Monday, November 16, 2009

An Open Letter To Dean Richard "The Slimeball" Matasar


"Tom:

Attached is a copy of an email I sent to Richard Matasar at New York Law School. I'm forwarding it to you because I thought you might be interested in it, given your recent post on your blog about Access Group and Matasar.

Thanks and keep up the good work with the blog."


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From:
Date: Sat, Nov 14, 2009 at 11:21 AM
Subject: Letter from an '02 almunus
To: rmatasar@nyls.edu

Dear Mr. Matasar:

My name Is . I am a 2002 graduate of New York Law School, and I am admitted to practice in both New York and New Jersey.

I am writing to encapsulate and memorialize my disappointment with both you and New York Law School in general. I'm terribly disappointed with how my legal "career" has played out in the seven years since I graduated, and I was shocked and outraged to hear that you concurrently serve as Dean of NYLS AND as Chairman of the Access Group (a CLEAR conflict of interest that should be addressed by the ABA and New York Bar Ethics Committee).

In short, my NYLS degree is not worth the incredibly high price tag that I paid for it, using student loan funds I obtained from your Access Group. I was unable to ever obtain a permanent legal job that would pay me enough to both service my student loan debt and put food on my table. This was not for lack of trying; I utilized Attorney Resume and paid top dollar to have my resume written and gain access to almost 1,000 law firms' contact information, only to be rejected by EVERY firm to which I sent my resume. (That's correct: almost 1,000 REJECTIONS - both affirmative rejections and "trashcan rejections," where they didn't write back. Not even ONE interview.)

I contacted the NYLS "Career Services Department" in 2003 (in quotes because it's not really a Career Services Department, but a farce). They apologized that I was having problems and directed me to a link on the NYLS website to TEMP AGENCIES, under the guise of "Legal Recruiters." "Lots of our graduates do Contract Attorney work to hold them over until they can find permanent employment," they said. Little did I know what "Contract Attorney" work entailed, how horribly and disrespectfully I'd be treated, and how I'd ruin even the slightest chance I'd have to secure a permanent job with the albatross of "Contract Attorney" on my resume. But this was supposed to "hold me over," as per your "Career Services" department's assertion.

Since I was desperately in need of income in order to eat and service my debt to your Access Group, I contacted the temp agencies and was soon put to work for approximately $30 an hour. The conditions were reminiscent of a Third World sweatshop; there were over 100 "attorneys" stuffed into a dingy, poorly ventilated basement that was infested with cockroaches! And there were an inordinate amount of NYLS graduates on this job; I don't have an exact number, but I would estimate at least 15 or so.

This project lasted approximately three months, at which point it ended and I registered with several other agencies. I quickly was placed on another project that was worse than the first one, at a very prestigious downtown firm. We were shoved into a sub-sub basement, surrounded by mountains of dusty and dirty boxes, and made to review the contents of these boxes. Now I have no aversion to getting my hands dirty, but this was ridiculous, given the abuse we sustained at the hands of our supervisors. I won't go into more detail, but it was a terrible experience. And, once again, there were and inordinate number of NYLS graduates working with me.

These temporary jobs continued for five years. For five years, I bounced from one temporary job to another, some lasting for a few weeks, some lasting almost a year. No opportunity for advancement, no respect, no benefits (or at least benefits that were too expensive for me to afford, given I was being soaked by the Access Group each month and had other bills to pay.) Then the economic crisis of 2008 happened.

I completed my last (and possibly worst) temporary project in November 2008. Since then, I have been unable to land another temporary project. That's right, Mr. Matasar: I have been unemployed for ONE YEAR!! For one year, I've been collecting unemployment benefits and struggling to make my student loan payments to your Access Group.

