Understand Your Rights. Solve Your Legal Problems
When most people think of a lawyer, they imagine someone who is able to provide them with legal advice and representation in court. However, there is a big difference between a lawyer and an attorney. Most people use the terms lawyer and attorney interchangeably, but there is a distinction between the two professions. In this article, we will discuss the differences between lawyers and attorneys so that you can be sure to hire the right professional for your needs.
The word lawyer can refer to anyone who has been trained in the law, whether they are licensed to practice or not. In contrast, the word attorney refers specifically to a lawyer who is licensed to practice law. So, all attorneys are lawyers, but not all lawyers are attorneys.
This distinction may seem like a small one, but it’s important to understand when you’re seeking legal assistance. If you need someone to provide you with legal advice or represent you in court, then you will want to hire an attorney. If you simply need someone to help you fill out paperwork or answer general questions about the law, then a lawyer may be sufficient. Lawyers typically provide general legal assistance, while attorneys usually specialise in a specific area of law.
Of course, there are also many different types of lawyers and attorneys, so it’s important to understand the specific type of legal assistance you need before hiring anyone. For example, if you need help with a real estate transaction, you would want to hire a real estate lawyer or attorney. If you are facing criminal charges, you would want to hire a criminal lawyer or attorney.
There are also many different specialties within the field of law, so it’s possible to find lawyers and attorneys who specialise in specific areas such as tax law, family law, or intellectual property law. When seeking legal assistance, be sure to ask about an individual’s experience and expertise so that you can be sure they are qualified to help you with your specific issue.
An attorney, on the other hand, is a lawyer who is licensed to practice law. In order to become an attorney, a lawyer must pass the bar exam in their jurisdiction. Once they have passed the bar exam, they are then able to represent clients in court and provide them with legal advice.
The process of becoming a lawyer or an attorney can vary from one jurisdiction to another, so it’s important to research the requirements in your specific area. However, most jurisdictions require lawyers and attorneys to complete four years of undergraduate study followed by three years of law school before taking the bar exam.
Private firms are businesses that provide legal services to clients. These firms can be small, with only a few lawyers, or large, with hundreds of lawyers.
The government employs attorneys to work for different agencies, such as the Department of Justice or the Environmental Protection Agency. Government attorneys typically handle cases that involve the government in some way, such as environmental regulations or tax laws.
Non-profit organisations also employ attorneys to help them with their legal needs. These organisations may be focused on a specific issue, such as civil rights or housing law. Non-profit organisations typically have limited resources, so they often rely on pro bono work from attorneys to help them with their cases.
If you’re not sure whether someone is a lawyer or an attorney, just ask! Most professionals will be happy to explain their qualifications and experience so that you can make the best decision for your needs. When choosing a lawyer or attorney, it’s important to consider their experience and expertise. Be sure to ask about their specific qualifications so that you can be sure they are the best person to help you with your legal needs.
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From spring 2023, the university’s current and former students will be able to apply for a six-month, full-time placement with the school’s pro bono centre. However, unlike similar opportunities offered by other law schools, students at BPP will be paid for their time.
BPP will initially offer five placements, though hopes to double its intake over the subsequent year. Selected students will either have already worked at BPP’s clinic or are able to demonstrate a “pro bono ethic."
Emma Blackstone and Lucy Wildig, joint heads of pro bono at BPP, commented: “With such an established, extensive legal advice provision, BPP Pro Bono Centre is in the ideal position to be able to offer QWE placements. We wanted these placements to be accessible and to be meaningful, which is why they are paid and why each placement is for six months.”
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ULaw will deliver its Bar Practice Course (NPC) and BPC LLM through an ongoing collaboration with Newcastle University. The first group of barristers will begin their studies in September of this year, following approval from the Bar Standards Board (BSB).
Dr Jonathan Galloway, Head of Newcastle Law School, commented: “I am delighted to see that our partners at The University of Law have secured Bar Standards Board approval to run a new Bar Practice Course from the Newcastle University campus from September 2022.”
“This expands on an already very successful partnership between our respective Universities for the benefit of our current and future students, as well as other aspiring barristers in the North East and those that want to study here. I know that this new course will be a success and more importantly I know it will provide an excellent educational experience for our next generation of barristers,” Galloway continued.
ULaw and Newcastle University began their partnership in March 2021, offering the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) as well as Legal Practice Course (LPC) and several prep courses for the Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE).
