Sotaro
Hi. I am in the law faculty and in the law department. I am often asked this question, “Are you thinking of becoming a paralegal?” My answer is if I have a good sense of legal mind. I cannot say I would definitely want to become a lawyer. The reason why is what I would like to introduce about.
The majority of people who want to become lawyers, prosecutors, or judges, would graduate from university and go to law school. After you have a qualification for graduating from there, they can take the law examination. You cannot take the test as many as you can. You can take three times within 5 years after graduating from law school. Most of people don’t pass the test in one time or in the first year. If you fail three times, you can take the test for getting a qualification for a legal examination. This is extremely difficult. The percentage of successful applicants are only 1.8 percent this year. A lot of people who have failed three times in the legal exams would have to find a job, but this is difficult as well. A lot of people would be around 29, so many companies refrain from hiring them. Other choices would be give up becoming bars (housou) and become gyouseishoshi or shihoushoshi ( the translation of these words in English do not exist).
In my opinion, it is a very hard task to select my future. When the system of law school started in 2006, the percentage of passing a shin-shihoushiken ( legal exam) would be around 80 percent. Guess what? It is now less than 30%. Also, a lot of people who go to law school would get a scholarship, which they will have to pay back in the future. The average amount of money is more than 7 million yen. I think this is too much of a burden. It is said that only rich people can become bars in the near future. This can be seen in Gakushuin too. Have you ever seen students wearing Armani clothes or Bvlgari watch in Chuo building? I think our country should rethink the system of law schools.
Thank you for reading!!
This is crazy. Too risky to become a lawyer it seems. And therefore must be unattractive to people who don't have the skill or luck to pass the exam. I thought the exam had actually become easier since there was an apparent shortage of lawyers a few years ago. But what you wrote is the opposite case.
ReplyDeleteDo I understand what you wrote correctly: if you fail the bar exam three times, you can't take it again or ever hope to be a lawyer? The test should be humanly possible and if only study zombies or hackers can pass the test, then I feel very uneasy about hiring one of these lawyers.
Ms. MacGregor
I also think the new system of law school is not so good. I like older one. Certainly as Ms. MacGregor stated above, the exam became a bit easier than older one. But the cost for becoming a lawyers is very expensive.
ReplyDeleteThe purpose of new system is for yielding various lawyers, but actually the students whose parents are rich can just try to become lawyers. It is unfair and there is difference between initial purpose and the result.
Motoki