Which stream is best for lawyers? The right path to become a personal injury lawyer

If you’re thinking about becoming a lawyer and you’ve got your eye on personal injury cases, you’re not alone. Every year, thousands of people get hurt in car crashes, slip-and-falls, workplace accidents, or due to defective products. Someone has to stand up for them. That’s where personal injury lawyers come in. But here’s the real question: which stream should you take in high school to set yourself up for this career? It’s not about picking the "smartest" or "easiest" path-it’s about building the right foundation.

There’s no single "law stream"-but your choices matter

First, let’s clear up a myth: there’s no official "law stream" in high school. Unlike medicine or engineering, law doesn’t require you to study specific science subjects early on. But that doesn’t mean your subject choices don’t count. In fact, they shape how easily you’ll handle law school later.

Most countries, including New Zealand, let students pick from general streams like Arts, Science, or Commerce after grade 10. If you’re aiming for a career as a personal injury lawyer, you want to build skills in communication, critical thinking, and understanding human behavior-not memorizing chemical formulas.

Best stream: Arts or Humanities

For most future personal injury lawyers, the Arts or Humanities stream is the best fit. Why? Because it gives you direct exposure to the core skills you’ll need:

• English Literature - Teaches you how to read complex texts, spot arguments, and write clearly. In law, every case turns on wording. A misplaced comma can change everything.
• History - Helps you understand how laws evolved. Personal injury law didn’t appear out of nowhere. It grew from centuries of court decisions about negligence, duty, and responsibility.
• Psychology or Sociology - These subjects help you understand why people get hurt, how trauma affects behavior, and how to communicate with clients who are scared, angry, or confused.
• Political Science - Shows you how laws are made, who influences them, and how the justice system really works behind the scenes.

One of my former law students, Maya, started in Arts. She didn’t have a single science class after grade 10. By her third year of law school, she was winning settlements for clients with chronic pain after car crashes-not because she knew anatomy, but because she could explain their suffering in a way juries understood.

What about Commerce?

Commerce isn’t bad. If you’re strong in economics, business studies, or accounting, you might actually have an edge. Personal injury cases often involve insurance claims, lost wages, medical bills, and future care costs. Knowing how money flows helps you calculate damages accurately.

But here’s the catch: Commerce usually lacks the heavy writing and argument-building practice that Arts gives you. Law school is 80% reading and writing. If you’re not already comfortable writing essays, analyzing cases, and defending opinions, Commerce won’t prepare you as well.

Science? Skip it-unless you’re going into medical malpractice

Science is the least useful stream for most personal injury lawyers. You don’t need to know calculus to argue a slip-and-fall case. You don’t need chemistry to cross-examine a doctor.

There’s one exception: if you plan to specialize in medical malpractice-cases where doctors, hospitals, or drug companies are accused of harm-then biology and chemistry become relevant. But even then, you don’t need to be a scientist. You need to understand medical reports, ask smart questions, and work with expert witnesses. That’s a skill you learn in law school, not high school.

What you should be doing right now

Forget picking a "perfect" stream. Focus on what you can control:

1. Write every day - Keep a journal. Write opinion pieces. Summarize news stories. Law is all about clear, persuasive writing.
2. Debate or join Model UN - Practice arguing both sides of an issue. You’ll need to defend your client’s claim and anticipate the other side’s counterarguments.
3. Read real court cases - Start with simple ones. Search for "New Zealand personal injury cases" online. Read the judgments. Notice how judges word their decisions.
4. Volunteer with community legal centers - Many cities have free legal clinics. Even helping with filing paperwork gives you insight into how real clients experience the system.

What happens after high school?

Once you finish high school, you’ll need to:

• Enroll in a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) program. In New Zealand, that’s typically a 4-year degree at universities like Victoria University or the University of Auckland.
• Complete the Professional Legal Studies Course (PLSC) - this is where you learn courtroom procedure, ethics, and how to draft legal documents.
• Get admitted as a barrister and solicitor by the New Zealand Law Society.
• Work under a mentor for at least two years before practicing independently.

During law school, you’ll take courses like:

• Torts (that’s the legal term for civil wrongs like negligence)
• Insurance Law
• Compensation Law
• Evidence and Advocacy

You’ll learn how to calculate pain and suffering damages, how to challenge medical reports, and how to negotiate with insurance adjusters who want to pay as little as possible.

Why personal injury law? It’s not just about money

Some people think personal injury lawyers are just "ambulance chasers." That’s a myth. Most of us take cases because someone was hurt through no fault of their own. A teenager paralyzed in a crash. A factory worker with lifelong nerve damage. A mother who can’t care for her kids after a fall on unsafe stairs.

Your job isn’t to get rich. It’s to make sure the system doesn’t ignore them. Insurance companies have teams of lawyers. The injured person? Often alone. That’s where you come in.

What if you already took Science or Commerce?

It’s not too late. Many successful personal injury lawyers started in Commerce or even Science. The key is making up for missing skills. If you didn’t take English Literature, read more. If you didn’t learn argument structure, practice it. Take online courses in legal writing. Join a debate club. The path isn’t about your high school stream-it’s about your commitment to learning.

Final thought: Your strengths matter more than your stream

Some lawyers are quiet, detail-oriented, and great with numbers. Others are loud, emotional, and brilliant at reading people. Neither is "better." Personal injury law needs both.

Ask yourself: Do you like listening to people’s stories? Do you hate seeing injustice? Do you want to fight for someone who can’t fight for themselves? If yes, then you already have what it takes. The stream you choose just helps you get there faster.

Choosing the right high school stream is just the first step. What matters more is what you do next: reading, writing, listening, and learning how to speak up for those who can’t. That’s the real path to becoming a personal injury lawyer.