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Technology is changing the way we live and work, and this too is having an impact on the legal sector. Just like any other profession, being a lawyer has changed drastically over the years and legal tech lies at the forefront of this. It boosts efficiency and productivity, but technology can also be used to record information, keep data safe, and save time with legal document automation. Thanks to legal tech, tasks like creating business agreements and setting up share options schemes for companies can now be completed much more efficiently. This saves a lot of energy that lawyers can rather use on more complex tasks.
In the last year alone, 35% of law firms have brought in new technology and 55% have improved their use of existing technology. If students want to keep up in the industry, they need to show a willingness and understanding to adapt to these innovative times.
It's not just external materials and processes that are benefiting from new technology either. The legal work environment as a whole is being improved, thanks to technology that is only likely to benefit students when they graduate. Now, a lot of training and resources are easily available online and a number of PLC law firms are using technology to boost the employee experience. This includes easy-to-use internal systems for HR, project management and remote work and collaboration. Naturally, these are all aimed at making the lives of employees easier and there's likely to be more developments in this area in the near future.
Depending on whether you’re specialising in a certain field, a typical law degree in the UK covers academic studies of legal theory with the application of law in real-life situations. This includes courses on public law, criminal law and company law, as well as those legal issues relating to property, human rights and the environment.
Up until now, optional digital courses relating to law degrees have been available. Most notably, in 2018, Manchester University revealed the first legal technology course that combined classroom study with an app-building course that was to be used by legal non-profit organisations. Fast forward to the present day, however, and hundreds of students are now studying a digital skills course, which will be a requirement as part of ongoing undergraduate law degrees.
While CILEX Professional Qualifications, which enables students to qualify as lawyers without a legal degree, introduced a compulsory technology course last year, this digital skills course is new for Manchester Metropolitan University. Talking about the first partnership between a UK law school and the US training firm Procertas, Manchester Met’s strategic lead for education, Dr Kryss Macleod said the course would mainstream legal tech.
As one of 13 compulsory courses for undergraduate law students, the course combines practical training with theory and analysis of current legal tech. Students will be taught how to use Microsoft Word’s contract features, as well as Excel and Powerpoint for law. All students will have to achieve either qualified or expert status in order to pass.
Legal tech gives students the opportunity to think about future practices of law, the business of law and how law firms work and behave. Not only does it allow students to get to grips with technology and processes that support and replace traditional legal methods, but it could help to improve overall operations - both internally and externally.
Amanda Hamilton, CEO of the National Association of Licenced Paralegals (NALP), discusses some of these obstacles and the potential alternative offered by a career as a paralegal.
In the past, if an individual was completing a qualifying law degree, it signified that they were intending to go on and sit professional examinations to be a solicitor or barrister. This was the prerequisite qualification in order to do so. This is no longer necessarily the case today for several reasons.
Firstly, the cost of enrolment onto the post graduate professional exams has been increasing over a period of twenty years and, consequently, is out of the range of affordability for most.
Secondly, the lack of training contracts – a prerequisite to qualifying as a solicitor – due to so many graduates flooding the sector. For similar reasons, the lack of pupillages available for those wanting to qualify and practise at the Bar.
Thirdly, the introduction of the new SQE (Solicitors’ Qualifying Exam).
Fourthly, the virtual eradication of legal aid in 2013, which has resulted in limited access to justice at a reasonable cost for consumers.
Below, we will look at each element in detail.
In order to accommodate the increasing number of graduates entering the sector, the SRA permitted a number of institutions to apply for a licence to deliver the LPC (then referred to as the Solicitors’ Final Examinations). In 1980 there were four running the course, but in 2010 the number offering the LPC had increased to 42. In an effort to make this work economically, institutions started to accept applications from graduates who perhaps should not have been encouraged to apply for the professional examinations. Consequently, the numbers seeking training contracts increased exponentially. Paying for a law degree and then for their LPC with no chance of moving forward due to the lack of training contracts quite rightly caused grave concern to those who had been encouraged to take this route.
Meanwhile, instead of a decrease in the cost of the LPC, which would be a logical course of action, given the number and choice of institutions running the same, the cost of the LPC was increasing year-on-year. The crucial time came around 2013 when, after much debate and discussion, the LETR (Legal Education and Training Review) was published. In that review, it was admitted that the cost and time factor to qualify was inaccessible and unacceptable for many, and that changes to the route to qualification were recommended.
