What kind of law practice is best suited for me?

I am interested in studying law. However, I have not been successful in finding sources that rate types of practices of law according to salary and hours worked per week. I would prefer not to work more than forty hours per week... but I also know that I will have law school loans to pay... can I have it all? Is there a type of law that I can work 40 hours or less per week, but still make money? Thanks for the input!What kind of law practice is best suited for me?
Coming out of law school, if you want to work a 40 hour week it can be done. You can go to work for the government somewhere, or the public defenders, or legal aid and will pretty much work the 40. But these are not the dream jobs of the aspiring affluent.



Going to a big firm will pay the big bucks. But they will work it out of you; billing 2000 hours a year (that would be 50 weeks at 40 hours a week) will usually take 60+ hours a week to achieve. And usually new associates at big firms work closer to 80 hours a week.



Did you ever read "The Firm"? Yes, that is likely the sweatshop hours you will work, but without most of those perks, if you want to go to the big firms.What kind of law practice is best suited for me?
idk, im not really sure who you are and how hard you work. maybe try a Lawyer.What kind of law practice is best suited for me?
If you don't want to work more than 40 hours a week then do not go into law. Even as a consulting legal advisor to the EU I worked a minimum of 80 hours a week and lived in hotels for three years.



Granted, it was some of the best hotels in Europe, but my private beach in Florida is better suited for me.
Tam, I've been a litigation assistant for 20 years. I've got some good news and some bad news for ya.



The good news is that, while you're in law school, you will be exposed to small helpings of different types of law - family law, torts, personal injury, corporate, tax law, etc. You may also want to work part-time while you are in law school as a clerk for a law firm in your area (many law students do so that they can learn how the local court system works firsthand and also how to research case law). After you graduate from law school you will be required to take your state's bar exam to obtain your license to practice law. Your first-year income will depend mostly on where you live and how well you did in law school.



The bad news is that there will more likely than not be many times when you will be asked to work more than 40 hours a week. A lot of attorneys work 6 days a week - they have to so that they can meet clients, catch up on their work, prepare in great detail for an upcoming trial on a big case, sometimes even negotiating a settlement on a case.



One of the best things I've ever heard an attorney say is that "I (the attorney) do not leave until the work gets done. There is no '9-to-5' in this business". Even though I am not an attorney, it's something I live by - and makes the firm I work for a more efficient and successful place.