February 6, 2016 • By Dennis Beaver

For the many lawyers who read this column, in the next few minutes, wander the corridors of memory with me, to those hectic weeks before final exams during the first year at law school.

It is a time of intense review, study group meetings, and a common practice in law schools across America; allowing students the opportunity to review the complexity and broad scope of previous final exam essay questions, many of the same issues reappearing on new tests.

At my school, Loyola, in downtown Los Angeles, these exams — many going back years — were kept in a blue binder, which the librarian handed to any student who requested them. Over to the photocopier you’d walk, deposit a few coins, and make your copies.

This gives first-year students much more than a glimpse of what final exams look like. For with the law school’s blessing is the chance to analyze the structure and content of prior tests and is of incredible value. I am sure that without that opportunity, many would have done a lot worse on their finals.

I saw my study group friend, let’s call him Steve, with his girlfriend, at the photocopy machine, making copies.

They lived together in a beautifully furnished apartment near the campus that was always well stocked with great wine, expensive cheese and other goodies, courtesy — I was told — of his parents. During one of these study sessions, Steve said something that I thought was either twisted humor or a disgusting reason to study law, “Once we pass the Bar, it will be license to screw people over.”

When he said that, I studied his face, realizing that he looked like a rat! He really looked like an overgrown, beady-eyed rat! As I would soon discover, his appearance revealed a potential future lawyer, lacking ethics, integrity, and morality.

Several days later, I tried to make a few copies, but everything the machine produced was unreadable and smeared, completely worthless. But Steve was dutifully copying all the first-year exams in the folder, helped by his girlfriend. She was lovely, with a sweet face that revealed little emotion as she and Steve replaced the clean originals with garbage.

She was also very pregnant.

The consequences of what they were doing was sickeningly obvious. It went beyond cheating. This was immorality on a scale that could impact the entire first year class.

“How can you do this?” I asked them. “How can you help him do this to all his classmates? I have been to your apartment many times. How do you justify doing this to me and your friends in our study group?” I asked her in a tone of voice that did not exactly seek a reply.

“Don’t you get it? You are carrying his child and not married. The way he is treating others is how he will treat you when, not if, but when things turn bad. Put the originals back now!”

We had studied cases about people who do precisely these kinds of things in contracts and torts, and yet here I was, staring into the faces of a couple with no sense of morality. Were Steve to pass the bar, he would indeed use his license the way he described. “Put the originals back now, Steve,” I repeated, over and over again. “Put them back now or I will go to the Dean’s Office. It’s your choice.”He looked at me, laughed nervously, and put them all back. As insurance that he would not return later and try the same thing, I walked directly to where the head librarian was standing, looked in Steve’s direction, talked about the weather, but made large hand gestures, as if I were making photocopies. Steve, I’m sure, got the message. The librarian probably thought that I was suffering from pre-exam jitters.

Twice daily until finals were over, I checked the blue folder. The originals remained in place.

Steve flunked out of school. I had never wished that a classmate would fail, but I did in his case.

Most attorneys who demolish their reputations usually wait until after graduation from law school and being sworn in as a member of the Bar. Steve was ahead of the curve. Had he actually become a lawyer, no matter how able or brilliant, were our paths to cross, the only image of him in my mind would still be that of a thief.

It is one of the most fragile things we possess, our reputation: Our reputation with classmates who will become colleagues, partners, and the judges before whom we will stand. Handle it with care.

Across my years of practice, I’ve found that most do.

Dennis Beaver practices law in Bakersfield and enjoys hearing from his readers. Contact Dennis Beaver.

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“We are both 28, have been married three years, and the recession left us out of a job in the financial services field. Now, we are considering law school, but have heard from friends that the law school experience can ruin a marriage. We would really like to have your thoughts on this subject. Thanks. Ricky and Sharon, from Eureka.”

“Your readers have asked an important question,” commented Ann Levine and Derek Roberti, both California-based, nationally recognized law school admissions advisors.

“Yes, it absolutely is a risk to marriage,” Levine stated, and repeated a law school dean’s warning to a group of married law students on the first day of class:

“Look to the left. Look to the right. By the end of your first year in school, one marriage will be in trouble. In the second year, it will be in worse shape. And by the end of the third year, they will have been separated or divorced for months.”