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Even then, it took the SRA five years or so before announcing its intention to create the new SQE (Solicitors’ Qualifying Examinations), and a further three years before finally announcing when the first examinations would take place. We have yet to see whether this new route to qualification – described as being a ‘more accessible’ route to qualifying as a solicitor – is, in fact, just that.
In April 2013, a few months before the LETR was published, legal aid was drastically changed. It had been an important element of consumers’ access to justice: the ability to offer free, or reduced cost, legal advice and assistance that had been in place since 1949. The reason given for the change was to reduce the legal aid bill by introducing strict restrictions on those who would be able to apply for legal aid. This has had the effect of excluding all save those involved in urgent cases, such as being made homeless or losing one’s liberty.
Without a shadow of a doubt, this change has put consumers’ access to justice at stark risk, since without legal aid they are unable to afford the fees of solicitors and barristers. With solicitors charging between £250-£600 per hour for their services and barristers £200-£400 per hour, it is no wonder. As a result, a gap opened in the provision of legal assistance for consumers at a reasonable cost. It is true to say that there are currently many more solicitors and barristers offering their services on a pro-bono basis to try to counteract the deficiency, but the profession is unable to sustain this indefinitely.
The consequence of all this is that the paralegal profession has developed to fill that gap. Until now, paralegals were seen as low-paid assistants for solicitors and nothing more than law graduates seeking that ever-elusive training contract to qualify as solicitors. In other words, ‘wannabe’ solicitors. In practice, this is certainly not the case. Many law graduates have since discovered that, with a little further training and several years’ experience, they can offer their services to consumers at a vastly reduced cost. Most paralegal practitioners may charge anywhere between £30-£80 per hour depending on the nature of services required. Many will offer a fixed fees for certain other services.
Without a shadow of a doubt, this change has put consumers’ access to justice at stark risk
The fact is that paralegals do not just work with solicitors. Paralegal roles are available in every organisation as long as there is a legal requirement to be fulfilled. Even premiership football clubs have paralegals working in their in-house legal departments!
The conventional legal professions may argue that these individuals are not fully trained and are not regulated like solicitors and barristers are. It is true to say that paralegals are not statutorily regulated, but their route to qualification is either very similar to that of the two regulated professions or, in some cases, exactly the same. Furthermore, there is a voluntary regulatory body that encourages membership for those that wish to practise. It also issues Licences to Practise, but only after strict eligibility criteria are adhered to. Advice is offered to consumers about how to check the status of any person claiming to be a paralegal before instructing them.
Furthermore, solicitors do not hold the monopoly on good practice just because they are statutorily regulated. This is clearly evidenced by looking at the annual statistics from the Legal Ombudsman.
Paralegals are trained and educated to perform legal tasks and offer advice and assistance to consumers. Many have law degrees, and some are even ex-solicitors or non-practising barristers. Others may have qualified by successfully completing nationally recognised paralegal qualifications. The point is that with a law degree, graduates now have another career pathway into the legal sector. Paralegals are now the fastest-growing sector within the legal profession.
Of course, there are some activities that paralegals cannot perform, and these remain the monopoly of solicitors. These are the reserved activities as defined by the Legal Services Act 2007. The two most relevant are that there is no automatic right of audience and that paralegals cannot conduct litigation. However, in practice, some of these reserved activities are being eroded by the courts in order to allow access to justice. Every paralegal that joins the voluntary regulatory body NALP (National Association of Licensed Paralegals) is very much aware of these restrictions.
From a consumer’s perspective, it is a bit of a minefield to know whether the person who offers legal assistance is bona fide. Anyone can call themselves a ‘paralegal’ since the profession is not statutorily regulated. It is, therefore, imperative that a consumer checks the paralegal’s credentials and status before instructing them. Knowing that a paralegal is a member of NALP is a benchmark for this, since due diligence is undertaken on all members from Associate membership and Graduate membership and above. Certainly, when it comes to granting a licence to practise, strict criteria are imposed – including the requirement to have PII in place before making a licence application.
Amanda Hamilton, Chief Executive
National Association of Licenced Paralegals (NALP)
Brixton Rd, Vassal, London SW9 6DE
Tel: +44 0207-112-8034
Twitter: @NALP_UK
Amanda Hamilton is Chief Executive of the National Association of Licenced Paralegals (NALP), a non-profit membership body and the only paralegal body that is recognised as an awarding organisation by Ofqual (the regulator of qualifications in England). Through its Centres around the country, accredited and recognised professional paralegal qualifications are offered for those looking for a career as a paralegal professional.