In the past year, I've been frantically trying to find work, to no avail. I've sent out hundreds of resumes, to no avail. I even have an interesting story for you:

A college friend of mine works for Cognizant, a mobile communications technology company. Upon hearing of my plight, he asked me to give him my resume so he could forward it to his friend in the legal department. I hesitatingly did so, knowing in my heart and mind that I would be quickly rejected and laughed at because of all the Contract Attorney experience listed on my resume. (It has been my experience that Contract Attorney experience is a quick way to get your resume thrown into the trash in record time. I've heard several interesting justifications for this, including that Contract Attorney experience is an indicator that the candidate "didn't really want a permanent position." Meanwhile, Contract Attorney work was the ONLY work I could get that would allow me to earn enough money to survive and pay my debt to THE ACCESS GROUP. Can you say CATCH-22, Mr. Matasar?)

My prediction came true: my friend called me a few days after forwarding my resume and told me his friend in the legal department determined that I "didn't have the skill set" they needed. My friend pressed him to define exactly what he meant by "skill set," and he said the following (my friend actually took notes):

1) New York Law School is a joke, a farce. They don't even consider NYLS graduates for attorney positions. He might be able to get me an interview for a paralegal position though, but it's a long shot. (Mr. Matasar. I AM A LICENSED ATTORNEY, NOT A PARALEGAL!! I SPENT OVER $140,000 TO OBTAIN MY J.D. FROM NYLS AND I'M ADMITTED TO PRACTICE IN TWO JURISDICTIONS!!)

2) Contract Attorney work is GARBAGE. It's document review and can be done by "monkeys." It's not substantive legal experience, and is indicative of my not wanting to get a permanent job. (Meantime, I couldn't get any other work, as I've said. My friend even told him this, but it went in one ear and out the other.)

3) There was no way my friend's friend could forward my resume to his superior without looking foolish and being repremanded for wasting his superior's time.

So, Mr. Matasar, there you have it. I spent top dollar, which I borrowed from your ACCESS GROUP, to get my J.D. from NYLS and pass two bar exams, only to be shunted aside, marginalized, and humiliated by the legal industry. I am on the verge of bankruptcy and as of next month, I will be unable to continue making payments on my ACCESS GROUP student loans. I plan on writing a letter when the next payment is due, explaining that I didn't get what I paid for and was mislead by NYLS's job statistics prior to enrolling (NYLS misleads potential students with employment numbers - you include temporary Contract Attorneys as being fully employed at large firms, which is not the whole truth), and I'm suspending my payments. I am prepared and willing to face the legal wrath that will occur when I default, and I see it as a golden opportunity for me to expose both NYLS's fraud and your unethical conflict of interest

I plan on expressing my outrage at your conflict of interest, namely that you are concurrently the Dean of New York Law School AND the chairman of the Access Group. You thus have a VESTED INTEREST in continuing to mislead NYLS students, convincing them to take on huge amounts of debt from your ACCESS GROUP, which means you personally reap a double benefit. It's not right, and it's not fair. I can't believe you think this conflict is acceptable. It's so wrong, so unethical, and it needs to be addressed on a much bigger level than this email.

Sincerely,

73 comments:

Anonymous said...

i wonder if people would have an interest in suing NYLS in a class action - i know i would

Anonymous said...

Even more, Matasar lost a chunk of that money in the Madoff mess. What a so called "non for profit" educational institution was doing gambling in a risky unregulated hedge fund baffles me. These crap schools are totally like the mafia, completely above the law.

Anonymous said...

I would... surprised nobody has brought suit yet.

Nando said...

This is a brazen conflict of interest. I am sure the school also stresses how the smallest infraction can land an attorney in deep trouble. So much for "professional ethics."

The school is a cash cow. Why else would this man still be dean. despite his lack of ethics? I have heard plenty of complaints against Matasar and I don't even live on the east coast.

http://thirdtierreality.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

Why did you go to New York Law School?

Anonymous said...

Years ago when I was considering law school I met a few students at a temp gig from New York Law School. After that I did not have to research/read anything more about the school. I knew instantly I did not want to be with such cretins - so I did not apply. It's not hard to know the worth of a law school BEFORE you apply - so why are people bitchin' now???

Anonymous said...

Very well written letter. The author speaks for a lot of people who bought into the law school lie.

Anonymous said...

