Head of Prosecution Division

Name: Phil Carruthers

Major: Political Science

Law School: University of Minnesota

Description of your job: I head up the prosecution division for the Ramsey County Attorney's Office. I supervise our staff who handle adult and juvenile criminal cases. It involves setting policies, making decisions about how to charge and handle cases, and suggesting new policies and statutes on criminal cases. I also handle some cases myself.

Do you have any advice for students who are considering to go to the same law school you did? Take some business, business law and accounting courses. Law is much more business oriented that you might expect. Take some writing or journalism courses. Writing skills are critical. If you are not really ready for the intensity of law school, take a year off before you go to law school. The break will do you good. You could work at a law firm, which will introduce you to the legal system.

Is there anything in particular that you did during your undergrad that benefited you more than anything else in getting through law school and/or transitioning into the legal profession? I got advice from a political science professor to get on a law review in law school. It is hard work but an excellent learning (and credential building) experience. Internships in undergraduate and law school, such as with the legislature or a law firm, are helpful as well.

If you had a chance to go through law school all over again, is there anything you would do differently? Get in a study group of good students. That helps a lot. The studying is much more intense than undergraduate, so quickly get good study habits. Taking law clinics is important if you are going to practice law. Most conventional law courses are academic, so you need some practical experience, which is what law clinics, clerkships and internships give you.

Is being a lawyer what you expected it would be? Why or why not? It is harder work than I thought, and the work can be very detailed and at times tedious. In certain parts of the law profession, you have opportunities to be a change agent which is satisfying. You can also help people deal with very important events or decisions in their life, which is personally rewarding. I don't think money should determine what work you do (don't sell out), but most lawyers make a good income.

What is it like transitioning from being a law student to being a lawyer? You don't have a totally open-ended work day (but you do work very hard). You finally are making some money which is nice. Applying what you learned in law school is both very hard and interesting. Most law schools stress academics, not how you actually practice law. So taking law clinics in law school is helpful, as is having a judical clerkship after you graduate. But it is still hard learning how cases and clients are handled. You need a number of mentors and other lawyers to give you advice. Being in young lawyer groups and professional associations helps.

Is there anything students should know about the legal profession before they decide to commit their life to it? You don't have to commit your life to it. While some lawyers do, plenty change careers at some point and have jobs that are legal related but not law jobs. There are a lot of lawyers who are overly competitive and aggressive. Work as a lawyer can be satisfying but also stressful and tedious. In private practice, the economics of practicing law is very important.

You need to bring in clients and collect fees.