Dear Friends,
Interesting story on the WSJ Law Blog. The government will pay back your law school loans if you take a job with the public defender's or prosecutor's office. If you want to ignore my rambling, read the analogy at the end.
I first heard about this on creditslips.org but was withholding judgement until I felt like it might actually happen. The commenters on the WSJ Law Blog are usually good for a laugh or two, but one of them makes the point that for law students who want to go into public service, this sort of thing could make that move a little easier. I seriously doubt anyone with the opportunity to work for a well-paying firm will pass that up to work for the government, but let's face it, not all of us will have the opportunity to work for a big firm.
I was teacher before I decided to start down this path. One of the primary motivators for me leaving teaching was the lack of earning potential. Most of the folks I know that make their careers teaching high-school are people who already have financial stability or who have limited options. While in many ways I am a privileged person, I do not have the ability to "do whatever I want," so for me, as much as I wanted to be a high-school teacher, I couldn't afford it. Better stated, they couldn't afford me. This problem clearly applies to the legal profession as well. The best students go into private practice leaving the government with slimmer pickings.
I really don't see this legislation solving that problem. If anything, it will allow folks who would have worked there anyway, the ability to do so more comfortably. For instance, even if I had worked for a school that offered to pay back my student loans, or even pay for me to get another degree, I still would have left. Money is the ultimate motivator, and only those who have it can afford to pay it no mind. Jobs that make money can afford to pay money, and the government will never be as profitable as the private realm. Well, clearly the government should not profitable. We would have a greater problem if it were.
Analogy time! This is like putting leather seats and a sunroof on a Hyundai. Those who can afford no better will appreciate the hint of luxury, but those who can buy BMW, still will.
-LCC
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2 comments:
While you are right to question how effective this legislation would be, I think you underestimate it somewhat. Based on purely anecdotal evidence, I would guess that the average law school graduate will owe somewhere between 5,000 to 10,000 a year in student loan payments. The proposed legislation would essentially increase the salary for public service by this amount. I believe entry level positions for lawyers in the public sector pay between 40K and 50K. Top flight firms start lawyers at 100K. Clearly the additional 5 to 10K does not suddenly make the public sector competitive with the biggest firms. But it does move salaries in the public sector closer to what smaller firms pay (my guess is that is anywhere from 60K to 80K). Therefore, the legislation would make the public sector more competitive with smaller firms. This is especially true when you consider other benefits of working in the public sector (i.e. fewer working hours, less competitive work environment, the type of work is more interesting for some people).
Nice points. I think the other thing that I overlooked is the role that these jobs can have as stepping-stone positions. I would imagine that the potential for later opportunities present in this sort of work is as great, if not greater, than the potential in some larger firms.
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