While you get soaked by the Access Group every month and fund Matasar's extravagent lifestyle, the NY bar lets in every third world Nigerian with broken English. How does it feel to work with people who pull down your wages and are not burdened by your American law school debt? Scam on you.

Sonia said...

I know how you feel. I was told by Joan King that the "doctor of law" thing would be a great second career for me. Impressed by her hofstra law credentials and being a woman from a similar generation, I signed over my 401K and signed off on a loan with Mr. Matasar's financing company. At this amortization schedule, I will be paid off at 88. Things won't be so bad once Medicare kicks in though.

Does anyone know if there is any work anywhere? My last gig won't have me back as I quit after falling for Elle Byrum's shenanigans.

Anonymous said...

Sonia. why don't you get some work done on your face and try and find a rich guy?? I am sure you learned many tricks back in 60s when you were a hot young thing - and they could serve you well.

Sonia said...

Who wouldn't love to have a little work done? With my balloon payments to Mr. Matasar, that is certainly out of the question for the time being. Besides, I was informed by my dermatologist friend, that a little Botox and certain minor plastic procedures would be counterproductive, as my skin sadly to say has become more leather like over the years, sadly to say. You know back in the 60's every tan was considered a healthy tan. How I miss the days of tanning beds and chocalate martinis. Nothing compares to the 70's. Nothing. Those were the days.

Anonymous said...

Sonia, network.

Anonymous said...

How do you know when to throw in the towel on this Attorney thing?

Baxter Davenport III said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

1:19. When you ask this question - you should know it's over and out for you. Goodbye and good luck.

Anonymous said...

Unemployment system sucks - it penalizes you for doing freelance work while looking for jobs. The state should be happy that people are working and making money - but no it brands you self-employed and throws you out the system even if you do one project.

Anonymous said...

2:15- So people should be able to cram in 3 grand a week in document review and then do solo work AND still collect unemployment? Unemployment is for people that have no income and need to put food on the table.

Anonymous said...

hang tha bastards!

Anonymous said...

Wow, with those writing skills, I wouldn't hire him for anything either. "Almunus?" "Repremanded?" "indicative of my not wanting to get a permanent job"? Several parentheticals to clarify the point? Maybe he should write for ATL.

Anonymous said...

2;29 No moron .I'm talking about people who have NO doc review projects. NOTHING - and then once in a blue moon some attorney needs help for a day or two and they help. Wake up !!!

Anonymous said...

http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/crimelaw/features/n_8815/

Wow, Matasar really reveals himself to be a supreme jackass here on page four.

Bitter Coder said...

Freelance work: I had the same problem with unemployment in California. I have been trying to open a solo practice while doing temp doc review to make ends meet in the meantime.
When I applied for unemployment earlier this year, the dept. denied my claim saying that my attempts at self employment meant that I was "unavailable" for work if a job opportunity should come along.
I had to go through their appeal process and a hearing before they would approve my unemployment claim.

Anonymous said...

If you run a side business, you aren't eligible. It's always been that way. If they made exceptions, the system would get muddled and collapse. Just the way it is.

Anonymous said...

Despite a few misspelled words, this was well-written. I would be curious to read the Dean's response, assuming he responds. If there is a response, then it will be a canned so-called empathetic apology, suggestion to network and a plea for a small donation. I doubt the Dean will even finish reading the email. He does not care about either his prospective suckers or his graduates. -- NYLoSer '08 Grad --

Anonymous said...

This Matasar is he single? Or even looking for a mistress? I am looking for a cash cow - looks like he may have some dough by ripping off hapless law students!!

Anonymous said...

Obviously this person did not network sufficiently.

Anonymous said...

Sonia I feel your pain. I too got fucked over by a slippery recruiter like Elle Biryani. They put us on a project telling us it was six months and yanked us off one week later - after we had all waited for it for a month and declined other work. I was doing pretty well before the assignment- living off unemployment was hard and I ate a meagre diet- but I had peace of mind, plus the simple diet and hiking in the park for entertainment had actually improved my looks. Now I feel so angry and stressed out and I have been chugging Haagen Daz. Today Ben and Jerry's was on sale for $2.50 so I opted for that. Eating all this shit food makes me look like a crack whore. But it's the only thing that sedates me. I look so hideous no one will hire me and I will have to suck dick on the street. I am on a downward spiral -maybe I can dick Matasar's dick.

