Mixing Law And Computer Science Degrees?

Janthkin asks: "I'm finishing my BS in computer science this year, and I'm looking for some advice. Grad school is a given: I want a master's in computer science. However, I'm also very interested in pursuing a career in law. Given the number of high- (and low-) profile cases we've seen just in the last year or so involving technology in general, and computers in particular, it seems reasonable to believe that a lawyer with significant computer knowledge would do quite well, much as the medical doctors with law degrees do. Anyone out there have experiences (personal or otherwise, finanacial or not) to share that might help me decide what to do?"

Comments

I'm in a CS & Law course right now

[RhetoricalQuestion]

I'm currently taking an undergrad course entitled Computers and The Law of Information Technology. It's a CS course, taught by 2 lawyers, and it's VERY interesting.

According to the lawyers, several students of this class have gone on to become lawyers. There is a huge demand for lawyers who understand IT in both public and private law.

The only caveat is that most of the stuff that's relevant to IT (the stuff we're being introduced to right now) doesn't really surface until your last year of law school.

But if Law interests you, I would persue it. At worst, you decide not to be a coder or a lawyer and get a fantastic job elsewhere because you've specialized in two fields that most people know very little about, even though it affects them all the time.

PLEASE DO!

[bluGill]

Okay, it must be a personal decision. However, as a pure tech let me encourage you to do so. I've thought about self-study to get a law degree equivelent myself (I don't know if I'd be allowed to take the bar) just because of all the stupid cases we have seen on /.

Once you do get your degree we would like it best if you would make your night job a technical one that paid the bills, and for the day work on some of these technical cases for those of us without the ability to deal with law. Sort of an EFF lawyer without taking money from the EFF. Since in reality you can't do this, just find something that you can make work for you.

Certainly a similar combo exists for Chem/Law

[Masem]

I know that there is a large body of people that study chemistry/chemical engineering, then persue a law degree, as usually to become patent attornies. This is a common route for a patent attorny to follow, but chemisty-based patents have exists for decades; computer-based patents are mostly limited to within the last 2 decades. Because of the difference in age of the fields, there hasn't been any sort of common route for computer/law experts. I would see if you can find any school that does take in scientists and engineers, and makes them patent lawyers out of them and discuss with them your ideas for what you want to become. I would still urge you to study patent law, as that's one of the biggest areas out there right now that needs to be fixed from a computer standpoint.