Careers in Law May Disillusion Some

Careers in law don't always live up to new lawyers' initial expectations.  An August 2000 Esquire article explored the issue of why graduates of Harvard Law School's Class of 1990 were quitting the practice of law in droves.  According to the article, Harvard law students in the Class of 1990 initially believed that their law degree would provide them with an enviable lifestyle filled with wealth, professional satisfaction, flexibility, and professional recognition.  Ten years later, however, less than half of the Class of 1990 apparently worked in law firms, and approximately twenty-five percent of those with entries in the class directory were no longer practicing law.  [See Robert Kurson, "Who's Killing the Great Lawyers of Harvard?" Esquire (August 2000) at 84.]