Whether you’re struggling with your studies, or you’re simply looking for some extra advice on how to thrive, here are 5 tips for succeeding at law school in 2022.
Many law degree programmes offer several options for students to choose from, which can prove to be both a blessing and a curse. If you’re unsure as to which topics are right for you, there are four key questions to consider:
“Speak to students who have already taken the options you are interested in to get some first-hand feedback on the experience. You could also speak to the relevant course leaders and find out what they are looking for from students on their option,” recommends Emma Jones, lecturer in law and member of the Open Justice team at the Open University.
“Thinking carefully about what you are choosing and why is a great first step to achieving the best marks you possibly can in your chosen subjects.”
There is no easier way to fail law school than regularly missing classes and/or turning up to class without a clue as to what’s going on. While doing the reading and prepping the night — or a few days — before might feel like a slog at the time, it’ll be well worth it in the end when it enables you to get the most out of your classes.
To come out with the best grades you possibly can, you should consider your university studies as a full-time job, with the average first-year law student studying for around 30 - 40 hours per week. Dedicating a reasonable proportion of these hours to prepping at the start of the week will make the rest of your study hours flow much more easily.
“Very few professional development concepts are as divisive as the subject of networking. Most of the lawyers – newly-qualified, as well as the veterans in the profession – agree that a well-developed network of contacts is vital for effective personal marketing,” says Alisa Grafton, Partner at Cheeswrights. And the same advice goes for law students.
Attempting to network while simultaneously completing a law degree may seem like a daunting prospect, but it’ll help you build up new acquaintances within the legal sector, discover new career opportunities, and build up the relationships that may just help you land your dream role right out of university. Furthermore, networking in law school can help you establish better connections with your fellow students, enabling you to form study groups and seek peer support if you ever find yourself in need.
Cramming revision in before an exam is no way to secure top grades — but neither is following a revision strategy that you don’t truly gel with.
“If you’re one to put hours into revising for an exam only to be disappointed with the results, then you may need to rethink your revision methods. You could be wasting time on inefficient techniques,” says Bradley Busch, a registered psychologist and director of InnerDrive. “You get people putting in lots of effort, but not in a directed way.”
While some people thrive in a study group, others are best revising alone. And some might find that a split between the two is the perfect strategy for them. Completing practice exam papers, reading over class notes, making flashcards, memorising facts by saying them out loud, and drawing up mind maps are all great revision techniques to test out. Trialling out these different revision strategies might take time, but finding the ones that work for you is a crucial step to getting the grades you deserve.
Admitting that you’re struggling can be really tricky, but it’s an important step to take as it enables you to seek out the support you need. Most law schools and universities have at least one professional academic support person who you can easily reach out to via email or by popping into their office. You can also reach out to your professors for support and advice.
“Your professors can be your biggest and best mentors, resources, and champions. The opportunities to learn from them extend far beyond the classroom too,” says New England Law.
Ask for further feedback on your past essay and exam performance. Ask for clarification on anything you don’t quite understand. Ask your peers for guidance — especially those who are currently achieving above you.
Securing your desired grades at law school can feel like a monumental challenge but, with these 5 tips, it’s one you can easily live up to.
Networking has always been an important part of every person’s social and professional life. With the help of networking, we make new acquaintances, discover career opportunities, make partnerships, and achieve a whole range of other goals.
Networking is an important element of success, so the earlier you start practising it, the more benefits you can eventually get, and your years in law school are the perfect timing for it. If you are a legal student, read on to learn more about the available networking opportunities and the best way to use them.
Before we move on to actionable networking tips, let us tell you a few words about how to get started and where to look for the right opportunities. First and foremost, it is worth noting that networking is surely a time- and energy-consuming process. Effective networking is never as simple as just starting a random conversation with a stranger. It takes time and, thus, busy law school students may find it rather hard to carve out enough time for it.
If that’s your case, a good solution would be to enlist the help of a professional paper writing service. As you should know, academic writing and homework take the largest part of a student’s time. Thus, if you need more free time to seek and use the right networking opportunities while still in school, you might want to have someone who can help you take care of your assignments.
