Friday, September 5th, 2008

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<p>Host Parsa Sobhani, law student Michelle Sassounian, law
Professor Julie Cantor and attorneys Wes

Host Parsa Sobhani, law student Michelle Sassounian, law Professor Julie Cantor and attorneys Wes

UCLA Feud event asks students, ‘Why Law?’

Lawyers and other law professionals faced inquiry by students and prospective law school applicants in the latest UCLA Feud, “Why Law?”

Based on the game show “Family Feud,” a panel consisting of various members of the legal profession were quizzed on their careers to help students determine whether law school would be the right choice for them, ahead of February’s Law School Admissions Test.

The event was the second event in the UCLA Feud series and was organized by the Academic Affairs Commission. The event is aimed at educating students about various professions.

But the focus of the event was to force students to consider why they want to pursue law and also give them a clear idea of what the profession involves.

Some replies from the panel rebuffed negative stereotypes about the profession. Forty-five percent of the attorneys interviewed said money was the worst reason to be a lawyer.

The panel said the personalities of students would determine what aspects of the profession they would like.

Government Attorney Kurt Muller said some people are suited to burying themselves in a law library and researching, but others might prefer the excitement of a trial.

“There are some like me who love putting the bad guys away and helping the victims. So it depends a lot on who you are,” he said.

Students should not go into law based on what they assume it would be like, said Attorney Wesley Meehan, who enjoyed the intellectual aspects, but not the practice of law.

They also stressed the challenges of the profession, such as the hours.

“Being a prosecutor, I have many cases coming through my hands which will affect people for the rest of their lives,” he said.

Some students found themselves re-evaluating their reasons for wanting to study law. Matt Gibson, a second-year communication studies student, said the conflict between the nature of the work and his ambitions to travel means he might need to come up with a more realistic plan than studying law.

However, many students found that the talk helped to expand their understanding of the career and reaffirm that they want to continue with law.

“I always thought that if I went to law school, I had to become a lawyer, but the talk gave me different options,” said Jocelyn Aldana, a second-year undeclared student.

Though UCLA currently does not provide on-campus professional school counseling, Nat Schuster, the Undergraduate Students Association Council Academic Affairs commissioner, felt these programs provide important opportunities for networking and gaining insight into what professional life is really like.