Law school consumes your entire life

As it is becoming more common for both spouses to study law, Roberti outlined three situations where law school can ruin a marriage:

1) The husband is admitted to a local law school, and the wife to a school which is far away;

2) They attend different law schools in the same city;

3) They are admitted to differently ranked schools, where one spouse gets into a “better” school.

“The spouse who gets into the better school must make a choice: Does she attend her husband’s law school together with him, and give up the potential of what that ‘better’ school could mean for her, later on? Should she do this for the sake and stability of their marriage?

“Of course, usually, just one spouse attends law school, “and this in itself often leads to another, serious challenge to the marriage,” Roberti points out.

“It is fear, the unmistakable feeling that they are slipping away from each other. One is going to law school, the other is not, two lives a shadow of what they were, just weeks before.”

Levine believes it is critical to understand “just how much law school tends to consume your entire life.”

“Studying to become a lawyer is like no other academic subject. You are learning a thinking process, and spending enormous amounts of time in and outside of class doing so. If your relationship is one where a lot of attention to each other and time has been the norm, that time is not going to be there,” she cautions.

“Law school separates you both from that prior life of togetherness,” Roberti observes.

“Law students acquire separate friends, likely spending recreational time with them, working on school research projects and are occupied much of the time. For a marriage to succeed under these conditions requires each member of the couple to be comfortable being very independent, and a long-term view of the relationship.

“As school is so consuming, and such an unbelievably insecure experience, especially in the first year, a great deal of hand-holding and reassurance that all is well with the world is essential for some spouses. It can work, and the chances increase if the couple actually become good buddies, which is so important in the long term,” he maintains.

Is there a law student personality?

“Successful law students often have a Type A personality: driven, organized, planners, focused and academically oriented. Spending time with your spouse isn’t included in that definition,” Roberti is quick to highlight.

“Successful students might not like the study of law, but know how to approach it. So, if you are good at being a student – especially if you enjoy learning and really like school – then you will excel in law school. But if not, and especially if your writing skills are marginal, you may have problems, and that’s not going to help a marriage.

“Law school requires a certain amount of surrender: your personality, your time, your focus on learning the law and test taking. You’ve got to go to class, study and read more than you ever have in your life, often several hours per class. If you have three hours of class a day, you will have six hours of study after that. When you add to that participation in things such as law review, and other student activities, a legal education takes control of your life for those three years of full-time study,” he concludes.

And then? After graduation, and the bar exam, swearing in, becoming a lawyer, beginning that first job, working over 70 hours a week, then we might remember what we also heard from a law professor our first day in class:

“The law is a jealous mistress and requires a long and constant courtship.”

Dennis Beaver practices law in Bakersfield and enjoys hearing from his readers. Contact Dennis Beaver.

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“I live in California’s Central Valley and my parents have difficult, manual labor jobs which has taken a real health toll on them. At high school, I had friends whose parents were lawyers, and frankly their lifestyle made me envious and left the impression that law was an easy road to earning a lot of money.

“Is it still that way? I have one more year of college and have a lot of student loans. What does it cost to attend law school today? Does it matter what school you attend and is a degree from a top school that important in the real world? Finally, while I want to earn good money, are lawyers, in general, content with what they do for a living? Thanks. Dwayne.”

Prospective lawyers should consider costs, time demands

“Your reader is asking good questions, but appears to have one commonly held false assumption about law and financial success,” law school admissions expert Ann Levine told You and the Law when we asked for her comments.

Levine is considered as the nation’s recognized expert on what it takes to get into law school, having been director of admissions at two American Bar Association law schools. Her website is www.lawschoolexpert.com and is filled with extremely useful information for anyone thinking about attending law school.

Levine believes anyone considering a legal education needs to have a realistic understanding of what they are getting into – specifically, the cost of a legal education and time demands once you are in the working world. “While there are 9 to 5 jobs in law, they are not in the high-paying categories,” she is quick to point out.

“As far as law being an easy road to financial success, I don’t know if it ever was that easy, but movies and television can make it appear that money just falls from the sky. In law, you work for your money, and in most law firms, 70 hour work weeks are extremely common. Just drive by any medium-sized law firm evenings and weekends and you’ll find the lights on, often late into the night.

“The reality is that for many people, law is not a good occupational choice if income is your main criteria. In fact, depending upon your personal, non-job goals – such as being a stay-at-home parent – if you take out substantial loans, law could be a very poor decision,” she warns.

