ReaderToLawyer

Prior to taking the bar exam, I was a paralegal for 14 years. I already knew then many attorneys by the time I passed. Thankfully, I have not experienced anyone looking down on me. If anything, when attorneys find out I did the law reader route, they express great interest. Learning the law on your own is very challenging. I took the same bar exam and was responsible for the same material for the bar exam as law students.

A couple of attorneys have asked to talk to me because they know someone who wants to be a law reader. I am always happy to sit and talk with attorneys about the program or students who are in a law reader program.

I did a LOT of outside studying! My life for three solid years was studying. I studied between 30 and 40 hours each week. If anything, reading the law has helped me in court because I knew the local rules and local court procedures. That is something often not taught in law school.

Since I have a law license, I cannot officially be discredited by a court or lawyer for not going to law school. People can of course spread rumors and say mean things. Thankfully, this has not been an issue for me. The legal community in my area has been supportive of law readers. Off the top of my head, I am the third in my area to become an attorney through the law reader route. There may even be more.

That is a good analogy! It would be like if a registered nurse decided to study medicine to become a doctor. Instead of going to med school, she studies from the same or similar books and lectures at a hospital. Then after three or four years of study, she takes and passes the medical board exam.

I have wanted to know this for years!

Did playing a cult member in Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones shape your viewpoint on how people can be taken in by a charismatic leader? Did you read about the Peoples Temple prior to playing the role?

Thank you for the kind words! The law reader program is an alternate way to study the law in four states. Instead of attending law school, the student studies the law inside of a law office under the supervision of an attorney. The student is responsible learning the same law as law students and ultimately is tested with the same bar exam as law students.

You can learn more about the Virginia law reader program here: https://barexam.virginia.gov/reader/reader.html

Between all the application fees, exam fees, bar prep course, study materials, hotel fees to take the exams, etc - my total out of pocket cost was about $8,000.