during set compulsory ages. These ages, however, may be different in each state. Some states require children to be in school from 5 to 17, others 7 to 16; it just depends on the state’s laws. To determine what your state’s compulsory ages are you can search the internet, or contact HSLDA.
Home School Legal Defense Association, National Home Education Network, and other websites on the Internet, list the homeschool laws for each state. If you choose to homeschool, it would be advantageous to learn your state’s laws. After you have begun to homeschool, if you move to another state, especially if you are a military family, you can go back to these sites to find the laws for the new state.
Military families often move several times throughout the length of a soldier’s career. Many are choosing to homeschool because it is one way to guarantee continuity in their children’s education. Rather than transferring a child from one school to another, often internationally, a military family that homeschools can continue their child’s education without fear of negative impact.
Choosing to homeschool is not always an easy decision to make. However, it is legal in each of the fifty states. You may have to register your intent to homeschool with your local board of education or you may have to turn in portfolios. Whatever your state requires, just remember that you are allowed by law to homeschool your child, and that there are places to turn if you have questions.
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July 14th, 2009 at 10:10pm Under Education Law
In the grand scheme of the field of law, paralegals play an important behind the scenes role in the day to activities that result in settlements, cases going to trial and all manner of litigation. Long considered the backbone of the legal field, their work is often unheralded though an integral part of the success of any given lawyer or law firm. Paralegals are well paid for their efforts, and unlike in many other fields, can count on above average earnings and a favorable job market.
What truly separates paralegals from those who hold positions in other industries, however, is the exceptionally favorable ratio of education to earnings that they enjoy. Most paralegals complete a two year associate level program and are ready to enter the profession through a federal, state agency or private practice. Compared with the earning potential for most other two year programs, the contrast is apparent.
Perhaps because of this, recent years have yielded several attempts by legislators and other entities to govern the credentials of working paralegals. Select consumer protection and some paralegal groups have petitioned congress for mandatory licensure of the profession under the premise that it would assure uniform standards of practice while guaranteeing that law firm clients receive services from qualified, well trained professionals. Opponents argue that regulation is moot point as the statutes disallowing the unauthorized practice of law provide sufficient safeguards.
Voluntary certification is offered from the National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA), the National Federation of Paralegal Associations (NFPA) and other groups who offer nationwide examinations. In addition, some states have regulations in place that would fall under the category of required compliance. California and Arizona, among others, require state certification of anyone who prepares or assists in the preparation of legal documents. Other states require continuing education criteria that must be met and reported to governing agencies in order for paralegals to remain employed.
In truth, the most effective form of competency assurances should be offered by paralegal employers. The lawyers who use their services must be able to rely on accurate, well documented information that will stand up to the rigors of the legal system. Without the ability to perform their duties effectively, those who wish to remain paralegals will find it extremely difficult to do so.
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July 14th, 2009 at 04:10pm Under Education Law
Building a career as an attorney is a task that requires lots of study, hard work, stamina and above all, goal orientation. Because the average salary of an attorney is quite lucrative, students are flocking to law schools, thus enhancing competition.
Requirements for Getting into Law Schools
To begin your career as an attorney, at least a bachelor’s degree in a related field, such as Criminal Justice or Humanities and Social Studies, is a must. However, getting into the top law schools is quite a difficult task. For instance, it requires a high GPA (Grade Point Average) of at least 3.0 or 3.5 to get admission into a school. Other requirements include:
Things You Must Know Before Enrolling in Law Schools
Top Education Guide is a comprehensive online database that provides information on various universities, campuses, vocational courses and degree programs that help progress one’s career. Log on to topeducationguide.com for free and accurate information that help enhance your professional goals.
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