An amazingly expensive education

“Law school is unbelievably more expensive today than it ever was in the past, even allowing for inflation. Schools have grown tremendously, with a lot more administration, fancy wellness centers and academic support systems, technology – things which did not exist 15 or 20 years ago.”

We compared tuition at large universities – in most graduate fields of study – from 1980 to today. For example, tuition at the University of Pennsylvania School of Law was $6,000 in 1980, and today it is $45,000. Thinking of attending U.C. Berkeley? It’s about the same, and that does not include living expenses, which law school websites typically state adds at least $20,000 to the bill.

“For students who take out loans to pay for their legal education, many will be close to $150,000 in debt after graduation,” Levine cautions. “It could easily take 20 years to pay that back, perhaps more. It’s like making a house payment.”

“However, there are a number of best-value, ABA-accredited law schools. North Carolina Central School of Law is one of the best values in the country, with tuition at about $16,000 a year for state residents and $30,000 for non-residents. Also, you should consider schools which are offering scholarships, as opposed to simply looking at schools which are ranked the highest.”

Why high rankings are not that important

We asked Levine if it is all that important to go to a highly ranked law school, such as Columbia, Hastings, Berkeley, USC or UCLA, and would graduating from one of these institutions necessarily help in getting a job or advancement? Her answer should make applicants who aren’t accepted by these schools feel very good indeed.

“So many students feel that their jobs and lives will be better because they can say they went to Columbia, or some other big-name school. However, in a recently conducted survey of lawyers who went to top law schools, these people will tell you that they did not need to go to those schools to do or get the job they now have.

“And, it also seems that people who went to more regional-based schools do not regret their choice of schools,” Levine stressed.

Next time: Why law school is dangerous to your marriage.

Dennis Beaver practices law in Bakersfield and enjoys hearing from his readers. Contact Dennis Beaver.

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Dennis Beaver practices law in Bakersfield and enjoys hearing from his readers. Contact Dennis Beaver.

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March 16, 2013  • By Dennis Beaver

Some widely held beliefs persist long after evidence that they are flawed has come to light. Today, for anyone considering law as a profession, this statement has special relevance.

“Up until the last decade, a license to practice law usually meant a good-paying job with security and the prestige of being a member of the legal profession,” attorney and law career expert Sally Kane, who writes for About.com and PaperStreet.com, tells You and the Law.

“The cost of a law school education has outpaced inflation and many students rack up six-figure debt. At the same time, a stagnant economy, competitive pressures and changing legal needs have led to a drop in the demand for new law grads.

“Today, thousands of lawyers — members of state bars — are employed in non-lawyer positions, earning a fraction of what an attorney would earn. And that’s why would-be lawyers who do their research will not be blindsided by realities of the legal marketplace, where finding employment will be harder that it was for past generations of attorneys,” she observes.

“Sure, students from the top-tier schools will have their choice of job opportunities, but for most others, beyond getting good grades, students need to focus on the big picture — employment after graduation, and working towards that goal from the beginning of their education. This means cultivating a network of professional contacts while in school which will prove valuable to finding quality employment upon graduation,” Kane believes.

You’ve got to analyze this job choice differently

Shant Karnikian is a graduate of Loyola Law School of Los Angeles and a recently minted lawyer facing $200,000 in student loan debt. Like many of his friends who also passed the bar exam, he is working in Los Angeles, at a small firm — but as a law clerk — and earns significantly less that he would ever have thought possible just three years ago. Still, Karnikian considers himself “lucky to even be doing this, as many of my friends have found nothing at all in law.”

He values the education — and what the law school experience did for him personally — and is not blaming anyone for his current under-employment situation. “Marketplace realities led to there being simply too many law grads and that was magnified by the financial crisis. The job of a law school is to provide a solid education, and I got that,” he adds.

“It is encouraging to see how law schools are responding to this different marketplace, giving students a dose of the real world early on, with the addition of many more practical courses. And I think the reality for today’s entering law students is that administrators and teachers will give them a much more realistic picture of life after graduation — and explore ways of finding employment much sooner than before,” Karnikian firmly believes.

“Also, the well-publicized drop in law school applications across the country should help normalize the ability of new lawyers to find real jobs in the coming years. No one

dreamed of a bubble in law, but that’s what happened, and now that bubble has popped,” he accurately observes.

A three-point analysis for anyone considering law

Karnikian believes that anyone considering law must look at three separate issues:

• Will there be a job for me when I finish law school? Is it worth the time and debt I’ll be taking on? You could easily have a $1,500 monthly loan payment — like having another rent bill! Could I reduce that debt by working full-time and going to law school at night?

