Law Courses and questions.

UnitedFan31

I'm starting 5th year and thiking about studying law in college and there are a few questions I would like answered. Where are good places to study law, what points are required, and are there any subjects required for these courses. Also what is the difference between a solicitor and a barrister and would there be any difference in courses to study for these and which one tends to earn the highest income as money is a fairly big motivation for me(and what roughly does the income tend to be). Please don't start about picking a course I willl like rather than money as I loved business in juniour cert. Thanks in advance and any answers are greatly appreciated

T0001

UnitedFan31 wrote: »

Where are good places to study law?

Trinity is probably the most popular plus being in Dublin it's close to large law firms., but all college teach the same cirriculum, with maybe Trinity, UCD and UL as the more popular.

UnitedFan31 wrote: »

what points are required, and are there any subjects required for these courses.

-Minimum entry requirements: Irish Leaving Certificate

To be considered for admission to a degree course at the University you must:

Present six subjects, three of which must be at grade C or above on higher Leaving Certificate papers or at least grade C in the University matriculation examination (see below).

The six subjects above must include:

A pass in English.

A pass in mathematics (or foundation-level mathematics (see note 2)) and a pass in a language other than English
OR
A pass in Latin and a pass in a subject other than a language.

Notes:

1 A pass means grade D or above on ordinary or higher papers in the Leaving Certificate and grade D or above in the University matriculation examination.

2 Mathematics at foundation-level is acceptable for minimum entry requirements only, for all courses except nursing or midwifery courses. Irish at foundation-level is not acceptable for minimum entry requirements, course requirements or for scoring purposes.

3 Students may combine grades achieved in different sittings of their Leaving Certificate/Matriculation examinations for the purpose of satisfying minimum entry and/or course requirements, but not for the purposes of scoring.

Points for Standard Law Degrees 2014 ranged from 475 to 530

UnitedFan31 wrote: »

what is the difference between a solicitor and a barrister and would there be any difference in courses to study for these and which one tends to earn the highest income as money

Courses are the same for both as you don't choose which until you graduate and you choose.
Barristers tend to appear in Court (particularly the higher Courts) and to be experts in particular areas of law. Solicitors tend to do more office work, although they have the right to appear in all Courts. Most judges in the higher Courts are still barristers, although solicitors are increasingly being appointed as judges in the superior Courts. Barristers usually wear gowns in Court, except in FAMILY LAW and juvenile matters, but there is no longer a mandatory requirement to wear a wig. Barristers mostly operate from THE LAW Library and are sole practitioners. (The chambers system which exists in England is not officially used in Ireland.) In contentious matters, a barrister may currently be briefed only by a solicitor and may not deal directly with a member of the public. However, the Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011 includes proposals to change many of the ways law is practised in Ireland, including the limitations on direct access to barristers, multi-disciplinary partnerships and the regulation of THE LEGAL profession.

Barristers do not have firms. They are sole practitioners and do not employ interns or other legal staff and Solicitors work in firms and deal with the public.

Newly qualified solicitors can earn €40k (before taxes) [this is after you have done 2 years after your degree to qualify as a solicitor]

Experienced barristers earn between €55,000 and €110,000 a year. Can't find the rate for newly qualified barristers.

Working COnditions
BARRISTER
Travel: travel within a working day is a common feature, although it is relatively rare to travel or WORK OVERSEAS.
Working hours: frequent long, unsocial hours involving evenings and weekends, particularly for the newly qualified, despite courts sitting at regular hours during the day.
Location: most of the 2,000+ barristers in Ireland practise in Dublin, but approximately 100 practise in Cork and 130 in the rest of the country.

SOLICITOR
Travel: possible regular travel to meet with clients or to attend court hearings though much will depend on the practice. OVERSEAS TRAVEL is rare.
Working hours: can be long but normally Monday to Friday and not weekends unless self-employed.
Location: mainly in towns or cities throughout the country.
Opportunities for SELF-EMPLOYMENT: commonly possible.

UnitedFan31 wrote: »

Please don't start about picking a course I willl like rather than money as I loved business in juniour cert. Thanks in advance and any answers are greatly appreciated

Law and Business may be a good option for you. It is offered as a course itself in many universities. Point in TCD were 570 - HERE

and 445 in Maynooth
HERE

If you preferred tha Accounting side of Business then you could also do a course of Law and Accounting (sorry no link for that), it's usually about 540.