Anonymous said...

ooops I meant to say suck Matasar's dick.

Anonymous said...

Wow. ANOTHER limp wristed, whiny ass, sackless, titty baby TTT grad squealing like a pig and lashing out at everyone but himself for his sorry lot in life. *YAWN*

Baxter Davenport III said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

DOC WOrK 4 RAzA!!!

www.homies.tv

Anonymous said...

4:34. That's nice name Bitter Coder.

How did the state know of your attempts to start a solo biz when you applied for unemployment?

How long did the appeals process take? Did you get a lawyer?

Anonymous said...

If you are not on unemployment and are working W-2 and doing freelance work on the side and then become unemployed and file for benefits based on the W-2 work can you be denied because you are also a freelancer?

Sonia said...

Will I be able to receive Social Security payments along with my unemployment?

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Anonymous said...

According to a report issued by the National Law Journal, the top 250 law firms cut 5,259 attorney positions this year in the worst year since the NLJ began compiling the statistics. The firm shedding the most jobs was Latham & Watkins which has 444 fewer lawyers than last year. The number of partners grew by one percent over all, while associates were cut at the rate of 8.7% and of counsel and staff lawyer positions shrunk by 8.9%.

Anonymous said...

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Larry the Loser said...

Hello Everyone, I am Larry the Loser. I just wanted to take a minute to introduce myself. I, too, like many of you started as a fine young motivated man. Over time, the abuse, the ghetto-ness, the ugly people, cheap recruiters, trying to please little people, it all just sapped my confidence, optimism and ambition - and I fell into a deep downward spiral - an abyss. Now I am a ghost, a shell of what I used to be...a spineless bastard..people tell me I can still get out and salvage my soul - but I have no soul left. Temping has been a dark empty void - a black hole - a trauma from which I may never recover. I am now Larry the Loser, a ghost flitting through the dungeons of law firms...you may notice me on a quite night - but mostly I am invisible - I let them beat me and rob me - but mostly I have myself to blame for not kicking them in the nuts and running when I should have...

Anonymous said...

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Anonymous said...

Larry the Loser, that's what you get for going to a TTT law school...

Anonymous said...

I know how you feel, Larry the Loser. Big Mamma beat the ghetto into me. Now I can't function in a normal working environment without becoming all thuggish. That's what happens when you are subjected to having to watch your "supervisors" whoring around with each other and commiting adultery and doing illicit substances. I could have skipped the law degree and hung around the welfare office.

Anonymous said...

Wow, and to think that tuition at that toilet was much, much lower in '02. What's it going to be like for the poor saps coming out now? They will probably all jump on the IBR plan and we will all be paying for worthless NYLS degrees and be subsidizing Matasar's opulent lifestyle. Privatize the profits, socialize the risk.

Larry the Loser said...

Actually my friend - believe it or not I went to a first tier school. Yes, I know shocking ... - soon after I started temping I lost my balance and became unfit for polite society. Yes, I worked for Big Mamma and Valvina and Clovester and all those trolls and wenches in the S&C dungeon. That's where I was first raped of my personable personality. I thought I would be working at premier law firms but the dungeons of doc review were no better than the welfare office, the DMV or Popeye's. I could be sitting in my sweatpants chomping chicken at Popeye's from the looks of the basement and the people in them. You are so right - it makes you either too thuggish or too wimpy - either way you become socially inept. If I continue to keep my head down and squeeze out any trace of personality I may be able to eke out a few more years of doc review and get an early retirement - or early death.

Anonymous said...

Richard A. Matasar is the 15th dean of New York Law School. He joined the faculty and began his tenure as dean on July 1, 2000.