• Are you sure you want to be a lawyer? As many counselors now advise, take a year off after college and be sure it’s the right decision for you. Have you ever spent time in a lawyer’s office, or asked an attorney if they like what they do?  It’s is not like TV — there’s often a ton of boring, monotonous paperwork, and lots of repetition.

• Do you have a clear career path? Will a law degree help you? Will law school help you with what you’re already doing? Will it help you advance in your present job — one you might keep, while going to law school part-time?

Still glad he made this choice

While this is a rough time for Karnikian and others like him, he’s optimistic about his future. “I’m reassured by friends who graduated from law school before the market began to shrink and who are happy they became lawyers. Their message is one of patience and understanding-that in a year or two, with experience even as a law clerk, a door will open.”

And we are certain that through that door will one day walk an ethical and able lawyer.

Dennis Beaver practices law in Bakersfield and enjoys hearing from his readers. Contact Dennis Beaver.

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“A friend’s daughter passed the Bar Exam on her first try in February. She recently opened an office and I hired her to handle a $50,000 collections case for my company,” “Todd” wrote.

“Doesn’t passing the Bar Exam mean that you know how to practice law? I was in for a real surprise when “Karen” told me to meet her at the opposing lawyer’s office for a deposition. I had no idea what that involves.”

“Suddenly, I am under oath, testifying, without any preparation or advice from Karen, and she is sitting there like a bump on a log, saying nothing, except nervously grinning and giggling like a kid in elementary school! Finally, the other attorney told me ‘to hire a real lawyer, because she is committing malpractice.’

“I’ve been to doctors and dentists fresh out of school who were all competent and professional. Doesn’t law school teach you how to practice law?”

‘What law school did you attend?’

If you’re thinking of hiring a recent law graduate, a chat with any law professor who teaches “Practical Lawyering,” courses would have you asking, “What law school did you attend and which practical lawyering classes did you take, if your school offered them?”

We conducted recorded interviews with Directors of Lawyering Skills at two highly ranked law schools, one in California, the other in the South, hearing almost identical reactions to Todd’s situation.

While open and helpful at first, when sent a draft of this article for approval or to make corrections–a courtesy we extend to everyone interviewed–even though accurately quoted, both instructors put on a chicken costume with a yellow stripe running down their backs wide enough for a Humvee to drive over. This was a triumph of Political Correctness over courage.

These two lawyers made it clear that they no longer wanted to be associated with their candid and accurate remarks–which illustrate the risk to the public in hiring recent graduates–and so we call them professors X and Y.

“I hear Todd’s comments far too often, but fortunately many of the better law schools around the country are starting to give their students a practical, education” Professor X stated.

“Unlike health care with patient contact from their first year–until recently, law school has always been theory, students taught how to think like a lawyer–how to pass the bar exam–but not how to practice law,” he observes.

Too Many Lawyers + Not Enough Jobs + High Debt Load = Limited Access

“The employment picture for lawyers has changed in dramatic ways and your reader’s situation is a good example,” Y believes.

“Today, a lot of clients are hiring lawyers who simply aren’t competent to handle the cases they take on, in large part, a result of the Great Recession. Here’s why:

• Before 2008, there were lots of good paying jobs for new graduates, jobs which were really an apprenticeship, the practical stuff, teaching you how to be a lawyer.
• Unless, while in school you clerked in a firm or had real hands-on experience right out of school, if you can’t find a job and open your own office, then;
• You likely lack the training or background to be practicing the kind of law you represent that you can.

“There are simply too many lawyers for available job openings. Without sufficient training or mentorship, but facing over $100,000 in law school student loan debt, the lawyer will strictly focus on making a dollar,” Y observes.

Professor X sees “A terrible conflict of interest with the client, because of the temptation to take on more than the young lawyer can handle, looking only for clients who can pay, where a little knowledge is dangerous.”

“So, we’ve got too many lawyers and a lack of access by financially strapped people who need them most. Add to that a lack of experience, and you’ve got a walking malpractice case. A lawyer who is not thinking of the ethical obligation owed to that client is a real threat. Clients need to be more wary, do their homework, and ask questions,” he maintains.

Access to information means less need to hire a lawyer

“Today individuals often do not require the same kind of detailed legal assistance previously needed,” both law professors note.

