Here is an inspiring story about a 71 year old former Nigerian presidential candidate who has decided to return to school to earn his J.D. Pretty wild!
By Steve Kanigher
Monday, Nov. 29, 2010
The admissions director at Boyd School of Law guesses that half of the first-year students have held professional jobs.
But surely none quite like Lawrence Eyo Ita.
He has earned doctorates in mechanical and civil engineering and served as a professor at UNLV.
Most of the students were barely toddlers when Ita helped rewrite the constitution in his native Nigeria and participated in the founding of a political party there.
Ita, who turns 71 on Wednesday, is the oldest of the 145 students who entered Boyd this fall. The next oldest is 54.
Some of Boyd’s students are victims of the economy, or were frustrated in old jobs, and are on the hunt for a new career. Ita, who stands out in a crowd because of his full white beard, certainly is not looking for a new career because he can’t find a job. His resume is a jaw-dropper.
“I have never not been a student,” he said. “Even when I was teaching, I was a student. I am involved in the constant search for truths and in the development of capabilities to solve human problems, societal problems.”
After leaving Nigeria in his 20s, he attended the University of Michigan in the 1960s at a time when many college students were preoccupied with protesting the Vietnam War. Not Ita. He was always hitting the books, and it paid off with his engineering doctorate.
He parlayed his degree into jobs in the 1970s as an engineering professor at UNLV and for a brief time as engineering director of what is now known as the state Public Utilities Commission.
Ita returned to Nigeria in the early 1980s because he wanted to get involved in politics, but his timing was off because he had been out of the country for years and was therefore considered an outsider. The West African nation, which gained independence from Great Britain in 1960, is a multiparty democracy whose government has been interrupted by a series of military coups. It was one of those coups that provided an opening for Ita, because the new leaders wanted to pursue a democracy with young, fresh politicians.
Seeing an opening, Ita, who had become general manager of a water agency, was elected in 1989 to the Nigerian Constituent Assembly, a body of 300 members who rewrote Nigeria’s constitution. While there he also became a founder of a political party, the Liberal Convention, which eventually merged into a larger party. It was Ita who came up with the name Liberal Convention.
“We wanted transparency in government, full representation for all parts of the country, more of a liberal philosophy on issues affecting segments of society,” Ita said. “I liked the idea of liberal because it allows everyone to have a say. And I wanted to get away from the name “party,” and convention sounded to me like something that would bring everybody together.”
Ita eventually took a stab at Nigeria’s presidency, but his candidacy in 1998 was marred by illness, and he returned to Southern Nevada. He resumed his career in academia, serving as a professor at what is now known as the College of Southern Nevada and helping to design a way for instructors to offer coursework to students over the Internet.
He also found time to take classes in computer programming and in 2007 earned his second doctorate, this time in education leadership from UNLV.
And he self-published a book, “Life’s Experiences, Science & The Name of God,” which explores the relation between science and prayer.
His pursuit of a law degree, he said, involves his quest to learn about international business transactions, treaties and other instruction that can help him reform Nigeria’s democracy. One change he seeks is to have ballot results posted on a wall at each ward where votes were cast.
“The ballot boxes now are transported to a higher level, like a county, and it’s in that process that boxes disappear, boxes are exchanged,” Ita said. “By the time you get to the final entry, like a presidential election at the national level, the results don’t mean anything.”
His proposal sounds simple, he said, but he realizes it will take much persuasion for those in power to hold more transparent elections and to add transparency to other government functions, including the awarding of public works contracts. Ita plans to hone those skills at Boyd.
“Out of the training and persuasive discourse, law school definitely instills that discipline,” he said.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Mr. Ita's story is very inspiring. A man of his position with so much experience deciding to humble himself and return to the class room shows the importance many people pace on having an education in law. Many students coming into their first year of law school do not have the experience that Mr. Ita has, and this causes them much anxiety about what to expect from law school. eCasebriefs.com offers a FREE Law School Prep Course for future law students. This FREE lecture series includes 12 online lectures, given by professors from top law schools from all over the country. While there are courses similar to this offered, this is the only course that is 100% FREE. If you want to be prepared for law school, eCasebriefs.com FREE law school prep course is the only way to go!
