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The cost of completing a JD program certainly hasn't gone down, while the pressure of paying law school related loans has gone way up. As the legal profession shifts in response to the economic downturn, many recent law school graduates are left holding a very heavy bag. The question remains: How do you pay a hefty student loan when you either can't get a job or the job you can get doesn't pay enough for you to manage?
Enter Carolyn Lamm, the recently installed ABA President and a partner with the White & Case office in Washington. Lamm is expecting feedback from the newly created ABA Economic Crisis Commission. Of course there's nothing new about how the economic crisis has played out in the legal profession for recent graduates and law students. The profession has been adjusting for some time now. According to a recent National Law Journal article, it appears that the ABA will explore, through the new Commission, how graduating students can address the issue of paying student loans when jobs are so scarce.
The Commission will focus on how the legal profession can respond to the economic crisis as it relates to both the public and the legal profession. On the public side, the Commission may work towards legislation that will provide federal funding for local programs that address the legal needs of home owners facing foreclosure. On the profession side, among other issues, it's law school debt. The immediate plan is a list of law school debt relief programs to be listed on the ABA's Economic Recovery Resources website within the near future.
The Commission already has an impressive list of members, including at least two from California. Both Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the UCI School of Law and Matthew Nelson, a Wells Fargo attorney and graduate of UCLA School of Law, have joined the Commission. The six million dollar question here will be whether this dream team will roll up their sleeves and develop practical solutions for recent graduates.
Source: National Law Journal
Source: Metropolitan News Enterprise
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