# Any non-lawyers who follow the law as a hobby or pastime? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 12, 2008, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-non-lawyers-who-follow-the-law-as-a-hobby-or-pastime/456234 "2008-07-12T14:20:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2008, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-non-lawyers-who-follow-the-law-as-a-hobby-or-pastime/456234/1 "2008-07-12T14:20:06Z")
That bane of my personal time planning, Wikipedia, is especially prone to get me in its clutches of fascinated clicking whenever I run across a legal topic. I learn all sorts of stuff I didn’t know about torts, contract law, constitutional law, the _history_ of law . . . and lately I find myself intrigued by reading actual cases–police reports, trial info, appellate and Supreme Court decisions.\* Have any other non-lawyers developed a similar interest (esp. like me, in mid life)? A pastime doesn’t necessarily have a point, I know, but can there be a point to my learning all this stuff? Anything I can, well, _do_ with it? \*ETA: I also find myself reading all the way through software license agreements. ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2008, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-non-lawyers-who-follow-the-law-as-a-hobby-or-pastime/456234/2 "2008-07-12T17:14:08Z")
Some non-legal careers where it’s helpful to have knowledge of various laws are HR, purchasing, and political activism. The guy’s voice is a little annoying, but you might enjoy this audiobook The American Legal Experience - [http://www.amazon.com/The-American-Legal-Experience/dp/1402557868](http://www.amazon.com/The-American-Legal-Experience/dp/1402557868) ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2008, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-non-lawyers-who-follow-the-law-as-a-hobby-or-pastime/456234/3 "2008-07-12T21:52:34Z")
Constitutional law, yes. I didn’t go to law school. But, I spent most of my time hanging out with people on my college’s law review. I’ve read casebooks cover to cover. Heck, I may still go to law school one day. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2008, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-non-lawyers-who-follow-the-law-as-a-hobby-or-pastime/456234/4 "2008-07-12T23:49:18Z")
I think so. The problem arises when you take the next step and think you can be a lawyer. Go to your local traffic court some day for a few hours of entertainment, when some guy who thinks he is F. Lee Bailey tries to get out of a speeding ticket… ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2008, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-non-lawyers-who-follow-the-law-as-a-hobby-or-pastime/456234/5 "2008-07-13T01:40:03Z")
[QUOTE=jtgain] I think so. The problem arises when you take the next step and think you can be a lawyer. Go to your local traffic court some day for a few hours of entertainment, when some guy who thinks he is F. Lee Bailey tries to get out of a speeding ticket.. [/QUOTE] Oh, I know that I’m not going to be a lawyer. I’m just interested in reading about it. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2008, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-non-lawyers-who-follow-the-law-as-a-hobby-or-pastime/456234/6 "2008-07-13T01:56:26Z")
I have no legal education (though my father and grandfather were lawyers and some of it probably rubbed off on me.) I do find myself reading the occasional Supreme Court decision on topics of interest (technology issues, intellectual property, Constitutional stuff, etc.) I also think I have a pretty good knowledge of Constitutional issues and the workings of the federal government for a non-lawyer (largely thanks to this board and Wikipedia.) I do follow certain cases in the news, without necessarily reading all the minutia. For example, I was fascinated by all the arguments and decisions in the recent FLDS cases, but stuck to reading detailed news accounts rather than the actual arguments and decisions. Same with the Hans Reiser murder trial, but that spectacle is fascinating for a whole host of reasons. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2008, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-non-lawyers-who-follow-the-law-as-a-hobby-or-pastime/456234/7 "2008-07-13T02:02:06Z")
Yeah. I took a course in “practical law” way way back in HS, and then all the courses I could take as an undergrad. I planned to go to law school, but I educated myself out of the attraction. I still follow legal issues as closely as I can through the media – which isn’t very closely.