Letters of rec: someone who knows you better or someone with more legal connections?

sarahemily1000

I am applying to law schools this season and gathering my letters of recommendation. I was wondering if it would be better to have someone who knows me better and directly supervised me during my work at an NGO but has no legal background write my recommendation or if it would be beneficial to have someone with a legal background who I didn't work directly under write one for me? I could definitely meet with them and discuss some of my qualifications and skills but I'm not sure if it would be super specific and helpful for the law school admissions teams. Then again, having an LOR from a legal professional could be a really strong boost to my application. Could I possibly have them cosign an LOR?

Abadani.farhad

I've been told that it should be people who know you on a really personal level and people you had direct supervision from. That advice even extended to the professors that I was choosing for my letters, the smaller the class and the more engagement the better.

holmesvc

Go with who knows you better and can write a stronger, more authentic assessment of your character! Who is going to write the most positive things? I think if that person is the one with a legal background, that's great! If you really want to cover your bases, ask both of them and then decide. In my opinion, going with someone who knows you less only makes sense if they're an alum to a program you're really interested in. Otherwise, go with who can say the most about you.