Can't Get a Job? Sue Your Law School

I am still bemused by an article I read in the Wall Street Journal; a few weeks ago which detailed two lawsuits filed by graduates of Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Michigan and New York Law School. The plaintiffs, graduates of the two schools, are suing the schools for allegedly distorting the employment records of their graduates. The suits seek tuition refunds and damages. All of this seems ironic to me. Lawyers can’t get jobs so they sue their law schools. Everybody knows that there are too many lawyers but can we really say that is the intentional fault of the law schools? I don’t remember my law school promising me anything other than to teach me “to think like a lawyer” (or was that Professor Kingsfield from The Paper Chase?) With many years of hindsight I see the benefits of a legal education and I have seen many lawyers successfully apply their training in non-legal careers. I think that it is unfortunate that so many people go to law school thinking that graduation is an automatic ticket to a great job but I don’t think that this is necessarily the fault of the institutions. It will be interesting to see how these lawsuits play out.