As our recent foray in poetry suggests, the 1 L rite of passage that is the Appellate Brief is now finished. Oral Arguments are next, followed by exams, and then I, for one, am going to collapse into a heap.
Other than exhaustion and caffeine addiction, one of things that I find most amazing about law school is that it gives you new insight into the way our society functions. Take for example this appellate brief. Our problem focused on a wrongful discharge case under the ADEA, and was set in the 5th Circuit. In doing the type of exhaustive research required for such an undertaking, you’re able to see the development of the interpretation of the law over time. Specifically, you are able to see how the appointment of jurists with a particular judicial philosophy can really shape public policy. Continue reading ‘Epiphany’
Submit your very own Haiku honoring (slandering?) your 1L Appellate Brief. All schools welcome.
Here’s mine:
You red clad devil.
Your page limit frustrates me.
Can’t wait to burn you.*
* after I submit you, get a grade, and get you back, of course. you don’t get off that easy.
Another quintessentially law school experience…
So, we’re taking a vacation to the Outer Banks this summer with some friends. Like many, we found a property online and booked it. Last night - about a week later - I received the rental agreement in the mail. I read every. single. word. of it. It all looked pretty straight forward, but I got a kick out of this sentence: “Most homes are served by septic systems.” (emphasis added) Visions of Mrs. Rush and her port-o-john trap door danced in my head. It’s even got the Hadley Rule covered: “… in no event shall Owner be held liable for any consequential or secondary damages.”
Continue reading ‘Why Can’t I Just Go On Vacation?’
It’s my pleasure to start the week off by introducing you to my friend, classmate, and new writer on Fight The Hypo - Sally Proust. I think you’ll find her mix of sass and sweetness refreshing. Here’s a little Q&A I did with Sally recently…
Fight The Hypo: First things first, Sally. Our readers are dying to know whether there’s a Mr. Sally Proust?
Sally Proust: Negative on that front. Still holding out for a quality guy who is willing to be part of my juggling act and hang out with a great gal. That’s actually how a friend described me to Lance Armstrong at our chance meeting in Georgetown.
FTH: Great is a good word for you, but I’m still wondering what the heck Lance Armstrong was doing in Georgetown that night. I think we’d all agree on that one. So what are you going to write about here at Fight The Hypo?
SP: In addition to the ups and downs of law school I struggle with the dating game. It’s not easy, but c’est la vie. I can empathize with readers who are enduring the same. If you don’t start law school with a serious relationship it’s hard to establish one because you don’t have the time to invest in building it. There’s no question relationships take time and work, which law students lack. Continue reading ‘Introducing New Contributor Sally Proust’
Everyone who has been through the law school application process knows exactly where their school sits in the rankings. The general perception is that the entire legal education market is a pyramid, and if you get better LSAT scores, you go to a better school, which gets you a better job, etc. (e.g. “If I go to law school at Harvard, I will get a top job at a New York firm and make lots of money.”) The converse is also assumed to be true.
Something has always seemed fishy about this to me. Looking over the data reported to the ABA, the so-called “T-14” only produces about 4600 graduates per year, or roughly 10% of the total number of law school graduates. Are they the only lawyers to get good paying jobs? Is everyone else out on the corner selling pencils? Of course not.
Continue reading ‘Top 25 Best Values in Law School’
Despite the fact that we’re just 1Ls, a lot of the folks in our program are concerned with job prospects after school. A friend of mine recently interviewed for a non-legal position at one of the top law firms in town here, and while I’m not surprised at what he found during the interview, it does make me question some of the facts of life in our profession.
Early on in the interview, the associate who was interviewing my friend made the comment, “You know, this firm would never recruit out of your school. What do you think about that? How do you distinguish yourself from your education?”
Now, one of the unspoken things at our law school is the fact that we’re not top-tier. Everyone knows it, but no one talks about it. So my buddy was taken aback by the fact that the associate came right out and said it, but he kept his composure. He replied that while he wasn’t happy hearing that, his experience outside of law school made him qualified for the current position etc. Anyone who knows my friend would be impressed with his credentials.
Continue reading ‘Your School Sucks - Why Should We Hire You?’
J. Louis May over The Legal Scoop has this good rundown of the challenges of course selection (something many of us here at Fight The Hypo are grappling with). The primary issue being: Do I take a course that’s not required but is tested on the Bar or should I pursue classes more directly relate to where I intend to practice or classes I’m more interested in?
He writes:
So, what is the “right way” to plan your legal education? I admit that my degree has been highly focused on preparation to litigate. I have taken courses such as Interviewing & Counseling, Negotiations & Dispute Resolutions, Evidence, Trial Practice and Mediation Clinic. As a result, I feel that I’m prepared for my role as an advocate for my clients. What I am not prepared for is the Comprehensive Tennessee Bar Exam. Conspicuously absent from my transcript are such fundamentals as Business Associations, Mergers & Acquisitions or Tax Law. The result? This summer, and the BAR/BRI process will be a daunting and critical process. I’d be hard pressed to define exactly what it means to be a “fiduciary” or what duties accompany such a title.
Those of you who are just setting out on your law school adventure, keep these things in mind. If someone had really discussed the realities of my course scheduling with me my first year, I’d have thought twice before excitedly joining the advocacy concentration.
Note also this previous post on The Legal Scoop blog.
