I thought I’d blog a bit about what lawyers really do. There a number of misconceptions about law school, legal training, and what a lawyer actually does for clients.

There are also any number of mistaken impressions people have about the law and being a lawyer. Here’s an article I found that lists a few of those misconceptions.

The five myths listed in the article are as follows:

Becoming a lawyer is a guaranteed path to financial success. Um … nope! 🙂  I’d laugh, if it wasn’t so sad.

As a lawyer, I can eradicate injustice and affect [sic] societal change. Yeah, right. I’ll get to that after I cure the common cold.

If you read my law journal on Wattpad, you’ll see it was all I could do to pay the rent and malpractice insurance.

I will make a great lawyer because I’m good at arguing. Sounds good, but the truth is that it’s much better if you can reason. And get people to settle their differences.

Litigators lead a thrilling, high-powered, and glamorous life. Not even close. Most litigators are too busy preparing cases, trying cases, trying to settle cases, or collecting fees from deadbeats former clients.

The work of a lawyer is intellectually challenging. Ever had the pleasure of doing a document review for discovery? It can be challenging, but hardly intellectual. As the article points out, legal practice can be “intellectually rigorous, [but] much of the lawyer’s work is mundane and repetitive.”

Here’s a vlog in which I discuss other misconceptions about what lawyers do.

And that’s why I write about a fictional attorney! 🙂

You can try a sample chapter of my first Sam McRae mystery, Identity Crisis, if you click here and fill out the info.