By: Abarna Kamalakumaran

Whenever I tell people that I’m interested in more than one area of law, the response is almost automatic.

“But why?”
“You need to pick one area and dedicate yourself to it.”
“Law requires focus.”

I understand where this advice comes from. The legal profession is built on specialization, and the volume of law grows every year. Becoming skilled in any practice area takes time, discipline, and commitment.

But I’ve always struggled with the idea that curiosity across different areas of law is somehow a weakness.

Because law is law.

At its core, the law is the architecture of our social contract. It shapes how we live, how we resolve conflict, how we hold power accountable, and how we protect one another. Civil law, criminal law, administrative law, regulatory law: these aren’t isolated islands. They are interconnected systems that constantly overlap in real life.

Life does not happen in neat legal categories. So why should curiosity?

The beauty of this profession is precisely its intersectional nature. Law touches every aspect of human life: housing, employment, relationships, business, safety, identity, technology, freedom. To be curious about multiple areas of law is simply to be curious about how society functions.