Monday, November 29, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Law school students to assist veterans with claims
University of Detroit Mercy School of Law • Reader Submitted • November 15, 2010
University of Detroit Mercy School of Law's (UDM Law) Project SALUTE is traveling across the State of Michigan in a mobile law office, a recreational vehicle custom designed, built and generously donated by General Motors Corporation, providing FREE legal advice to low-income veterans on their federal veterans' disability and pension benefits claims.
Project SALUTE's three primary goals are: 1.) Educate law students by providing one-on-one contact with real clients with real cases. 2.) Educate veterans of their rights under federal law and provide individualized legal counsel to obtain benefits. 3.) Educate attorneys in Veterans' Benefits Law to create a network of FREE assistance for veterans.
Utilizing a grant from the State of Michigan, Project SALUTE will host a veterans' legal clinic in Battle Creek on Wednesday, November 17, at the Battle Creek Health Fair, located at 35 West Hamblin Ave., from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
The state grant is also being used to establish a freestanding Veterans Clinic at the school dedicated to specifically addressing veterans' disability and pension benefits matters. Under the supervision of law school faculty, law students are able to provide assistance to Michigan's veterans in their efforts to seek Federal veterans' benefits payments.
To date, Project SALUTE has counseled more than 600 veterans and trained more than 200 pro bono attorneys across the state of Michigan.
eCasebriefs.com offers the only FREE law school prep course. This course is the BEST way for potential law students to prepare for real world law classes. It is FREE and going on NOW
University of Detroit Mercy School of Law's (UDM Law) Project SALUTE is traveling across the State of Michigan in a mobile law office, a recreational vehicle custom designed, built and generously donated by General Motors Corporation, providing FREE legal advice to low-income veterans on their federal veterans' disability and pension benefits claims.
Project SALUTE's three primary goals are: 1.) Educate law students by providing one-on-one contact with real clients with real cases. 2.) Educate veterans of their rights under federal law and provide individualized legal counsel to obtain benefits. 3.) Educate attorneys in Veterans' Benefits Law to create a network of FREE assistance for veterans.
Utilizing a grant from the State of Michigan, Project SALUTE will host a veterans' legal clinic in Battle Creek on Wednesday, November 17, at the Battle Creek Health Fair, located at 35 West Hamblin Ave., from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
The state grant is also being used to establish a freestanding Veterans Clinic at the school dedicated to specifically addressing veterans' disability and pension benefits matters. Under the supervision of law school faculty, law students are able to provide assistance to Michigan's veterans in their efforts to seek Federal veterans' benefits payments.
To date, Project SALUTE has counseled more than 600 veterans and trained more than 200 pro bono attorneys across the state of Michigan.
eCasebriefs.com offers the only FREE law school prep course. This course is the BEST way for potential law students to prepare for real world law classes. It is FREE and going on NOW
Monday, November 8, 2010
UC Irvine School of Law to offer 1/3 tuition scholarships for class of 2014
With the cost of law school gradually becoming a hot topic in the education world, the University of California Irvine School of Law is taking aggressive steps to make sure that they are able to attract top candidates. The school recently announced that they will provide scholarships of at least one-third tuition to each member of the Class of 2014.
Opened in 2009, UCI Law is the first public law school in California in more than 40 years but has already become a competitor with the nation's top 20 law schools. Tuition at UCI Law comes with a hefty price tag of $40,000 for in-state students and $50,000 for out-of-state students. However, the school provided full-tuition scholarships to its first class, and half-tuition scholarships to the second. UCI Law has been able to offer these enticing scholarships thanks to private donations, including a substantial gift from Mark P. Robinson Jr., chair of the Dean's Advisory Council and senior partner at Robinson, Calcagnie Robinson Inc in Newport Beach, Calif.
“Because of the generosity of Mark Robinson and others, UCI Law will continue to provide generous scholarships to help us attract top-quality students,” said Dean Erwin Chemerinsky. “These schoarlships will also help reduce the debt burdens of our students by the time they are ready to pursue careers in law and public service.”