A nationally recognized scholar in civil procedure and federal jurisdiction, Dean Matasar also has spent many years thinking about law schools as institutions and how to use education to add value to society. During his tenure he has energized the New York Law School community with innovative curricular and administrative changes, creating a new experience for students.

http://www.nyls.edu/faculty/faculty_profiles/richard_a_matasar

_____________________

Hilarious! A "scholar" in civil procedure! Give me an f'ing break. Like this guy was working on recombinant DNA mapping or Civil War archeolgy!

There is no such thing as a "scholar" of law. It is nothing but bales of cut n' pasted slop paper.

Anonymous said...

Hope Matasar gets cancer of the kidneys and spends eternity pissing out of his asshole. What a shameless, lowlife piece of filth. The classic lawyer: a sociopathic, wanna-be "intellectual" in a cesspool of an industry with no morals or ethics whatsoever.

BTW isn't NYLS the most expensive law school in the US?

Anonymous said...

Matasar is a filthy, subhuman pig like the rest of the TTT law school deans.

Anonymous said...

Amen.

I would say that Matasar should burn in hell, but since that's pretty much guaranteed, I'll just say that he sucks.

Evil Dave said...

Looks like the Indian LPO market is also suffering. The rosy growth projections are failing to materialise and some providers are closing up shop. Its a true gutter and race to the bottom.

Case in point for what happens when you allow the rampant unauthorized practice of law.

http://www.indiaprwire.com/pressrelease/other/2009111737681.htm

Still, there should be zero business coming from the US. Its outrageous that the ABA condones this practice.

Anonymous said...

It should be "reprimanded," not "repremanded." Sorry for the misspelling. Please don't let the minor details distract you from the point of the letter. If it were a brief to a court, it would have been spell-checked 100 times.

Anonymous said...

I like how he describes the corporate counsel guy as saying his company doesn't even consider NYLS graduates. It's as if you need a pedigree to deal with his company, like an AKC dog show.

Anonymous said...

I've had to move back in with my parents, I am just as displeased as they are. Has anyone considered going on welfare? I'm seriously considering looking, if enough of us go on welfare maybe NY will do something about it, I'd love it if they banned the admission of new lawyers for the next 5 years or so.

The Yuppie Attorney said...

1:24 PM:

Welfare is almost a gone program. Unless, you are extremely handicapped or have kids there is no check. You maybe able to get food stamps. You can apply for food stamps at your local unemployment office or state office building. Food Stamps is a Federal Program but the payout is very low.

Zerpo said...

I got an e-mail from a friend saying that rates in DC, Boston and San Francisco are all $23 /hr or worse for doc review, DC I think was actually $18, with Boston being the high.

Looks like welfare is only available to women, even though men still pay 80% of taxes. Nice. So women can either get knocked up or use affirmative action to get ahead, while the rest of us are fucked.

I hate doing freelance work, at least with doc review you know you're getting paid. With freelance work, you don't know if you're getting paid and you feel like some dog at the beck of a master.

I was told there was an NYT article today about the NYPD having too many applicants. I actually took that exam and got a mediocre score, obviously you're going to need to place right at the top to have a shot even. If I had taken the exam 4 years ago I bet I could have even gotten it, and I wouldn't have any debt. Now, I'm stuck chasing after money that might not even be there. Maybe I'll study for the next exam, although most people tell me they don't and they still get top scores. I swear I think I've gotten dumber from law school and my limited legal practice.

Someone just put a bullet in my brain already. I'd do it myself but I can't afford the gun! I'm too ashamed to hang out with friends or family now, people will always ask what you do for a living, and I can't give a good answer. I can see the disgust and contempt in people's eyes, even if they try and hide it. If you can't get a job, people think you're lazy or you're not trying, and that it's really easy to get one.

Anonymous said...

Luckily for the winning side of the legal profession such as Dean Matasar or the Biglaw Golden Children/doc review slavedrivers, the TTT's don't have the skill set to file a class action lawsuit

Anonymous said...

What are we willing to do? I'm a current NYLS student, and quite frankly, I'm angered after reading this email.

The post is a good start, but we must take action. Any suggestions?

There must be a way to have our voices heard, truly heard.

Anonymous said...

DO SHARE MATASARS REPLY!!!

