Subject Matter

Lawyers tend to specialize in particular subject matters. However, some lawyers are general practitioners, while others sub-specialize.

In this section, you will find some of the subject matters on which lawyers work. There is some overlap between the subject matters. Corporate lawyers, for example, may specialize in environmental issues. There is also a great deal of variation of what lawyers do when they work within any subject matter. For example, an environmental lawyer can focus on civil litigation, transactional work, legislation and lobbying, dispute resolution, or regulatory compliance. They may also work for a law firm, corporation, public interest organization, or the government!

In this section, you will find a description of the subject matters on which lawyers work. The courses and extracurricular activities listed in these pages can help you learn more about that subject matter.

Because Wake Forest Law offers so many classes, the course list for each subject matter is divided into primary, secondary, and experiential classes. The primary courses provide the foundation you need, while the secondary classes will deepen your understanding of the subject matter. As for the experiential courses, they will allow you to gain hands-on experience working on that topic.

Although lawyers work on many different subject matters, some of the main ones are: