Every profession has a risk, but if we talk about being a lawyer, for some people, this profession may not be desirable since it is related to crime. However, a lot of lawyers are successful even though we see that this job is hard. But, what is actually the hardest part about being a criminal lawyer? You are able to read about it below according to some online sources such as Legal Lee Blonde site and Chron site.
Many People May Not Like You
When you become a lawyer, you may find that some people have a negative perspective about you so that they do not like you. There may be some media that vilifies you and there is a general perception among the public that you help criminals to get away from their crime. When you become a lawyer, you will have to deal with a lot of negativities from outsiders about what you do.
As a defense attorney, you will deal with sensitive matters and tensions. So, you will deal with situations of clients which are melting down and afraid of you. Even you will encounter these situations from members of the prosecution sometimes. It may be difficult for you to deal with so that you need something that you can prepare for facing it.
You Will Deal with Challenging People
As a lawyer, you will have to deal with people who are challenging. You may deal with people with their mental health challenges, addiction issues or unresolved trauma. So, here as a lawyer, you need to have patience, compassion and empathy. It is because facing clients in tough situations with additional layers of emotional trauma and addictions can be emotionally draining.
As a lawyer, you may be in a situation where you feel that you are not safe sometimes. It can happen probably because your client has lost his temper and screams or even throws things. And even, there may be a situation where the victim’s family chases you and threatens you and this situation of course will make you not safe. However, if you have a support system, you will be able to deal with this situation.
You Have Time Commitment or Schedule
Since crime happens again and again, it means that lawyers will always have to deal with a number of cases on and on. When you are working in criminal law, you may get a lot of calls at night. Every time, people are arrested and they have a right to speak to their attorney. It means that as a lawyer, you have to be ready to wake up and talk to them anytime.
This job also requires you to work for more than 9 hours. It is because after work, you may have to help other people who work from 9 to 5 where they can only meet you after work which means that they may want to meet you at night to talk or consult about the case.
You Will Have to be Able to Do Other Different Jobs
Another hardest part of being a criminal lawyer is that you have to do things outside of jobs that you usually do. Often, you have to do the things that you did not learn. As a lawyer, you may have to be a social worker or therapist because you will be asked to help people in ways you are not trained for and you just need to do what you can while preparing them with the proper help that they need.
You probably will find a situation where you have to spend a lot of time finding temporary housing for people or setting them up with drug addiction treatment. It is a part of the job as a lawyer which is useful, but it can also be very frustrating.
You May Get Pressure and Stress from the Job
As a lawyer, you may have a number of cases that come to you and you are in a dilemma to decide how many cases that you are able to handle realistically. You may feel pressured by your boss because you have to take on new clients. If you are overwhelmed with cases, it can be hard. You may experience burn out if you consistently have to prepare for court at the last minute and stay up late to research and review dispositions, Above the Law suggests.
Your stress will be more severe if there is new evidence found. As a lawyer, you may have to spend hours at night after a day in court to research testimony and evidence and prepare notes for the next day. Let’s say that there is an innocent client who is not wrong and he or she is found guilty. If so, it will impact not only to the lives of the client but also to the client’s family and of course your reputation as an attorney.
How to Become a Criminal Lawyer
After you know the hardest part of being a criminal lawyer, do you still want to be a criminal lawyer? If so, it means that you need to know how to be a criminal lawyer. According to the Indeed site, here are the things that you have to go through to be a lawyer.
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- You need to complete higher secondary education and you have to appear for entrance exams.
- You need to complete an undergraduate course in law.
- You have to pass the bar exam.
- You need to pursue a postgraduate law degree.
- You need to pursue a doctorate degree in law.
- You have to get work experience.
If you want to know the details of each point above, you are able to access Indeed site directly.
So, how long does it take to be a criminal lawyer? On the Indeed site, it is explained that after you complete higher secondary education from a recognized board, legal studies can take you between 3 and 13 years. You also have to dedicate some time to clear the bar exam and get work experience. Here is the academic journey of being a criminal lawyer according to the Indeed site.
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- You have to complete a bachelor’s course in legislative law or an LLB degree for 3 years.
- You have to complete an integrated arts course or a BA LLB for 5 years.
- You have to complete postgraduate courses in law for usually 1 to 2 years.
- You have to take a PhD in law for around 6 years.
A bookworm and researcher especially related to law and citizenship education. I spend time every day in front of the internet and the campus library.