“Doing your own uncontested divorce? Want to incorporate, need a power of attorney, living will or a rental agreement? These things, and so much more can be accomplished today without a lawyer, by going online.”

“Of course not every situation can be handled that way, but often that’s all you need,” they point out.

We completely agree, and are just about finished reading, “How To Remove Your Own Appendix in 10 Easy Lessons.”

Dennis Beaver practices law in Bakersfield and enjoys hearing from his readers. Contact Dennis Beaver.

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Getting into a good law school isn’t easy. Competition for a limited number of places, in our current bad economy, means that at the top schools it’s harder than ever to be admitted.

This increased competition for admission has given rise to a field that did not exist just a few years ago: The Law School Admissions Consultant. I should add, the often frighteningly expensive “Admissions Coach/Consultant.”

It cost me over $5,000 and I’m still not accepted!

This column has received a number of complaints from readers who have used these services and felt seriously misled. In researching this article, I posed as a recent college graduate with mediocre grades and phoned several of the companies who have a large Internet presence.

Contrary to the statements in many of their ads, I learned that few of the “consultants” had attended law school or had real admissions experience. The fee quoted was typically well over $3,000 — in some cases more than $5,000 — and often suggestions were made that their services would greatly increase my LSAT scores, and therefore I would be admitted. A reader from Merced, Becky, e-mailed her complaint which was almost a mirror image of what I was told.

“Mr. Beaver, in a very real way, reading your column since I was in high school is what interested me in attending law school. Last year I graduated from college and applied to a couple of law schools, but was rejected. A friend suggested that I hire a law school consulting service. They had a “special” for $5,000 and told me on the phone I would certainly be admitted to a good school because of their help. I put it on my credit card, took their classes, applied to a number of schools, and nothing changed. I really feel ripped off and hope that you would write about this.”

Not ethically correct

Ann Levine, who lives in Santa Barbara with her attorney husband, runs her own consulting service www.lawschoolexpert.com) and writes a popular pre-law blog (lawschoolexpert.blogspot.com). She offers her clients something that I have not been able to find anywhere else. Ann is a lawyer and was Director of Admissions at Loyola University School of Law in Los Angeles, as well as California Western School of Law in San Diego. That is an enormous benefit to anyone wanting help getting into law school.

Ann has heard complaints about law school admission consultants. “It is absolutely improper for any graduate school consultant to imply or state they have the ability of getting you into a particular school. This is ethically wrong. You need to know who you are hiring and to be sure they have relevant law school (or other professional school) experience,” she strongly believes.

“Before hiring a consultant you’ve just found online, ask for references and check them out. Legitimate consulting services will provide e-mail contacts of their clients who have agreed to serve as references. Also, is the consultant a licensed attorney? This gives you some assurance that in the event of questionable practices, their State Bar would take action. Finally, pay with a credit card, as this gives you added insurance, fraud protection.”

Do you need a consultant?

“A good consultant gives you an added layer of guidance and confidence. However, if you are only applying to one or two schools, and your LSAT and undergraduate GPA is in line with what they are looking for, and there are no problem areas in you application, you probably do not need a consultant,” she was quick to point out. I respect that kind of honesty.

“Law School applicants who benefit the most have a weakness in their application, such as a low grade point average, poor LSAT score, an arrest, or have been out of school for a great deal of time. In today’s reality of getting into school, they truly need the help of a good consultant,” she adds.

What does a consultant do?

The process of getting into law school has four separate elements: college grades, letters of reference, a personal statement, and the all-important LSAT score. Ann feels that too little attention is paid by applicants to their personal statement.

“A good personal statement creates a picture of your unique perspective and experiences — something which goes beyond what’s evident from the transcript and resume. Show them you are a real individual, mature, have a solid work ethic, direction in life, and demonstrate qualities as opposed to just repeating credentials. These are the things that make up for weak points in an application,” she stressed.

I told Ann that one of my readers submitted a lengthy biographical statement to the consulting service she hired, and they wrote her personal statement. Ann believes this is highly unethical.

“A legitimate consultant will never write the essay for you, but will coach you as to the best content and strategy given your experiences. An admission consultant will help you with organization, tone, and editing, but the substance of the work must be your own and absolutely must sound like you.”

Does a consultant make a real difference?

“A strong application helps you stand out from other applicants with similar grades and undergraduate majors. But if a school would not take someone with your numbers, no consultant can help. Therefore, be very careful of selling points which promise things that simply cannot be delivered,” she cautions.