Anonymous said...

If you're a graduate of NYLS, you get what you deserve, top 20 or bust!

Anonymous said...

fuck access group.

Somebody needs to give us law grads a bail out!!!

You are sooo right!!
These law school numbers are MISLEADING at best.

I thought this profession was based around being ethical.

I am a new lawyer and I feel as if I got baited-and-switched by some electronic store scam.. only its a law school. WTF are the ethics people?!?!

Julia said...

I felt like I was reading my own life story when I read that. Matasar is a slimeball. If anyone has ever met him in person, you'd be able to tell. The guy was the biggest narcissist I've ever met. Also, when I was looking for an extra loan to fund my education at that shit-hole, Access Group was the loan group that was shoved down my throat by Finanacial Aid. I didn't find out til later just why that was probably so...

Anonymous said...

The fact that he was on the Board of Directors at Access and leading his students to borrow from Access, well I have one word for him: Prison. He should be in prison, and I think we should take a complaint to the DA's office or the Attorney General and see what they can do. At the very least, he should be disbarred.(I wasn't even given a choice, Access was the one who "provided" all my loans)

Anonymous said...

Notwithstanding the clear conflict of interest among Matasar and Access, maybe the reason that you couldn't find a job (when the market was booming) was due to you. What is your GPA? What is your background and professional experience? I suspect that "may" have something to do with it. A law degree doesn't guarantee you anything, anymore than acceptance to law school guarantees you a degree. If you spent half as much time being creative and figuring out what to do with yourself as you did bitching, you'd be a lot better off.

Anonymous said...

12/14/2009: 'Student loan default data highlights for-profits.'

http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/1209/687133.html

litigator said...

I guess it is no coincidence that Matasar is the tool who sold the "naming rights" to UF Law school to a sleezy ambulance chaser (with various and sundry ethical challenges as reported in the Southern Second) for a measley ten million bucks. That he (and the equally avaricious university president) did so without the approval of the Florida Board of Regents earned both of them an...ahem...accelerated departure from Gainesville. Sadly the "Levin School of Law" moniker contractually stuck. Luckily I got my semi-worthless sheep-skin before that particular stain appeared. From what I hear post Matasar/Levin alumni giving to the "Levin School of Law" ain't what it used to be. Go figure. Bravo Matasar. And good riddance.

Chrisco said...

"Sweatshop conditions" and $30/hour don't really go that well together.

Anonymous said...

Sounds like somebody needs to learn to stop blaming other people for their failures. I'm sure your time in law school was eerily similar ... too busy blaming professors for your C's instead of studying your ass off and accepting personal responsibility.

But hey, as they say in Caddyshack, the world needs ditch diggers too.

Anonymous said...

What a self-righteous prick 1:12 is. Anyway, the author of the e-mail's situation is played out in many a newly-minted atty and in a saturated market it is more often than not outside of the atty's fault. While I have been gainfully employed for years now, thank God, I watched many of my fellow Midwestern 2nd tier alumni with far better grades pulling their hair out trying to get a position. Hyperbole aside, law school has become a scam with its exorbitant prices (for drivel), high interest private loans, expensive as hell regurgitated casebook material, and overcompensated self-important professors. These schools and "scholars" are not actually contributing much at all to society or making valuable discoveries that benefit humankind like, for example, professors of quantum physics or biochemistry. Rather, the profs "teach" (if the Socratic method is actually teaching) a few hours a week of the same common law shit their professors taught 60 yrs ago and write pointless articles and mini-books re-hashing the same legal BS as has been done since the undergrad LLB pointlessly became a pompous grad school JD. Comically, the schools send letters begging for donations only a year after you graduate, when most grads I know (6+ years out of school) are paying 600-900 a month in loans. Law school is a total farce, as the author said. Law students: go into pharmacy while you still can! Typically most pharm grads start in the 100K range working UNIONIZED at Walgreens or CVS. There are also precious few pharmacists.

smith said...

Law school presents many unique and difficult challenges to students during their first year, and most students are thoroughly unprepared and find their skills stressed to the point of breaking.

considering law school

Anonymous said...

