Giveback Time: Clerkships Available at Fort Lauderdale Law Firm

Law school is not an easy ride. It takes years of study to attain a Juris Doctor, and then there’s an additional hurdle to overcome: the bar exam.  The bar exam requires a grueling study period of twelve additional weeks after graduation with 60 to as many as 80 hours per week of stuffing one’s brain with as much legal minutiae as it can hold without exploding. It’s the equivalent of running a triathlon and then repeatedly hitting yourself in the face with a hammer in order to cross the finish line. 

Most attorneys will bond over the things they did to pass the bar exam – which has a 15 percent failure rate.

It’s not an option – a law school graduate cannot practice law without passing the bar in Florida. Moreover, failing the bar puts one into another months-long cramming session until exam time rolls around again while putting future employment on hold. 

Fun times!

And then there’s COVID

In light of the COVID19 crisis, there was a massive effort to create a secure online bar exam. A day before the test run of the software, glitches appeared and not only was the August 19th exam cancelled, but so was the full test run. Furthermore, this was the third postponement of the test – with the first cancellation due to the test moving online and the second delay due to the Florida primary. These postponements leave thousands of Florida law school graduates without a way to enter their profession until the new date for the exam is set sometime in October, then they will still need to wait for their grades. 

Needless to say, these graduates are not happy about it and plan to protest and petition. 

Exceptions to the Rule

In Florida, there isn’t currently an exception to get into the Bar without taking the exam. In some states, there is also a ‘supervised practice’ program in the works where graduates would be able to practice under the supervision of a bar-credentialed attorney. The crisis has even led to calls to abolish the bar exam altogether. However, it still leaves many more stranded in no-lawyer’s-land with offers of employment rescinded with many firms on a hiring freeze.

We Can Help

Until things are straightened out, Van Horn Law Group is offering clerkships at our Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach offices. Our practice areas are:

1. Personal and corporate bankruptcy
2. Student loan consolidation and litigation
3. Estate planning and asset protection
4. Foreclosure defense and loan modification
5. Debt consolidation and debt relief
6. Consumer law
7. Civil litigation

We do not normally hire clerks at this time of year, but until the bar exam is rescheduled, or a supervised practice program is put in place, get your career started here at Van Horn Law Group. Van Horn Law Group is a great place to work, where you’ll get to hone your skills and learn a specialty practice from the inside out. Get in touch and let’s get started on your career in law.