After you find yourself a good essay writing service that you can rely on to cope with your academic tasks, the next thing to take care of before you start networking is finding the right opportunities. And that’s where it can get tricky. The issue is that most students simply don’t recognise the right opportunities, so let us give you a few ideas here.
While studying in a law school, you can find the following networking opportunities:
These are just a few of the many networking opportunities that can be found in a law school. So, be sure to use them all. And now, let’s move on to the tips for making the most of these opportunities.
1. Have A Plan
The first rule of effective networking is to always have a plan. Of course, you can easily make new connections without any plan, but if you actually want those connections to benefit you or your future career, you should at least have a clearly defined purpose. Otherwise, all your attempts will go in vain.
So, how to develop a plan? To get started, outline your expectations and goals. Think about what you are looking to achieve with your networking. Maybe you are planning a startup and want to find future potential clients for it, or maybe you are hoping to get a summer associate’s job.
At this stage, try to define a clear and measurable goal. Once you have it, write it down and break it into smaller steps that will take you towards that goal. This will be the strategy of your networking.
2. Always Do Research
The second rule of effective networking is to always do some research to know who you are trying to connect with. If you research your potential acquaintances well, this will give you a solid grounding for finding the best points of contact with them. As a result, it will be easier and faster to make those connections.
The easiest way to research your potential colleagues, employers, or clients is to go online. Use social media, and especially professional networks like LinkedIn, to learn more about them. Focus on their interests, experience, values, and latest news.
3. Make A Killer Elevator Pitch
Regardless of the goal or networking opportunity you are going to use, you will only have one shot for introducing yourself and making a good impression on your new acquaintances. Thus, if you want to make the most of networking, you have to prepare a killer elevator pitch.
The elevator pitch can be a short message or a concise speech that will introduce yourself and explain your value. It is exactly what it sounds like - people typically think of it as if they get in an elevator with another person and have to tell who they are until they reach the needed floor.
Your pitch should be short, clear, straight to the point, and, at the same time, engaging to let you make the best first impression possible. So, take your time to prepare your pitch before you get out there and start networking. And, be sure to stay away from cliches or a simple “I’m a lawyer.”
4. Network Like It’s Your Job
Finally, one last tip we have for law students is to start networking like it’s your job. Networking opportunities are everywhere, and you don’t want to miss a single one. After all, the more you try, the more connections you can make, and the better you get at it.
With these tips, each of you can start networking like a pro while still being in law school. So, don’t hesitate to start using them right now, and you will see how many doors networking can open for you.
The prospect of going to law school is not only one that requires a lot of hard work and money but also some thorough research. As with any other profession, while some grads can easily embark on to their successful careers, others might find themselves struggling to find a job. As such, you need to be fully aware of how choosing to study law and your choice of school can affect your future. Here are nine things that you need to know beforehand.
Not everyone who goes to law school wants to work as an attorney. So the first thing is to figure out if you are interested in the legal industry or the profession. This is crucial because there are numerous jobs in the field that do not require you to have completed a JD. You can work as a communications manager, marketing, or even as a consultant.
Moreover, many aspirants have the wrong impression of how their life after graduation would be, thanks to 'Law & Order' or 'Suits.' In reality, you are more likely to find yourself working incredibly hard, trying to keep up with the reading materials, and relying on a professional paper writing service like WritePaper to complete your assignments. And whether or not you find a job and how lucrative your career would be will depend largely on the job market. Graduates from only around 35 law schools among the 197 in the country reported earning a six-figure salary. For others, life after graduation might not be as glamorous as you might have expected it to be.
Many students also join law school without realising which type of law they would like to practice. For instance, you could specialise in a wide variety of fields:
Knowing which of these areas you prefer or want to focus on will help you use it to your advantage in the admission process. These days, it is paramount for you to tailor your application, and if a particular college is known for a specific type of law degree, then it would be wise for you to mention that as a reason to choose the school.
There is no question that pursuing a law degree in one of the top-ranked colleges can offer a competitive edge in the job market. And as such, this can heavily weigh on the decision-making process.
However, it is important to understand that factoring in one ranking list cannot offer you sufficient insight into a school's value. It is only a single piece of the puzzle. Instead, you should look at a variety of factors, such as the programs offered, bar passage rates, and student bodies. These statistics can provide you with more information about your chances of landing a job when you graduate.