While I regret the writer's difficult career path since graduating from New York Law School ("NYLS"), his or her anger toward Dean Matasar and NYLS may be misdirected.

First, I note that the writer is admitted to practice in New York and New Jersey. Both states have very challenging bar exams; if NYLS was a bad as the writer suggests, he would ot have passed.

Second, there are a great many NYLS graduates in the judiciary, top-tier law firms and major corporation in-house positions. This is another indication that the writer's extreme criticism of NYLS is unfounded.

I graduated in the top-25% of the NYLS class of 1995. I soon thereafter joined an "AMLaw 100" firm in New York, and I am now a partner at a very well respected corporate firm.

Sadly, I know many graduates of Ivy League law schools who have had difficulty finding a job in recent years. I'm sorry that the writer is in the same situation, and I wish him or her well.

The suggestion of an actionable conflict of interest with Access is laughable.

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Mentat said...

Dear author of this angry letter,

I am trying to find you, so I can ask: may I quote this letter?

I used to be an LSAT teacher and tutor, and I made a parody of the LSAT to try and discourage people from chasing big firm jobs (there is so much misinformation, as I think everyone reading this understands).

Anyway, I used this letter as a reading passage in my joke LSAT. Author, do you have a problem with this? I will remove it if you do. Tom the Temp, do you have a problem with that? I know its your site.

Here it is in context if you want:

Mentat said...

oops I tried to attach it at the end but it attached to my name. Anyway please let me know if you have a problem.

Anonymous said...

The following is an opinion based on personal experience with NYLS. Attending NYLS was one of the worst financial and emotional experiences of my life. The administration, led at the time by Richard A. Matasar, seemed interested primarily in making money to support their salaries.

For example, “According to page 18 of New York Law School's 2010 IRS Form 990, Richard Matasar allegedly worked 35 hours per week as dean and "earned" $519,238 in straight salary, i.e. no other compensation. Yes, Matasar made FIVE HUNDRED NINETEEN THOUSAND, TWO HUNDRED AND THIRTY-EIGHT DOLLARS at NYLS in 2009. Matasar also made $495,122 in 2008.”

The problem here is not the amount of his salary, but they means by which it was obtained. To better understand, think about the Academy Award winning movie “Inside Job”. That move beautifully illustrates how Wall Street masterminded the virtual destruction of our economy. It did so with impunity for one simple reason: it could. Like Wall Street’s pervasive deception of buying “AAA” ratings from Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s to rubberstamp on toxic securities, NYLS seemed to engage in a similar deception. They lure(d) students with seemingly false advertising. For example, they overstate(d) the value of a law degree by falsely stating average starting salary and employment statistics. They paint a very rosy picture for the value of an ultimately worthless piece of paper (e.g. a diploma).

The deception runs deeper. For example, why did New York Law School have so much money indirectly invested with Bernie Madoff? Seeking a quick dollar it seems, and with whose money? Playing high stakes poker with students’ tuitions is bad move. Unethical arguably. So money seems to be the name of the game at NYLS, not students’ livelihoods. Richard Matasar seemed to make out well though with about half a million a year in salary from students’ tuitions. And Bernie Madoff made out well too for a while from students’ tuitions. Matassar has taken the proverbial money and run, as he’s skipped dodge for possibly greener ($$$) pastures.

If NYLS advertising were “honest”, it would say something to this effect: “A law degree from a third-tier law school will ultimately be a complete waste of your time, energy, money and livelihood. The legal market is grossly oversaturated. A la degree will likely hurt, not help your employment prospects. No employer wants to hire a lawyer for a menial job. Unless you go to a top 10 ranked law school, and graduate in the top of your class, you’ll be hurting, not helping yourself by attending our institution. So save your time, money and happiness. Do something else with your life.”

But selling an illusion, a false hope, to naive “students” is too lucrative for those propagating the myth. Their livelihoods depend on you being deceived. So the propaganda will continue, and people like Matasar will continue to reap windfalls from such seemingly deceptive practices.

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