How much does it cost?

Prices charged by consultants vary widely, some charging per application, per hour or on a flat rate, which has advantages, Ann believes.

“The advantage of a flat rate is that the consultant can help with every question and issue which comes up. The range of what consultants charge is from $1,000 to $4,000.” When you look at what it means to be admitted, to pass the bar, and enter the legal profession, truly it is a small price to pay to increase your chances of getting in.

Ann Levine may be contacted at: (805)683-2837 or her e-mail lawschoolexpert@cox.net

Dennis Beaver practices law in Bakersfield and enjoys hearing from his readers. Contact Dennis Beaver.

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A friend’s son graduates from law school, passes the California bar exam on the first try – something to be very proud of – and opens his own office, wanting to handle legal work for your family’s farm. But he’s never actually worked in law. Because of the poor economy, he has been unable to find an entry level job with any law firm, so he’s hanging out his own shingle.

As your attorney of many years is retiring, it’s important to find a lawyer who will take over. The young man is sharp, likeable and you want to hire him, but is this a wise decision?

These were Brett’s questions, and last week we began our discussion of the risks involved in hiring a newly minted, inexperienced lawyer. We spoke with Gideon Grunfeld, a fourth-generation attorney who, after 10 years of high-profile law practice, changed careers and now helps lawyers manage their practices while also advising the public on how to “hire, work with and control their attorneys.”

His website, Lawyeronaleash.com, provides insights into the realities of law practice and is filled with valuable information for both attorneys and clients.

I just read a book on surgery: Can I take out your appendix?

“Law has always been an apprenticeship profession emphasizing OJL, or on-the-job learning due to law schools graduating students, their heads filled with theory – but painfully little practical training, if any at all. In the nation’s premier law schools, you will even find professors who have never practiced law. But from the first year of medical school, students learn from real doctors how to treat patients.

“Could you imagine yourself in a hospital emergency room suffering from appendicitis and being introduced to a surgeon who explains that his training was reading a book on surgery?

But in law, that is a very real risk with someone right out of school. Passing the bar means you are a good test taker, not that you know the first thing about what lawyers actually do in the real world,” Grunfeld maintains.

He’s right, and if you ask most lawyers if they knew what they were doing right out of law school, chances are pretty good you will see great big smirks across their faces.

“Lawyering skills have historically been developed with guidance from experienced colleagues in law firms, over years of 12-hour days, often six days a week. Fresh out of school, on your own, can spell incompetence, not because new lawyers are stupid, but because they haven’t been taught the actual mechanics of law practice – how to put theory into practice – which leads to a real danger of malpractice and added expense for clients,” he points out.

“That said, everyone starts somewhere, and I must stress there is nothing wrong in working with right-out-of-school attorneys as long as they have someone much more experienced supervising them.

“But make sure the hourly rate of beginning lawyers is discounted for their level of experience. But if something about a bill seems wrong, don’t delay, ask questions and complain if necessary. Be polite, but do not ever worry about making your lawyer angry. Law is a service business requiring good, two-way communication, especially when there are doubts or questions about a bill.”

To find the right lawyer, ask the right questions

Grunfeld believes most people go about finding a lawyer the wrong way.

“One of the greatest mistakes you can make in the search for a lawyer is by failing to identify your legal needs first, and then finding a lawyer. Make a list of legal problems which have come up in the past, as they are likely to be repeated. As your reader is a farmer, one of his challenges is hiring people legally here, also environmental and public health issues, such as pesticide overspraying or contaminated produce. Finally, how about just getting paid for their crops?

“So Brett needs a lawyer – and most likely a law firm – with a strong agricultural focus.”

References are important

“Remember you are hiring someone to work for you. Just like any other employee, references are extremely important. Speak with their clients, ask for samples of their written work, such as pleadings, letters, press clippings or information in the media about them or their firm. Go down to the courthouse and look at the actual papers they’ve filed.

“The more you have at risk – money, the family business, custody of your kids – the more you need to do a thorough background on that lawyer you’re thinking of hiring,” Grunfeld concluded.

And to do that, simply look at the State Bar of California attorney discipline records, available online at calbar.ca.gov.

There, all you want to find is nothing, or “No Record of Discipline.”

Dennis Beaver practices law in Bakersfield and enjoys hearing from his readers. Contact Dennis Beaver.

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