Northwestern California University School of Law - My Journey

[jsd]

Making a post because the forum says there is a reply that I can't see. Hoping making a post will "unlock" it for me.

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Yup, that worked.

If you're in California and you actually want to practice law, it's a good move.

There are some areas of law that would be very interesting to go into, but I'm not set on a total career switch that would justify this. It would be more of a hobby degree, which seems like a bad idea. I have friends and family who are lawyers, I know a decent enough about working in the field. I'm not exactly sure what the temptation is, but it's definitely pulling at me.

[gicts]

It looks like NWCA accepts transfer credits - has anyone explored if these would suffice?
lawshelf.com/coursewareview/

I tried asking about that, but the answer I received was "Unfortunately not, we can only accept transfer units from someone who was enrolled in a Law School J.D degree program."

...

I'm taking my 1L finals next week and (if I pass), I'm going to look much more into transfer credits.
With their accreditation, NWCA has seen a dramatic increase in students. They are extremely hands off and I would suspect that would be in part due to the rise in students to manage as well as, in typical lawyer fashion, never provide information they aren't required to

I wanted a cheap option to further my resume. Instead of going with an MBA which are a dime a dozen, I chose this JD as it seemed more applicable to help understand our complicated, modern lives. Keep in mind lawyers are very 'snobbish' about your education and you likely will not see many financially rewarding job opportunities with this caliber of degree. As such, if I can shave off a year or two of work, that'd be amazing.

Anna Alaburda graduated from Thomas Jefferson School of Law in 2008. Her lawsuit states even though she graduated with honors, she has been “unable to secure a full time job as an attorney.”

[jsd]

Yes agreed, if you're looking for a traditional law job or high paying, big law post JD experience, NWCU (or any non-ABA school) is the wrong fit. I think your "alternative to MBA" approach makes a lot of sense if you enjoy the material, though.

I appreciate the hands off approach, but also find them very responsive when I've asked for anything. Even through unofficial channels like the Slack, faculty has responded.

They're not going to accept any transfer credit from an institution not accredited either by ABA or CalBar, so LawShelf NCCRS credits are out.

You're also right about that law absolutely is still a field where educational prestige matters and matters huge. Like the Thomas Jefferson graduate you linked -- The school was ABA accredited at that time, but not a top ABA school so it doesn't matter. (Side note, she unsurprisingly lost her case against Thomas Jefferson SOL).

Good luck on your finals! I'm far behind you.

[gicts]

I appreciate the hands off approach, but also find them very responsive when I've asked for anything. Even through unofficial channels like the Slack, faculty has responded.

I agree they are responsive in some instances and will pick up the phone, but trying to float questions such as how does working remotely apply to 'licensed to practice in California' will be met with silence or being referred elsewhere.

I was also disappointed in the lack of notifications. A simple email drip campaign would be free to implement and keep students engaged. A monthly email that summarizes the syllabus and due dates would take less than a day to implement and could drastically increase retention. No one reminded me of my finals window and I nearly missed that opportunity. 

Professor Mike is a great example of who could benefit from NWCA. A seasoned 'big wig' looking for another notch on his belt who can be a great asset to the business to issue spot and work with a legal dept. Another avenue would be those looking to start their own firm.

Ray Hayden survived NWCA and the Baby Bar. His approach, notes(example), and audio have been invaluable.

[CM1999]

I'm going down a rabbit hole looking at law school options...I'm not sure if anyone knows the answer to this but I'll take a shot...

I'm in WA State and looking at Concord and NWCU and trying to figure out the path to the long term goal: bar acceptance in WA.
It seems like I would have to have active practice for 3 years in CA in order to apply to be accepted by the WA bar.

Does anyone know HOW someone gets the 3 years of "active practice" when they're out of state? and how much time it requires? (can it be very part time, or does it need to be full time?)

[resistk]

I'm going down a rabbit hole looking at law school options...I'm not sure if anyone knows the answer to this but I'll take a shot...

I'm in WA State and looking at Concord and NWCU and trying to figure out the path to the long term goal:  bar acceptance in WA.  
It seems like I would have to have active practice for 3 years in CA in order to apply to be accepted by the WA bar.

Does anyone know HOW someone gets the 3 years of "active practice" when they're out of state? and how much time it requires? (can it be very part time, or does it need to be full time?)

You don't need anything more than a single bar license under the "federal practice exception." You can also practice using a California virtual office address if you want an in state practice. Your problem is a fundamental misunderstanding of what "law practice" means in the 2020s. The lawyer that sits like spider in his office on Main Street waiting for the clients to come to them is a dying breed. Look into federal administrative law, trade law, immigration law, social security law, veterans disability, securities law, international law - all of these can be accomplished from anywhere.  For a California virtual law practice using Zoom, Skype etc just about an form of state law that does not require regular attendence in the courts is possible and many lawyers never go anywhere near a court room.

[AlvinG]

There's nothing wrong with a CALBAR JD if you're planning on actually devoting your life to California, and Law. For regular lawyers to make any money the economy has to be doing pretty well, because not everyone has money for court, and if they do they're likely going to hop on google and choose the person with the most reviews and highest stars. Starting out in any industry is hard, and starting out as an attorney is no different than starting out as a software engineer and sending out thousands of applications. The market is saturated. Monterey College of Law is the most official CalBar school, and it's respected. But, you go from getting a cheap NWCU degree to paying almost $100,000 for Monterey spread out over 4 years, they do payment plans, but you have to pay $2,050 a month. Monterey's name carries weight, and a lot of Judges/DA's/Prosecutors and criminal defense attorney's came from there.
If you're looking to be a high stakes Hollywood attorney, you better go to a Hollywood Law school with the bloodline to match, with a TV personality attitude and the dental work.

WA BAR is nice, because Washington as a state allows in-state applicants to do an apprenticeship under an attorney, and after 4-5 years they let you take the bar WITHOUT LAW SCHOOL. If you want the easiest way,, get into a Law School in Wisconsin, and the second you graduate you don't even take the Bar. They send off to the state and a few months later you're approved. Back to Washington, if you had a family member or friend who was an attorney "GO GET YOUR PARALEGAL." They would just sign off on your studying every week, and then at the end of the 4-5 years you'd just buy a Bar Prep course like everyone else does "including ABA students."
Keep in mind, any JD including ABA, you'll be testing in any new state and retaking the bar of that individual state. The laws are different in every state, and they expect you to know them. I know an Attorney who is Non-ABA in TN from Nashville School of Law. 200k+ every year, and has a 4 person firm. They do family law. There's plenty of money in divorces, and picture if you got into that in California? Cha-Ching $$$$. I asked him why he doesn't, and he said he'd prefer never to take another bar.

Even an extremely Low tier ABA school like Liberty university, is going to cost you $125,000 for 3 years before Rent/Food/Transportation and you'll have to go in person and move across the country.

[MFG]

As everyone knows, the school is accredited by the CA Bar, but is not ABA accredited.   Initially you can only practice in CA, but can also do Federal or Indian cases if you apply to those bars.  However, after you pass the bar and practice for a number of years you can apply for licensure in some other states.  ...(...)...the study plan is tough, but doable.

They have a formal and informal FB page and students are on Reddit too.

http://www.nwculaw.org

Class of 2026 

So did you return after withdrawing due to the COVID crisis? 
How are things going? Tips?
Thanks.