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Public Finance
Law
A public finance lawyer handles anything to do with the financing of entities or projects that borrow tax-exempt, including governmental issuers like municipalities or government agencies and non-profit organizations like hospitals or colleges.
Some of the roles a public finance lawyer could take on are advising a bond issuer on issuance, helping an issuer with disclosure obligations, representing an underwriter, or helping a trustee address legal problems.
You should have a background in finance, accounting, economics, or a related field before attempting to enter finance law as it is an area that requires a great deal of technical knowledge.
Most public finance lawyers work for BigLaw firms that have decades of experience funding entities and projects.
Here is an article to introduce you to the bond market:
Public Finance Lawyers ‘Keeping the Lights On’ Amid Changed Government Bond Market (Gialanella)
“New Jersey’s government bond market in the first half of 2019 has seen a rebound in activity compared with the first half of last year, but public finance lawyers’ expectations of the market’s baseline have changed now, nearly two years since adjustments to the tax code affected how bond-issuing authorities conduct business. According to data compiled by Refinitiv, there were 110 bonds issued at a combined value of $3.63 billion through June. That’s a 30% increase in volume, but a 33.1% decrease in par amount, over the first half of 2018.” Read more
If you can both understand this article and find it interesting, public finance law might be a good area for you.
Real Estate
Law
Title: a term in law describing who officially owns a piece of land.
If you are a real estate lawyer, your life will revolve around that term. Real estate law is an area that impacts us all on a daily basis, even if we don’t realize it. You’ve probably asked a friend, “Want to come over to my house?” Did you think about the rights you have as a homeowner to possess, use, enjoy, and eventually sell that land? Probably not, but that is what real estate lawyers deal with every day. Some states even require a real estate lawyer to be present during any real estate transaction.
Real estate law is also called real property law because it has to do with the purchase, possession, and sale of real property. Note that real estate law does not have to do with personal property/possessions, only real property. Buying a home is a big step, and disputes over real estate can be intense. You can imagine why this area of law involves a great deal of paperwork and research. If you are not comfortable reading and writing all day, you may want to re-consider real estate law as your area of practice.
Real estate law may also be connected to other areas that interest you. If you’ve always cared about land conservation, for example, you may be able to do this through real estate law. If you loved your contract law class in law school, realize that real estate law intertwines with contract law to a great extent, since contracts must be signed during the purchase and sale of land. If you considered family law, but decided it was too emotional of an area for you, issues arising with who keeps a marital home are closely tied to real estate law. Even criminal law concerning someone’s trespass onto a property intersects with real estate law. Zoning laws, estate planning, and municipal law overlap in many instances as well. For that reason, this is one of those areas that lawyers tend to practice alongside one or two others. Thus, if you practice real estate law, you may get to witness a wider array of issues than you initially thought.
Education and Background:
Chances are, your school probably offers course electives in this area of law. It also should not be too difficult to get an internship in real estate law or a related area, which will increase your chances of getting a job in this area right after graduation.
Some schools also offer LL.M. or certification programs in real estate law to further your education. If you truly want to focus on this sole area of law instead of a more generalized practice, getting these certifications may help you attract more clients.
For example, Ashworth College offers a Real Estate Law certification course online. They state, “Self-paced, online lessons fit around your busy life and give you the opportunity to complete the Real Estate Law Career Certificate program in as few as three months” (Career Certificate Real Estate Law).
Ed2Go offers a real estate law course with the option for it to be instructor-led or self-paced. This is an inexpensive way to gain more knowledge about the subject matter.
The John Marshall Law School has a great selection of programs in real estate law. They have a joint J.D./LL.M. program in Real Estate Law designed to save law students time and money. They also offer an LL.M. in Real Estate Law and an MJ concentration in Real Estate Law.
Getting a job:
If you’re looking for a job in real-estate law, you’re in luck! They aren’t as scarce as some of the more niche areas of law like equine law, fashion law, or aviation law. Also, as real estate lawyer Cynthia Mehnert states, “There aren’t that many real estate attorneys out there these days. If you are interested, you can be successful and rise to the top because there aren’t many people who enjoy it.” A quick Google search reveals that there are indeed many open positions available, so if you are one of the more “unusual” people who loves historical digging and document drafting, there is probably a spot waiting for you!
If you do well in your property law classes and secure an internship in that area, you will likely be able to land a real estate job right after graduation. Where you go from there is up to you!
You may want to consider joining an association like the American Bar Association’s Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section. Membership in such an organization can help you network with similar lawyers and move up in the ranks.
Average salary:
A real estate lawyer’s average salary is $118,000 (LawyerEdu.org). Note that salaries as well as employment levels for real estate lawyers will vary dramatically with economic upturns and downturns in the US housing market.
Would you like this practice area?
Strengths/Weaknesses: You need to have strong analytical and organizational skills to be a lawyer in this area. If you are good at digging through mountains of research, good at focusing on reading and writing for long periods of time, and good at solving problems/logical reasoning, this is an area well suited to you. You must also be an excellent negotiator. If reading, researching, and writing have never been your strong suits, look at some other areas.
