The Resale Value of a Georgetown Law Degree

On Friday, we told you about the San Francisco lawyer trying to sell his degree for “$59,250 or best offer.” Sick of practicing law and being “surrounded by hobby-less a**holes whose entire life is dictated by billing by the hour and being anal dickheads,” he hoped to get rid of the piece of paper with “the amazing ability to keep you from doing what you really want to do in life, all in the name of purported prestige and financial success.” He posted his degree in Craigslist’s “For Sale” section last week. He also put it up on eBay yesterday for 99 cents.

The West Coaster did not identify the university from whence the degree came, writing instead that “it’s from one of those elitist BS institutions that accept people like George W. Bush cause their daddy donated $20 million.” Our readers quickly identified it as a JD from Georgetown University Law Center.

We reached out to this hapless Hoya to see what offers he has gotten. He’s received over 300 e-mails. He told us:

So far I’ve received an offer for $200 and at least two dozens offers to buy me drinks. Another guy offered to give me an Ipod Nano. One girl told me I’m her soul mate and that she wants to go on a date…. I got an offer from a women lawyer with “marry me” in the subject line and a comment that my post saved her from stabbing herself with a pencil in the eye. I know, wtf?

Apparently, misery attracts company.

The bidding is up to $222.50 on eBay. What could beat that?


This is the most promising offer so far:

Sponsored

The best offer was from a documentary filmmaker who offered to give me $50 to piss on my diploma and then set it on fire. Unless I get something better I’ll probably accept this offer.

This does not strike us a good deal. Performing a golden shower on film has got to pay more than this.

A law degree may not guarantee a steady job nor happiness, but it is a way to lure the ladies:

Another female lawyer wrote at the end of her message “So I’m guessing you’re a male…wanna date?” I’ve gotten at least two dozen emails from women like this. For some reason my posting is a major turn on or maybe women lawyers are just really desperate. If only I had known this when I was younger. One email was signed by three “fun girls” with an offer that we all meet for drinks.

So who is this guy, and why did he decide to hawk his degree on Craigslist?

Sponsored

I worked at a large firm in Silicon Valley and then a couple months ago I just quit cold turkey. I had been thinking about doing it for a couple years and then one day I was just like WTF, I’m done. I only put up with it for so many years because of the paycheck.

I just got so tired of billing hour after hour. It never ends. I hated working with people who had no hobbies outside work. I actually have other interests. I felt like I was going to become a really crappy person if I stayed in a law firm. I mean, honestly, people become mentally imbalanced if they work in a law firm too long.

Maybe just a few years are enough. He is considering a $50 payment to piss on a $100,000 diploma and set it on fire, after all.

I have no idea what I am going to do now other than sit on a beach drinking beer and doing nothing for a while.
The Craigslist post was just a spur of the moment thing. I was cleaning out some stuff and I came across my law diploma which I hadn’t seen in years. I started thinking, why the hell do I have this piece of shit still. It is freaking useless. So I posted it on Craigslist. I didn’t expect it to get this much attention. That said, I think my post has hit a nerve because lots of lawyers feel that the system is broken. The student loan industry is killing us. Law schools aren’t even teaching marketable skills. Lower ranked schools are selling a product that has no value. The supply of lawyers far exceeds demand. And if you do get a large law firm job, you likely will leave within 2-5 years because law firms are TTT places to work. So overall it’s a crappy situation for the vast majority of lawyers.

It’s crazy, but some people do actually enjoy Biglaw work. Those folks might be interested to know that there’s a law firm in Silicon Alley that may be hiring.

Selling My Law Degree (Seriously) [eBay]

Earlier: Craigslist Post of the Day: Top-Tier Law Degree ($59,250)