Going to the Dark Side 5

[brane23]

I'm an engineer considering a career as an attorney. I like being an engineer and want to use the experience and knowledge to move forward in contract law and expert witnessing. Let's hear it.... any thoughts?

 

[prohammy]

My heary weeps for your loss of innocence, but I'm pretty sure the money will be better.....

Kevin Hammond

Mechanical Design Engineer
Derbyshire, UK

 

[TheBlacksmith]

Law is largely the study of case precednets and applcation of that research to the current case (I took the LSAT's a long time ago, was considering much the same). Coming from a technical background, you probably will have a credence not found in a fresh caught or even always been a lawyer.

 

[prohammy]

Damn,damn,damn......

Its my heart that's weeping, not my heary

Kevin Hammond

Mechanical Design Engineer
Derbyshire, UK

 

[JStephen]

The "expert witnessing" part, I assume, would depend more on your knowledge of the engineering subject at hand than on your legal knowledge, so I don't know that it would really be a factor. And in fact, ten years from now, if you haven't worked as an engineer for 10 years, I would think that would hurt your credibility as an expert witness.

Otherwise, it's pretty much whatever floats your boat.

 

[drawoh]

brane23,

I know a guy who is both a lawyer and a professional engineer. I think he works mostly in patent law, where, obviously, he has expertise.

I cannot see a lawyer/engineer being much use as an expert witness. An expert witness ought to have specialized training in his area of expertise, preferably at the graduate level and subject to a lot of peer review. A lawyer/engineer would be a "Jack of all trades, master of none."

Stepping away from the subject of engineering but continuing with expert witnesses, I suggest that you read up on some of the satanic ritual child abuse cases that took place in the eighties in nineties, mostly in the US. Millions and millions of dollars were spent on investigations and trials, a lot of innocent people were charged, convicted and imprisoned over crimes that were phyically impossible. All of this was driven by expert witnesses who were poorly trained, not subject to peer review, and sometimes, marginally sane. There is a reason for standards.

JHG

 

[Ashereng]

I guess if you want to be a lawyer, good on ya!

Good luck.

"Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater."
Albert Einstein
Have you read FAQ731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

 

[brane23]

Expert witnessing aside, contract law will be my focus. Being a council for an expert witness would likely be my involvement more than BEING the expert witness.

 

[sbozy25]

Let me tell you something. Unless you have an English major under your belt as well, you are gonna hate the LSAT more than you have ever hated an exam. I thought the FE was a walk in the park compared to this monstrosity they call a test.

If you go that route....


Good Luck

Traitor!

 

[DaveVikingPE]

Go for it.

Law is more important than Engineering.

? which came first: differential equations or the 10 Commandments?

 

[MiketheEngineer]

Actaully since much of the Big Bang Theory involves the use of Diffy Q -- maybe they did come first!!

 

[DaveVikingPE]

Yeah, but in closed form...

 

[civilperson]

Engineers can sleep at night with appropiate factors of safety, Lawyers must drink or excise their conscience to be comfortable with the results of the legal system. "The Law is an ASS!"

 

[brane23]

Lawyers and engineers think nothing alike, thus their sleep and acceptance of a system that works some of the time... Engineers could not have designed our system of government and legal system. Being a lawyer is accepting that the legal system is a people business, much the way science and mechanics is not. That is where I guess I will be learning to change my thought process.

 

[Ashereng]

Dave,

An engineer probably designed the tablets on which the 10 commandments were engraved?

"Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater."
Albert Einstein
Have you read FAQ731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

 

[btrueblood]

Yeah, and when they came back for the second set, he probably said "geez, if you had told me you were gonna drop test them..."

 

[COEngineeer]

If I do become a lawyer, I would probably be a patent lawyer so I can use my engineering degreee.

 

[Senselessticker]

I've known a few lawyers in two very different ways. Some as my council, and some I've known personally. In both cases, I've learned why lawyers develop such a bad rep. In the end, I've come away truly believing that lawyers have no since of morality. Although, perhaps their "ethics" may not be in question, I really believe they are missing the part of being human called HAVING A SOUL.

Yes...there is a reason you titled the post "Going to the Dark Side". Don't kid yourself, there really is a dark world that awaits!!

 

[IRstuff]

Being a systems engineer, I've often thought that being a lawyer would be a natural fit. I've observed that having a minor in English would have been an absurdly useful thing to have had when interpreting specifications.

Just today, we changed from being non-compliant on a requirement to being compliant, because the requirement hinged on reporting "predictable failures." Our position was that we could see no relevant failures as being predictable within the constraints of the requirement, therefore, the fact that we would never report a predictable failure was perfectly compliant.

TTFN

FAQ731-376

 

[prohammy]

You will probably have to give up your Eng-Tips account if you do go to the dark side


Kevin Hammond

Mechanical Design Engineer
Derbyshire, UK