without going to law school, what are some resources to become competent in law?

Put "legal search engines" into Google and you will get tens of thousands of resources, many of which will help.

The VAST majority of laws can be read online. READING laws is the best place to start.

law books at the library

In Washington state the laws are found in the RCWs and the WAC. You can spend as much time as you want on those sites and get as much info about the law as you need to satisfy your personal needs.

You can buy bar exam prep kits.

https://www.barbri.com/

Today, only four states — California, Virginia, Vermont, and Washington — allow aspiring lawyers to take the bar exam without going to law school. Instead, they are given the option to apprentice with a practicing attorney or judge. ... Since 1996, 1,142 apprentices have taken the bar exam; only 305 have passed.

Borrow and read all the law books you can. To save yourself some time - try to limit your reading to the specific type of law you want to be competent in: trial, criminal, civil, environmental, corporate, etc.

There are plenty of instances where "jail house" lawyers use their "time" to study the law, never attend law school, and successfully dispute their cases in court on their own.

Read law books.