The tuition and other expenses can vary widely depending on the school you choose. For instance, an institution's status as a private or public university can have an impact on the expenses, and whether you are attending full-time or part-time can also make a huge difference. Regardless, law school can be costly. However, choosing a college only because it costs $10k or $20k might not be wise. You should pay attention to what the university is offering and whether it's worthwhile to invest so much.
Those who require financial aid should also keep an eye on financial aid deadlines, negotiate the packages and apply for scholarships. Some colleges even give you the opportunity to receive generous scholarships that cover the entire law school fees.
Unfortunately, while some institutions are quite diverse, others might have small percentages of minorities. If you are a minority applicant, it would be better to contact other minority law students to understand the ambiance of the college.
No matter what the website portrays, you need to get firsthand information from a student of the college. Minority students can identify themselves as minorities when submitting the application; this can be viewed as an advantage in the admissions process. You should also consider submitting a diversity statement.
One of the most important factors that students often overlook is the importance of class sizes. In fact, this can determine how you spend your time in law school. For instance, smaller class size can get you individualised attention.
You will interact more in the class, especially considering that many law professors use the Socratic method and encourage discussion in class. A smaller class size might also make it easier for you to find student organisations.
That said, large class sizes might offer you other advantages. For instance, you will be able to network with a larger pool of students. This will increase your chances of finding classmates with like-minded interests. Moreover, this also means bigger alumni, which can be beneficial for finding work in the future. But it will also instil fierce competition. And if you are able to graduate in the top 10% of the class, this can be more valuable to the employer's eyes.
For the majority of students, location is one of the key factors that come into play when choosing a law school. This is also practical in many ways. If you attend law school in the region where you want to work, you can start investing in your career sooner. For instance, you can build a network that is critical to finding employment. Some students also might want to go to a law school in their own state for the proximity of their homes.
There is no point in choosing a prestigious school if you think you will not fit there. It certainly carries weight to say that you graduated from the Ivy League uni, but the most important factor is that you feel comfortable there. And what better way to find this out other than to talk to the students. Thanks to the internet, you can easily find student forums to reach out to contacts. You can even read reviews about professors and how their classes are, so you can choose the courses wisely. This step can offer you some unparalleled insight into the culture of the law school, giving you a clear picture of what to expect.
Lastly, you should find out your prospects of landing employment before choosing a law school. Most students receive a pre-placement offer during their internship, and you must choose a location where you can easily find opportunities.
Good law schools would also have partnered with companies to hire their students. This will give you a priority and better chances than hunting for a job by yourself. So it would be a good idea to see if your chosen college has a dedicated placement cell that can help with your internships.
Once you have figured out what you are looking for in a law school, you will have a better idea of shortlisting your choices. You can then spend your energy crafting a well-tailored application that focuses on your aspirations
Bethany Yeiser, founder of the CureSZ Foundation, speaks to Lawyer Monthly about the importance of working with mental healthcare professionals and developing an understanding of how mental illness diagnoses and treatment options often intersect with the law.
When I was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2007, I was certain my psychiatrist was wrong. I viewed schizophrenia as an emotional disease, a sign of personal weakness, and indicative of a flawed personality. I was unaware that schizophrenia is in fact a treatable disorder of the brain characterised by physiological changes in the prefrontal cortex and a chemically abnormal limbic system.
The initial antipsychotic medication that I took had severe side effects while not eliminating the voices in my mind. I discontinued this medication, which led to my second hospitalisation. Fortunately, the psychiatrist I met at the hospital threw me a lifeline: he explained that the right medication might enable me to return to my university studies.
Prior to schizophrenia, I was a biochemistry and molecular biology major and scholarship winner at the University of Southern California. The possibility of returning to school led me to become compliant with treatment.
I spent the next year trying different antipsychotics with very little success. The side effects of some of these medications included sleeping 16-18 hours a day, weight gain, muscle rigidity, anhedonia and akathisia. Finally, in 2008, I saw a new doctor, Henry Nasrallah, MD, who was passionate about my recovery, and willing to do whatever it took to get me back to life.
My hallucinations virtually disappeared when I began a medication called clozapine for treatment-resistant schizophrenia. In 2009, I enrolled at the University of Cincinnati where I completed my bachelor’s degree in molecular biology with a 3.83. In 2014, I published my memoir Mind Estranged, to document my journey from schizophrenia and homelessness to recovery. Dr Nasrallah and I established the CURESZ Foundation in 2016 to educate and help patients, families, healthcare professionals and the public understand schizophrenia and how to successfully cope with it and even recover from it.