*Most B.A. Arts Degrees in universities offer Legal Studies + aniother subject for a 3 year degree (Other Law degrees are 4 years.) But you must complete a suplement 1 year course afterwards to cover Corporate Law. Points range from 300-360


TIP - Get involved with law-based student societies and law related groups such as European Law Students' Association (ELSA). Gain relevant work experience or an internship.


Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions

UnitedFan31

Thanks for that really helped. What are job opportunities like for solicitors?

T0001

UnitedFan31 wrote: »

Thanks for that really helped. What are job opportunities like for solicitors?

I think employment rate is 95% but I know alot of people go for International Law and get jobs abroad usually in the UK.

There's always someone looking for a solicitor

UnitedFan31

Does anyone know what the highest points has ever been to study law in trinity?

hullaballoo

T0001 wrote: »

I think employment rate is 95% but I know alot of people go for International Law and get jobs abroad usually in the UK.

There's always someone looking for a solicitor

I'm sorry but 95% is totally incorrect and I'm not sure where you've gotten that figure. Even during the boom years, qualified solicitors were never guaranteed work.

OP, I'd suggest you have a look at the Legal Discussion forum because it has been discussed at length there.

Realistically, it doesn't matter a damn where you do law ultimately but some of the bigger firms seem to lean towards graduates from recognised universities for not reason other than elitism, from what I can see.

T0001

hullaballoo wrote: »

I'm sorry but 95% is totally incorrect and I'm not sure where you've gotten that figure. Even during the boom years, qualified solicitors were never guaranteed work.

Apologies that should have been 85%

a0ifee

UnitedFan31 wrote: »

Does anyone know what the highest points has ever been to study law in trinity?

The highest it's been in trinity was 555 in 2004, it was 525 last year.

UnitedFan31

a0ifee wrote: »

The highest it's been in trinity was 555 in 2004, it was 525 last year.

Thanks!

Kieron Wood

The least I expect is that, if someone is going to quote my website, they should say so! http://irishbarrister.com/FAQs.html

spurious

Picking a course based on money rather than whether you will like it is very childish. You think you won't mind it, but thirty or forty years of a job you hate every single day will not be worth it no matter how much money you make.
But hey, don't listen to anyone with experience, you probably know it all.

Don't base any sort of decision on any subject at Junior Cert.. They are like Ladybird introductions, no real resemblance to the subjects at third level.

Investigate the job involved. Could you live with yourself knowing you had got a guilty person off a charge? Could you? It's not all Rumpole of the Bailey and fighting for what's right. Sometimes you are down there in the sewer with the scum who break into old people's houses, beat them up, rob everything they have and then your job is to keep them out of prison. Lovely job.

OK, maybe I am being overly negative, but for a job you will presumably be doing for life, think about it a bit more and do not choose it just because you think you will make money. If money is all you are interested in, there are many easier ways to make it.

Hulgerx10

spurious wrote: »

Picking a course based on money rather than whether you will like it is very childish. You think you won't mind it, but thirty or forty years of a job you hate every single day will not be worth it no matter how much money you make.
But hey, don't listen to anyone with experience, you probably know it all.

Don't base any sort of decision on any subject at Junior Cert.. They are like Ladybird introductions, no real resemblance to the subjects at third level.

Investigate the job involved. Could you live with yourself knowing you had got a guilty person off a charge? Could you? It's not all Rumpole of the Bailey and fighting for what's right. Sometimes you are down there in the sewer with the scum who break into old people's houses, beat them up, rob everything they have and then your job is to keep them out of prison. Lovely job.

OK, maybe I am being overly negative, but for a job you will presumably be doing for life, think about it a bit more and do not choose it just because you think you will make money. If money is all you are interested in, there are many easier ways to make it.

Most lawyers aren't involved in courtroom advocacy :rolleyes:

Everyone has a right to a defence anyways. Even the 'scum'.

spurious

Hulgerx10 wrote: »

Most lawyers aren't involved in courtroom advocacy :rolleyes:

Everyone has a right to a defence anyways. Even the 'scum'.

Absolutely, I am just suggesting the OP think a bit more about what doing a job just for the money might entail.