How I Became a Lawyer
Without Law School
I found out about the Law Office Study Program (LOSP) by happenchance. In 2019 I had completed my MBA in China, had just returned to the States, and had no idea in which direction I wanted to take my career. My uncle, a criminal defense attorney, asked me to come work with him for a few weeks. A few weeks quickly turned into a few months which then snowballed into a few years. After two years as a full-time paralegal he suggested I go to law school. At the time I told him that I was burnt out from school and that ultimately I didn't want to take on the debt of law school if I wasn't even sure I wanted to become an attorney.
He then suggested I consider the Law Office Study Program. After exploring the limited research I could find about the process, I realized that the LOSP might be the perfect avenue. I could start the program, cut bait at any time, and not have any guilt should I decide to pull a career-pivot mid journey. Worst-case scenario, the only thing I would have lost along the way was time (and nominal costs associated with the program). Best-case scenario, I complete the program, pass the bar, and become an attorney. A lot of upside there with not much downside….
The first thing I did was call the State Bar of California. The person on the other end of the line was genuinely surprised I'd asked about it — "most people don't even know it exists," she said. That told me something. This was not a mainstream path. It would require me to be my own admissions committee, my own dean of students, my own academic advisor.
The first year nearly broke me. I was working full-time, studying 18 to 25 hours a week, and preparing for the Baby Bar. I failed it the first time. I sat with that failure for exactly one weekend, then I got back up. The second time, I passed. First objective complete, onto the next.
Years two through four were different — harder in some ways, richer in others. I was doing real legal work alongside my supervisor. Reading actual case files. Drafting actual motions. Learning in context rather than abstraction. When I sat for the California Bar after four years, I felt something I didn't expect: ready (also largely thanks to my eternally awesome tutor Steven Harris who, lucky for you, is still helping poor unfortunate souls find their way).
I passed on my first attempt. The naysayers will tell you that the LOSP bar pass rates are abysmal. Historically they're not wrong.* They're also not talking about you.
* It is worth noting that the July 2025 California Bar Exam General Statistics Report depicts 13 LOSP First-Timers, 10 of whom passed, reflecting a 76.9% pass rate. This is only 1.3% less than Out-of-State ABA school First-Timers....not bad for us underdogs.