Why do I have to attend Law School to take Bar exam?

Question

If I can pass the Bar exam which is necessary to become an attorney, why the necessity to attend Law School if the premise is based on learning the information to pass Barr exam? I figure if I can buy the books or read from library, pass Bar exam, and save 100k from extraordianry Law School costs, why can I not take this avenue to become an attorney?

Answer 1

As a safety net?  You also have to take an EMT class before being able to take the EMT certification exam.  They probably just see the tests as a final weeding of the undesirables rather than the proof of someones ability :P

Answer 2

I agree with Liz, and think she makes a good analogy. The bar exam just tests your knowledge of the naked law. On the other hand, law school, as they say, teaches you how to "think like a lawyer." I know that sounds dumb, and I used to roll my eyes when people would say that, but it turned out to be true.

Law schools practice what they call the Socratic method in teaching the law. Students read cases, and then get interrogated by the prof about the holding, facts, and rationale behind the cases. Students learn by being asked questions and puzzling out the "answers." Law school is mostly about process, rather than outcome.

Also, at my school students are required to take FIVE semesters of legal writing and research. That's most definitely not something you can learn on your own. I also took two semesters of trial advocacy. I can't imagine trying to learn how to conduct yourself in a courtroom without having a prof there telling you you're doing it wrong. There are also lots of extracurriculars in law school - most notably, law review, where students put together a publication, and moot court, where students compete in appellate advocacy competitions.

I tried reading cases before I started law school. They were impenetrable. You can't really understand a case, and the meaning behind it, until you have argued with a prof about it. Seriously, the process is what matters - figuring out how to figure stuff out, as opposed to someone just telling you the answer.