Career Project

Career Project

Growing up, I was told many, many times that a great career choice for me would be to become a lawyer. Whether it was my public speaking skills, opinionated attitude, or self confidence, it seemed obvious that I would have much success as a lawyer. It always seemed to be an attractive idea, seeing as there are multiple lawyers in my family and quite honestly the money earned as a lawyer caught my eye. Lawyers are now and have been for a long time a basic necessity of society. This project allowed me to further explore the career, and helped me get a grasp on whether or not it would be a good choice for me.

History and Development

The earliest history of lawyers can be traced all the way back to Babylon in 1700 BC, when King Hammurabi established the first known written code of laws. From there, various empires and nations in different regions of the world all helped to develop the career of lawyers and culminate into what we see in legal systems today.

In ancient Rome, the use of lawyers was very common in court, but these early lawyers were referred to as advocates. Seen as just a friend helping out another friend, advocates were not paid at first. But as many of these advocates began to gain popularity and had successes in court, under-the-table payments were frequently made. A law enacted in 204 BC outlawed the payment of advocates, but this ruling was often neglected. Eventually though, advocates were allowed to be paid, and it became a prestigious and prosperous practice.

During the middle ages, however, the role of a lawyer was greatly altered. Now, lawyers were men who studied and recognized the canon law. The canon law was the laws of the church, so most of these lawyers served the Roman Catholic Ch...

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...clinations toward public speaking and social skills. This is where I find my greatest strength, and one of my main reasons for becoming a lawyer. Both women enjoy their private lives, as they now have moved up in the rankings and make considerable salaries and take time off as they please. Both enjoy the life of being a lawyer, and say that the educational process and tough work at the beginning are worth it in the end.

All in all, this project brought more insight to my idea of what being a lawyer is. I must say I have lost a little interest in the career. Many of the future economic and growth trends do not seem promising, and I can’t say I’m a huge fan of the rigorous work required to get there. For now, my options are open, but this project helped me to somewhat lessen the chances of one of my options and give me more to think about looking into other careers.