book preview

Chapter 1 of The Making of Lawyers' Careers begins by introducing narratives of five young lawyers whose career paths were shaped by their gender, race, class background, and law school attended. These narratives reveal that although social and law school hierarchies significantly influence the trajectory of lawyer careers, individual lawyers possess the agency to shape their own career paths. The book draws on data from the After the JD Project, a unique longitudinal study that has followed over 5,000 lawyers since 2000. This chapter presents three theoretical perspectives which inform the book: Heinz and Laumann’s two hemispheres thesis, Pierre Bourdieu’s social capital perspective, and political economy. The main sections of the book explore the structure of careers, the narratives of careers, inequalities of race and gender, and the public roles and private lives of lawyers. The conclusion examines the interplay between structure and agency in forming lawyers’ careers. The book offers a comprehensive analysis of the factors that shape the careers of lawyers and highlights the agency of individual lawyers in navigating their career paths.