Government, cybersecurity, public interest, tax and criminal law are just a few of the hottest practice specialties in demand.
As times change, people change and new areas of law emerge.
Take cybersecurity. It really didn’t kick off as a legal specialty until 1986 when Congress passed the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
And even criminal law, which has been around for more than 4,000 years, still sees new laws added to the books each year.
But it’s hard to predict which areas of law will be most in demand in the future because it’s hard to predict where society is headed.
That has required law schools to do some deep research before unveiling a new concentration or certificate program.
“Employers are impressed,” said Erin O’Neal, professor and director of capital lawyering concentration at University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law. “Students can also hit the ground running. Being able to affiliate with a concentration allows them to plug into an alumni network, meet those alumni and stay connected.”
Law students take anywhere from 25 to 30 courses while in law school. But just because you like a particular course doesn’t mean you will like a job in that area. The day-to-day duties may be far different from what you envision.
Andrew McClurg, a professor at The University of Memphis – Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law and author of Law Jobs: The Complete Guide, said students need to dig into the weeds to see if it’s the right job.
A concentration and the curriculum behind it can make an impact by giving students the opportunity to focus on one area of the law. This focus often provides an advanced level of training and usually includes considerable experiential learning as well.
Shannon Trevino, director of concentrations and the faculty advisor for the corporate and entrepreneurship concentrations at Loyola Law School Los Angeles, said soft skills are what really set students apart.
“The added benefit is that when you’ve selected an area of law, you have to take an experiential opportunity and step into that area of space,” she said. “You get that experience of soft skills.”
These include communication, leadership and management, oral and written skills in an executive leadership space, negotiation skills and the emotional intelligence of reading a room.
“I think concentrations are a really good way to say you’ve taken a deeper dive and informed decision to study this area,” Trevino said. “But I do advise students that it is not mission fatal if you don’t have a concentration. There can be different versions of your resume showing interests and experience.”
She said concentrations definitely help students be more competitive in the marketplace.
Dyane O’Leary, director of the Legal Innovation & Technology Concentration at Suffolk University School of Law agrees.
Law firms, government agencies, corporations and other employers seek law graduates who understand the tools that make law more efficient, cheaper, faster and intuitive, she said.
“All of these employers need law graduates who are ready to roll their sleeves up and bring a new skill set to bear,” O’Leary said.
