Why Study Economics? The one reason you should and should NOT major in economics
An analysis of scores on the LSAT test for law school admission reported for students who apply to at least one ABA accredited law school shows economic majors earned relatively high mean LSAT scores. The LSAT score ranges from 120 to 180 with mean and median near 151. The 90th percentile is about 165. The LSAT score along with undergraduate grade point average and the quality of the undergraduate college are important influences in the admissions decisions of competitive law schools.
Among 2015-16 law school applicants, economics majors had a mean LSAT score of 158.8, which was the highest score of the 16 largest disciplines (with more than 950 law school applicants). Economics placed second behind math/physics (161.7) out of 29 discipline groupings created to contain at least 325 students with similar majors. The years 2001-2 through 2015-16 reveal similar rankings.
The economics major is one of many common paths to law school. The Law School Admission Council provides the official guide to law schools for the American Bar Association. The Guide emphasizes extensive reading and library research, skill in synthesizing large amounts of information, and logical thinking. In addition to general skills, the Guide points to breadth of knowledge of history, politics, finance, human behavior, and diverse cultures.
1 Remarks of Anthony T. Kronman, “The Second Driker Forum for Excellence in the Law,” Wayne Law Review, Vol. 42, p. 160 (1995). 2 Bryant G. Garth, “Strategic Research in Law and Society,” Florida State University Law Review, Vol. 18, p. 59 (1990). 3 Michael Nieswiadomy, “LSAT Scores of Economics Majors,” Journal of Economic Education, Vol. 29, No. 4, pp. 377-79 (Fall 1998). Michael Nieswiadomy, “LSAT Scores of Economics Majors: The 2003-2004 Class Update,” Journal of Economic Education, Vol. 37, No. 2, pp. 244-247 (Spring 2006)
Over the last several decades the application of economic analysis to legal topics has altered the shape of the law. As one scholar has written, “Law and economics represents the one example of a social science that has successfully found a place at the core of legal arguments made in courts, administrative agencies, and other legal settings.”2 As a result, the study of economics has become a valuable way to prepare for both the study and the practice of law. The Department of Economics at Baylor University offers students interested in law school an outstanding course of study designed to prepare them to excel in law school and beyond.
The purpose of the law and economics emphasis is to provide students with a well-rounded education at the intersection of economics and the law in order to prepare the students for law school. The emphasis provides students with tools of economic analysis that allow them to predict the effects of particular legal rules, to explain why particular legal rules exist, and to analyze whether particular legal rules should exist. In addition, the emphasis provides students with the economic tools and institutional knowledge to examine various aspects of the legal system, torts, contracts, property rights, the economics of litigation, antitrust law, and regulation.
FAQ
Is Econ a good pre law major?
What does economics have to do with law?