In The Westing Game, E.J. Plum was the lawyer handling the Westing Estate. He obviously specialized in Inheritance Law, dealing with wills. Mr. Plum was a very young and inexperienced lawyer at the time of the reading of the Westing will. Judge Ford even describes him as incompetent. Her descriptions of him come from previous dealings with him in the courtroom. His only dealings with Mr. Westing come after Mr. Westing's death, as the executor of Mr. Westing's will.

Wills:

It is important to have a will. A will is a legal document a person writes to let others know who gets their belongings after they die. It also lets people know who you want or don't want to take care of your children after you die. Another reason to have a will is so you don't have to worry about your family being taken care of.

Most people realize that they need a will but unbelievably 70% of Americans do not have one. One of the reasons people put off making a will is they think it will be too expensive, and that they need a lawyer, but that is not true. You can go to a lawyer, but you can also buy books and do it yourself at home.

It is very important to have a will, because if you do not make a will the state law gets to decide what to do with your personal belongings and if you have children they will decide what happens to them. When this happens it is called interstate succession.

Career of a Lawyer

In order to practice law, you must obtain a master's degree in law (Doctor of Jurisprudence degree, J.D.). Prior to seeking a law degree, you must have completed a bachelor's degree, typically in the areas of social sciences or humanities. While most lawyers are men, the numbers are quickly rising for women entering this field. Today, women make up 1/3 of the practicing lawyers, while men make up 2/3 of them.

Lawyers usually specialize in one specific type of law, though their education gives them general knowledge of all areas of law. Laws are rules that a society must follow in order to provide order. The two types of laws are private law and public law. Most lawyers deal with matters of private law. Private law is also known as civil law. There are many subcategories to private law, so lawyers can be even more specialized.

One type of private law is called contract/commercial law. This type of law specializes in legalizing contracts and following them. Another type is the Tort law. It deals specifically with the rights of people in matters where a person or their property is injured or hurt. Property law ensures that property is used and handled correctly, while also dealing with the selling, buying, and renting of property. Inheritance law (sucession law) establishes rules for wills. Family law handles matters of adoption, marriage, divorce, and child support. Corporation law deals with the running of a corporation.