One of the first people to read my memoir was a University of Cincinnati Law School Professor. This professor invited me to share my journey with his law students studying the intersection of psychiatry and the law, every fall semester. According to the American Bar Association, law firms value “soft skills” and being able to hear from someone with lived experiences first-hand may help law students empathise with this community, improve their sought-after skills and prepare for their professional work. I’m fortunate to help his students navigate such a complex and nuanced space and have been pleased to meet with his students eight times. There are several key messages I share with his students every year. Here are a few:
People with schizophrenia generally need an antipsychotic throughout life to correct the chemical imbalance inside the prefrontal cortex and in the limbic system. There is usually no diet, exercise regimen or other life changes that can wholly eliminate psychotic symptoms such as delusions and hallucinations.
I remember attending a dinner party years back where a law student suggested that people who hear voices are culpable for their behaviour because they can choose to do what the voice is saying or choose not to. This was not my experience. If I had been able to simply ignore the voices in my mind, I may have never been diagnosed with schizophrenia.
Though they are vastly overrepresented. In 2006, after dropping out of the University of Southern California, I found myself wandering aimlessly around the campus, homeless, looking for discarded food to eat. I was delusional and convinced that since I would win a Nobel Peace Prize, become a prophet and be awarded billions of dollars, I was welcome to search for discarded food. On October 16-18, 2006, I found myself in jail for allegedly trespassing on the same campus where I had once attended classes.
My experience in jail was different from anything I had imagined. I was locked in a cell made for one or two women, with three or four other people. Most of the rooms where I was incarcerated were pitch dark. I remember having fifteen minutes to sit in a small room with some translucent light coming through the roof, before being taken back to the cell with no light. And despite being acutely psychotic while incarcerated, I was never evaluated or offered mental health services.
The incarcerated mentally ill will more commonly exhibit behavioural problems, leading them to be held in solitary confinement. Solitary confinement can be a horrible experience for any person, but it is even more debilitating for people who are mentally ill.
When I was picked up by police on March 3, 2007, and taken to a hospital for the first time, my doctor determined that I was permanently and totally disabled after observing me for about 36 hours. He predicted I would never work again, attend college classes, or live independently.
The belief that persons with schizophrenia do not recover is prevalent in the public, and unfortunately, I have seen it in the medical community and even among psychiatrists. The assumption is that people with schizophrenia generally do not recover so why put forth the effort? My first psychiatrist never even considered underutilised and cutting-edge medications. But today, there is hope. My recovery is not the exception to the rule. The CURESZ Foundation features 32 stories of people thriving despite schizophrenia, and there are so many others I have yet to meet.
Lack of schizophrenia education is prevalent in our society, and it is imperative that we communicate relevant information to our medical students and law students. Every medical and law student should know that people with schizophrenia are ordinary people afflicted by a biological illness with the potential to recover.
My hope is that we will raise up a generation of leaders who will better understand the mentally ill population, reject labels and stigma, and fight for justice for the marginalised.
I have always found law fascinating. Reading about how the government creates legislation to the way courts operate has always captivated my attention. However, it wasn’t until I reached my 20s that I decided I wanted to be a part of this legal system, to play my part in the bigger picture, to offer something back to society, and develop and learn at the same time.
I think the law is ideal for me, as I have enjoyed studying it so far and frequently visiting courtrooms.
Being the first in my immediate family to go to university, not having a lot of money, or being well off and living with a long-term health condition are just some of the obstacles I have endured during my studies. It makes life harder, but it also makes it more rewarding. I know that I have the drive and determination to do well. I completed my LLB with the Open University and it was the best choice I made.
Having that flexibility to work when I chose was ideal as I could fit it around some of these challenges. As I have moved onto the bar course I have quickly realised the biggest challenge is doing the work and making sure I understand it. Anyone with long-term health conditions will struggle at times but that doesn’t deter me. It’s good to have a strong support network and to prioritise your mental and physical well-being. Eat healthily, be active, and have a social life.
This is my day when I attend campus for my bar course classes –
7:00am – I wake up at 7 am, nice and early to catch the sunrise and then I’ll get ready for the day. I’ll have breakfast with something caffeinated, usually green tea or similar, and then boot up the laptop and make sure that my mobile is charged for the day.
I read through my emails as I may have missed something important from the day before. I also like to have a read on Legal Cheek and check Linkedin for any relevant and interesting articles. During this time, I might save an article for later on in the day. I will also check my university email address and my daily calendar which is online so that I am aware of what is happening today.
I pack my bag, taking notebooks, pens, highlighters, and sticky notes for the white book! I pack my white books in my suitcase if it’s a civil litigation day, along with my folder of casework. I get the train around 8 am and get into Manchester around 8:30. During my train journey, I will read a book for a short duration, anything that I may pick up from my bookshelf.
8:30am to 9:00am – I have had about 30 minutes from arriving on campus to class so that has given me time to unpack my books and folder and grab another drink if needed. Depending on what is required I may use the library to print off work or to check a case or statute, or anything that might be relevant to the class. I will then do some more reading, usually something from the white book that is required during the session, and highlight where appropriate.
Civil litigation class lasts 2 hours. The white books (civil procedure rules) are used quite extensively during these sessions, so taking notes is essential, and making sure to bookmark important pages is even more so.
11am – The class will break at 11:00 am for 15 minutes.
I can get yet another drink, although it won’t be caffeinated as it can become a habit at this point. I’ll be reviewing notes from litigation and making sure that they are in order for when I get home to consolidate. Any questions or queries can be answered by the course lead, tutor, or personal tutor.
It’s important to ask lots of questions and engage during the class as it is easy to get overwhelmed with the readings, and being able to understand the material can be a challenge.
11:15am to 1:15pm – Civil skills will also last for 2 hours. Skills sessions are workshops in which students can engage with the practical aspects of the litigation they have learned. For civil this could be drafting particulars of claim or opinion, for criminals, it could be preparing a bail application or cross-examining a classmate. These sessions require a suit, so I have to wear one and if I don’t then it could result in a little bit of trouble.
These sessions are quite fun, regardless of what is being studied. It’s another chance to get practical experience, feedback and to learn and grow as a group. You get to learn more about yourself and how you work. The only downside is that there is not enough, in my opinion, there should be another skills session workshop in the week.
The class may finish early, but most of the time… it finishes on time. This allows plenty of time in the day to go away and consolidate or review what has been taught and hopefully learned. I will set off back to the train station as I like to complete my consolidation at home. If I need to, I can head to the local library for some peace and quiet, taking my laptop with me.
2:00pm – I usually get home around 2 pm. I unpack my books and notes and I’ll spend half an hour reviewing what has been written, any information that might be missing, and then I will log onto the university site and begin the consolidation tasks. That may include further reading, an activity like completing some test questions, or a short piece of work. Consolidation takes me another 30 minutes to 45 minutes.
3:00pm to 5:00pm – I will review all my emails again, have another check of Linkedin and look through law blogs and sites for more articles. I then use this time to go over any mooting work I have to do – at the moment working on a human rights moot.
I’ll check the status of my mini-pupillage applications if possible, and I’ll try and find one I can apply to for the following day, I like to have a fresh mind when I apply, so try and separate this from consolidation. Usually, I will have other events planned, like virtual talks by law firms, or maybe a qualifying session to look forward to.
I’ll always try and find something to fill my time. Recently I applied to volunteer with Greater Manchester Police and was successful in being called for an interview, so I will have to see how that goes. I like to start to unwind by going for a walk and maybe calling or texting a friend or family member.
5:00pm – By 5 pm I will have completed the tasks for the day and will have entered a relaxed state where I can focus on my wellbeing. Planning a meditation session or booking to attend a yoga class is a good idea, something my university now offers. I can’t quite help myself and will have a look at the preparation for the next class, something that I’ll most likely do.
Embarking on the bar course has been such a big and difficult decision. I have met some incredible people in my classes and the university had been providing a good course so far. I do intend to apply for a pupillage, but for now, my goals include first, completing the course.
I like to see myself successfully passing the course and gaining pupillage and within 2 years be working within a law environment where my skills will be well utilised.
Not law-related, but I intend to continue writing and developing my blog which has gained quite a following over the last few years. This is something I enjoy. I believe it is important to enjoy yourself instead of focusing on one point or one goal, otherwise, you get consumed and end up with nothing else.
This article was originally published on our Jobs partner website: simplylawjobs.co.uk
