Law Students: Need a Job? Watch FRONTLINE

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A man changes US dollars at a money changer in Manila on Tuesday July 5, 2005. The peso fell to a new six-month closing low against the U.S. dollar. The dollar finished at 56.245 pesos on the Philippine Dealing System, up from 56.090 Monday and the highest close since 56.255 on Jan. 6. The record low of 56.450 came in March 2004, during political uncertainty ahead of the presidential election.

(AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

August 3, 2012

This is the worst job market for lawyers in nearly two decades, according to the National Association for Law Placement.

But the University of Houston law school has found one sector that’s still hiring: corporate compliance.

It may sound dull, but corporate compliance — the practice of ensuring that companies aren’t breaking the law in transactions overseas — is increasingly in demand, according to The Wall Street Journal. The paper cited a study showing that more than half of in-house legal departments said they had hired outside talent in the first quarter of 2012, and nearly half expected their legal departments to expand in the next two years. Major law firms, too, are hiring lawyers to focus on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the Journal said.

Houston’s law school is the first American institution to offer such classes. And at least one course will be entertaining: the first class gets to screen our film, Black Money, in which FRONTLINE correspondent Lowell Bergman investigates multinational companies that have routinely made secret payments to win billions in business. 

You can watch it above, no tuition required.


Sarah Childress

Sarah Childress, Former Series Senior Editor, FRONTLINE

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