So, after overcoming the technical issues with the online registration system, the Fight The Hypo crew is registered for summer classes. We’re not taking any classes that are GPA-padders. Each course is a central part of our legal edcuation either because it meets a requirement of our school or it’s on the bar.
Here’s a list of courses that one or several of us are taking (we can only take 4 credits in the summer):
- Administrative Law - staple course.
- Legal Drafting Seminar - elective; meets upper level writing and professional skills requirements.
- Professional Responsibility - required course, taught by a popular professor.
- Social Justice and The Law - required course at Catholic U; presents the Catholic view of the origins of law and justice as they relate to several modern issues.
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.
