The journey to becoming a fully qualified lawyer is often a long one that requires intense study and highly developed intellectual skills. Most lawyers have a school record of high academic achievement, which has led to the ability to gain grades that will allow them to study law at college, university, and subsequently, at a dedicated law school. Generally, it is a prerequisite that a postgraduate degree will be required before a person can go on to study at law school. Thankfully, most law schools do not require the graduate to have completed a degree in a specific legal field, which can allow students who have studied a range of subjects to pursue a route into legal work. Passing a bar exam is commonly required to practice law in many countries and is seen as the final main step in becoming a fully trained and qualified lawyer. After becoming a practicing lawyer, many professionals will choose to specialize in a key area of law. This article describes three different areas of law that may be considered by lawyers who wish to pursue a specialized career path.
Medical Negligence
In America, it is estimated that there are between 15,000 and 19,000 incidents of alleged medical malpractice every year that result in lawsuits being filed against doctors and other medical professionals. These can include a wide variety of acts of medical negligence or omissions in treatment that have resulted in injuries or even death occurring to the patient. For example, if medical staff do not adequately support and manage the act of childbirth, it can lead to damage to the mother and/or the newborn child. A botched c section lawsuit can be filed against the medical staff if a caesarean section has not been performed correctly and has led to severe or irreversible damage being sustained by the mother.
Intellectual Property
Some lawyers choose to specialize in the growing field of intellectual property law. Intellectual property can include corporate branding, patents, and the specific construction or content of a wide range of unique products. In short, intellectual property is all the intangible assets that are owned by an individual or business and when they are used or copied without prior consent there may be grounds for legal action to take place. In recent years, there have been numerous challenges in the world’s courts that relate to intellectual property rights within the music industry. If an artist or band believe that their music has been directly copied and rereleased by another party, and can prove that they created the original music, there may be grounds for legal action to take place.
Family Law
A final area of law is family law. This can encompass a wide range of specific issues from the handling of divorces to dealing with wills and final testaments and matters relating to child custody. It is a broad area of law and practicing in this area can, therefore, allow a lawyer to specialize in some key sub-areas relating to family law. Conversely, many lawyers will limit their representation to one specific part of this form of law, such as representing clients when there is a disputed divorce settlement and legal redress is required.