Likes/Dislikes: Do you enjoy puzzles? Do you like history? Do you prefer papers to people? Great! Real estate law will allow you to focus more on the analytic aspects you enjoy. Do you dislike having a pile of papers on your desk to sort through and multiple documents to juggle? Maybe not the area for you…
Consider whether these articles interest you:
Challenging the New Development Next Door (Boutzoukas)
“In most county and city governments, the land use process is one that will allow for some basic decisions to be made at staff levels, with higher levels of review in the form of public hearings required for larger scale projects, or proposals that deviate too far from the established standards for a given development. The public hearings require notice to clearly affected nearby property owners and an opportunity for evidence to be presented by the petitioner, the planning department and defined affected person or groups, so a panel or magistrate can weigh the evidence and make a decision.” Read more
Fractional Investment in Real Estate: What is It? (McBrayer Firm)
“Not everyone has the investment resources of a certain real estate tycoon turned president, and that has often served as a bar to participation. In modern times, as real estate projects seek more and more investment, the solution has been to expand the class of those able to invest, bringing in new capital from investors who might not, as individuals, have the means to invest in high-end real estate. Enter fractional ownership of real estate – smaller investments from larger numbers of investors. This vehicle for investment can make the dream of serious real estate investment a reality.” Read more
Court to Determine Scope of Attorney’s Obligations to Purchasers of Residential Real Estate (McKeown)
“The New Jersey Appellate Division recently heard argument in the case of Bianchi v. Ladjen as to whether an attorney hired to represent a purchaser in a residential real estate closing is obligated to advise his client about purchasing homeowner’s insurance. The issue before the Court is whether it is sufficient for an attorney testifying as an expert in a legal malpractice case to refer only to his years of experience or an observation that such a duty is common practice to establish a standard of care.” Read more
Real Estate Attorney Spotlight:
Cynthia Mehnert is a real estate and municipal law attorney at Rudman Winchell. She says real estate law really takes a certain kind of person and recommends it to anyone who enjoys solving puzzles.
Cynthia’s interview:
Q: How long have you been a lawyer?
A: 32 years
Q: Where did you go to law school?
A: Suffolk Law School
Q: In what practice area(s) do you practice? If more than one, what’s the percentage of each?
A: Real estate (70%) and municipal (30%)
Q: What size is your firm?
A: 37 attorneys
Q: Describe an average day at work.
A: In the morning, I usually look at the projects I have. A lot of the work I do is with the probate department, so I draft deeds or do a closing. Sometimes I work with land trusts, and I deal with land sales and purchases by conservation groups. I’m often doing email negotiations, document drafting, and researching title. On the municipal side, I usually work with towns if they have tax acquired property they are trying to sell. I very rarely go to court.
Q: Did you practice in any other practice areas before deciding on this one?
A: I had my own practice for 25 years that was just a general practice and I did some corporate work.
Q: How many hours a week do you typically work?
A: 45
Q: What do you like most about your job/practice area?
A: I like to solve puzzles and I find real estate is like that. My husband is a litigator and just doesn’t get it – it really takes a certain kind of person!
Q: What do you least like about your job/practice area?
A: Sometimes there is just a lot of paper… especially if you are doing a title.
Q: You’d be a happy and successful real estate lawyer if you…
A: … like to solve puzzles, enjoy history, or like digging through archives to find answers
Q: What advice would you give students interested in learning more about being a real estate lawyer?
A: I would say go out and experience it — try and be an intern.
There aren’t that many real estate attorneys out there these days. If you are interested, you can be successful and rise to the top because there aren’t many people who enjoy it.
– Cythnia Mehnert
Housing Attorney Spotlight:
Joel Feldman is a housing lawyer for Heisler, Feldman, & McCormick. His firm helps poor clients with eviction defense. Joel says that if you want to work in his area of practice, you should be a “fearless litigator” and enjoy social justice issues.
Joel’s Interview:
Q: How long have you been a lawyer?
A: Since 1988
Q: Where did you go to law school?
A: Harvard Law School
Q: In what practice area(s) do you practice?
A: There are four areas: tenant, employee, consumer, and discrimination
Q: What size is your firm?
A: Currently we have 6 lawyers; soon we will have 8.
Q: Describe an average day at work…
A: I’m often in court on a hearing or a motion. I also am often supervising someone or meeting about a case. I draft legal documents, deal with endless emails, and have conversations with opposing counsel. We have a staff meeting once a week. I supervise all of the intake. I personally am involved in a bunch of committee work as well.
Q: Do you deal with difficult people?
A: Yes – we do eviction defense. So, people are about to lose their houses, and our clients are usually very poor and quite desperate. It’s a very stressful situation for them.
Q: What makes your day-to-day work different from that in other practice areas?
A: I’m in court in a lot; we are very litigation focused (especially as civil goes). We deal with complex issues, like class actions. Sometimes we have an appeal or two. We are always dealing with cutting edge legal issues.
Q: How many hours a week do you typically work?
A: Less than I used to, usually about 40-45
Q: What do you like most about your job/practice area?
A: With the four areas we work in, it is gratifying to represent people who can’t otherwise get a lawyer (we don’t ever charge anything in advance; we use fee shifting and the other side pays if we win). I also like that we are community-oriented.
Q: What do you like least about your job/practice area?
A: There’s often a lack of justice, and sometimes our clients are dismissed just because of their poverty.
Q: You would be a happy and successful lawyer in this practice area if you…
A: … feel motivated by social justice issues and working for poor people; are mission driven; are a fearless litigator; enjoy being in court litigating all the time; and want to help the type of clients we work with.
Q: What advice would you give students interested in learning more about being a lawyer in your practice area?
A: Do clinical work/program in housing work
I love my job and can’t imagine retiring from it. The work feels important, and we care a lot about it. All of that adds up to a lot of satisfaction.
– Joel Feldman