Summary: Law school students are flocking to human rights law. But are there jobs?
If you ask a bright-eyed law student what she wants to do after graduation, odds are good she’ll say, “Human rights law.”
Law students around the country are gunning to get into human rights law, and it’s no wonder. Human rights cases are some of the most popular and high-profile that a lawyer can take on. Plus you go home feeling good like you’ve done something good for the world. It’s nice work . . . if you can get it.
The Director of UCLA School of Law’s International and Comparative Law Program, Jessica Peake, says the specialty has become enormously popular even as law school applications decline. However, the growing interest doesn’t change the fact that hiring has remained flat and the practice area is extremely hard to get into.
Peake recommends that attorneys wishing to work in human rights obtain an LL.M. as a way of setting themselves apart from the competition.
Entering students think they know what the specialty entails. Peake says, “Law schools expose them to as many areas . . . as possible to prepare them.”
Peake describes how human rights law is a long-term, reactive specialty where attorneys tackle issues as they arise. A lot of human rights work is tied to the geopolitical climate, so demand can go up and down.
According to Peake, “There are so many ways to practice, not all of which are well-charted. . . .” She says it “really takes some innovation on the part of the lawyer.” The field requires creativity from even the most resourceful attorneys.
Human rights lawyers tend to work for governments, grassroots organizations, and organizations like the United Nations. Competition for these kinds of jobs promises to remain stiff for the foreseeable future.
Source: http://www.nationaljurist.com/content/human-rights-law-popular-even-job-market-remains-flat
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