What do you see as the value of our current legal system?
- Matthew Gebaide –
Our current legal system has significant value in many regards. I believe that our legal system is the fairest and most equitable of any other legal system in the world. The premise of having a jury comprised of twelve ordinary men and women sitting in a courtroom following a trial, listening to evidence, learning as they follow the guidelines set forth in our legal system, and finally being responsible for deciding the fate of another human being is an amazing concept. Its outcome may often be questioned, but the process by which we aspire to find justice is truly amazing.
The importance of how justice is handled in this country and the ways in which our freedoms are never taken for granted makes our country’s judicial system powerful and signifies what our Constitution means to this country and how important our Founding Fathers were in establishing the rights by which we as Americans are guided.
Although I haven’t had any direct involvement within the legal system, I observe how certain things develop and watch how laws are broken and penalties are paid. One of my great passions in life has been sports, both as a player of various sports, and as a huge fan. Having seen the downfall of some sports figures and having observed some other very disturbing things that have occurred, I have often thought of how I might be able to combine my great interest in sports and what it means in this country with my future career plans.
I would like to see the era of sports return in a way that is reminiscent of a time when children grew up idolizing sports heroes and looked up to them as great role models. I would like to be involved in formulating legal guidelines for sports that will make a difference in the future. This is just one avenue that I would like to explore if I follow a career in law.
What’s very interesting about pursing a career in the legal system is having opportunities to share some of my values and philosophies as they pertain to many different things. Learning more about our legal system and how it operates appeals to me and sparked my interest enough for me to consider pursing some opportunities that have been offered to me as I prepare for college. There is a Social Justice Living and Learning Community at one of the colleges that I am considering, and this would be a great introduction into the legal world and perhaps further my interest in pursuing a legal career.
The law interests me in countless ways, and I hope to be able to seriously consider it in my future plans since I hold the values of our current legal system in such high regard.