Valerie Schuette 6th hour 9-17-13

Lawyer/Attorney
The career Im choosing is lawyer. Lawyers provide legal advice and represent their clients. The type of lawyer I want to be is a family lawyer. Family lawyers advise their clients on legal issues that are related to their family. Problems people go to family lawyers for are things such as divorce, adoption, and child custody. Becoming a lawyer takes a lot of work. It usually takes about seven years of full time school after you graduate high school. After earning a undergraduate degree, you have to take three years of law school. To get into law school you have to take a test call the Law School Aptitude Test (LSAT). You must have a good score high enough to be accepted. Typically, a minimum score to get into law school is 140 out 180 possible points. The average score for the LSAT test is 129. Law school courses include classes in contracts, property law, criminal law, and constitutional law. The Socratic Method of instruction is used in every law school. The Socratic Method is a teaching process based upon the theories of Socrates the philosopher. The method encompasses an almost confrontational approach of challenging students. Students must teach themselves the law through the study of cases. Professors then challenge the students in front of their peers in order to encourage fast thinking and thorough understanding. This is a highly stressful atmosphere. During the last two years of law school students begin to specialize into the specific area of law they wish to practice. To better understand how attorneys go about their jobs, I interviewed Jackson County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Kati Rezmierski. Ms. Rezmireski has been an attorney since 1994. She went to undergrad and law school at the University of Michigan. Kati loves her career

Valerie Schuette 6th hour 9-17-13

because she feels good about the work she does and that means the most to her. Her favorite thing about her career is helping the victims especially the children - and seeing people held responsible for hurting them. She helps kids feel supported and uses the law to protect them and keep them safe. There are also things that Ms. Rezmierski does not like about her job. One of those things is all the ugliness she has to see. I asked her, If there was one thing you could change about your job, what would it be? She replied, If I had a magic wand and got to change one thing, it would be that I could not only help protect kids and punish the people that hurt them, but Id also be able to make them well again. Sometimes the damage that criminals do lasts a lifetime especially with children who are sexually molested. The average attorney works Monday through Friday from 8am to 5pm. Some days they stay late and come in early but only on occasion. Attorneys have to be on quick minded and ready to shift gears and go into whatever comes up. Prosecuting attorneys and family court attorneys regularly meet with victims, talk to police officers, read police reports and case law in preparation for court. During court attorneys have to be even more alert, paying attention to things very closely. They have to listen, think, argue their position, all while taking testimony from witnesses and arguing objections to the court. The work environment of a lawyer is mainly in an office setting. Sometimes they have to travel to meet with clients and attend trails in court. Since lawyers work in situations where lives, businesses, and livelihoods are at stake it can be very stressful.

Valerie Schuette 6th hour 9-17-13

The average salary of a lawyer in Jackson County is approximately $94,000 per year. The employment outlook for lawyers is good. There are many professional organizations associated with being a lawyer such as: The American Bar Association, American Law Institute, Association of Legal Administrators. Being a lawyer requires more than just the education and the training. One important thing is to have a strong moral and ethical backbone. No matter the type of lawyer, they all deal with the law and the law is a complex and constantly changing. A lawyer must abide by the law, and be mentally prepared to be held to higher standards than the average person. Being patient while listening to people and make quick decisions are qualities the best lawyers have. Lawyers must keep everything confidential. They have to accept the things they are involved in and try not to let it affect their home life. Lawyers see many things that are wrong but they cannot change them. They have to balance their life away from the law. The employment field for prosecuting lawyers is wide open. As an assistant prosecutor, Ms. Rezmireski can work in family court, district court, or the highest court which is circuit court. She can become the chief assistant prosecutor, warrant issuing prosecutor, and if she wants to become active in politics, the prosecuting attorney for the county. There are many jobs that are related to lawyers such as police officer, judge, and federal agent. They perform similar activities with the same goal in mind; justice. An attorney is a noble and respected career. I look forward to the challenges of practicing law.