I am a licensed attorney, though frankly I wish I had gone a different route. Family law is nickels and dimes. Frankly anything where you are helping the people who need it most is not going to pay you anything. Look for corporate law work. It has the highest payout. Expect incredibly long hours (I averaged 65-75 per week) and burnout issues. I worked for two Fortune 500 companies and felt like I had sold my soul to the devil. Sorry to be so dramatic but I was not the only one who felt this way. The field is right for some people, but if money is the only thing you are looking for, consider computer science, investment banking or another high salary field. I was in it for just the money and an interest in helping people and I found that it was simply not possible. Plus, when you divide your 100k salary over an 80 hour work week you are not really making that much per hour.

If however, the legal field is your passion, I would do the following:

1. Take college courses in Pre-Law (political science). You do not need to major in it, I would actually recommend majoring in something else. Law schools like that.

2. Intern (paid and/or unpaid) at a law firm dealing primarily in corporate law (or the area you choose to be involved in). Do this during undergrad and law school.

3. If you cannot get into a first tier law school, do not bother. I know this sounds harsh, but there are far too many lawyers out there for the few jobs that are available. When my managing partner looked at resumes, if it wasn’t a first tier school he chucked it. I disagreed with him, but I saw the practice in quite a few places. This doesn’t mean you can’t get a job if you go into a lower tier school, it just means that it’ll be that much more difficult to find the right job. Absolutely DO NOT go into a 4th tier school or an unaccredited school. If you miss a first tier, I’d take the LSAT again and reapply. Don’t settle.

4. Back to the LSAT. Take the prep course. It is very important for getting into the right school and getting scholarship money. Most of my attorney friends are $100k or more in debt is student loans.

5. Make as many contacts in the legal field as you can. Start immediately. It is not how much you know but who you know.

Work hard and I am sure you will succeed in whatever you do. Good luck.

P.S. You may want to read "One L" by Scott Turow which looks into the horrors of law school. I found it to be a decent prep for what I endured.

I don’t think family law is the answer too much time involved and not much money. Civil is where the money is.

If you want to make money, you must first follow your passion, and then the money will follow.

Consider environmental law — it is certainly a growing field!