National Jurist
The financial sacrifices most law schools students make in order to pay for law school are immense. Whether it is student loans, or working extra jobs to pay for school, students make sacrifices in order to pursue their dreams. Financial preparations, while important, are not the only preparation necessary for law school. Many students find the transition to law school classes overwhelming, however you can mitigate this issue by taking a law school prep course. There are many of these courses available, however for students saving for law school the FREE Law School Prep Course offered at eCasebriefs.com
Opened in 2009, UCI Law is the first public law school in California in more than 40 years but has already become a competitor with the nation's top 20 law schools. Tuition at UCI Law comes with a hefty price tag of $40,000 for in-state students and $50,000 for out-of-state students. However, the school provided full-tuition scholarships to its first class, and half-tuition scholarships to the second. UCI Law has been able to offer these enticing scholarships thanks to private donations, including a substantial gift from Mark P. Robinson Jr., chair of the Dean's Advisory Council and senior partner at Robinson, Calcagnie Robinson Inc in Newport Beach, Calif.
“Because of the generosity of Mark Robinson and others, UCI Law will continue to provide generous scholarships to help us attract top-quality students,” said Dean Erwin Chemerinsky. “These schoarlships will also help reduce the debt burdens of our students by the time they are ready to pursue careers in law and public service.”
National Jurist
The financial sacrifices most law schools students make in order to pay for law school are immense. Whether it is student loans, or working extra jobs to pay for school, students make sacrifices in order to pursue their dreams. Financial preparations, while important, are not the only preparation necessary for law school. Many students find the transition to law school classes overwhelming, however you can mitigate this issue by taking a law school prep course. There are many of these courses available, however for students saving for law school the FREE Law School Prep Course offered at eCasebriefs.com
Monday, November 1, 2010
Why the job market is changing
In the most recent issue of The National Jurist professor William D. Henderson of Indiana University highlights recent changes in the job market for law school graduates. Keep yourself in tune with the changing job market so you can easily transition into the working world.
Why the job market is changing
The law firm world that we have all known is changing. Fueled by new economic realities. Law firms are beginning to adapt to a new reality. And that makes it hard for law students to understand the part they care about the most — the entry-level hiring market.
By William D. Henderson, professor of Law at Indiana University Maurer School of Law—Bloomington and director, Law Firms Working Group, for The National Jurist magazine.
As someone who spends a large amount of time studying the history and structure of the legal services industry, I might have some useful insight on the vagaries of the current job market, including how things might change in the future.
Here are three relevant observations:
1. The traditional law firm hiring model (pedigree and grades) doesn’t do a very good job of selecting candidates who are likely to succeed as large firm litigators or corporate lawyers.
2 The traditional credential-based model is gradually being dismantled because clients are no longer willing to absorb the cost of bad hiring decisions.
3. The skills and behaviors you need to set yourself apart are not taught in law school—indeed, your typical law professor is completely unqualified to serve as your jungle guide.
How we got here
Although these observations may seem extravagant, they make more sense when placed in historical context. At the beginning of the post-World War II era, the vast majority of U.S. lawyers were general practitioners working as self-employed businessmen. They did not make much money, primarily because there were more generalist lawyers than work.
In contrast, the average partner working in a “large” law firm made approximately five times as much as the typical solo practitioner. Although big firm lawyers comprised only a small fragment of the private practice bar (less than 4 percent of lawyers worked in firms with five or more partners), they had specialized skills that were in short supply relative to demand.
For the next several decades, market forces favored the larger law firms. During this time period, the rise of the administrative state and the growth of transnational commerce created an enormous need for sophisticated business lawyers. And the only credible way to fill this talent gap was for the specialists — the partners in large firms — to train younger lawyers (associates).
Indeed, if a firm had an established reputation, the business clients were willing pay for this training.
Historically, the leading business law firms recruited at elite, Ivy League law schools, in part because these schools had full-time, learned faculty and required an undergraduate education. In the days before the LSAT and stringent state bar admissions standards, there was a general belief that the Ivy League model produced better thinkers and problem-solvers.
After lawyers and law professors organized themselves nationally — through the ABA and the Association of American Law Schools — they were then able to successfully lobby state governments to adopt the Ivy League model as the template for all law schools. This movement coincided with the rise of the great public law schools, which made legal education affordable to a large number of first generation professionals.
These changes in legal education substantially diluted the business rationale for law firms to recruit at elite law schools. But, the self-image of law firms had become intimately intertwined with the educational pedigree of their lawyers. And because large firms were still only a small proportion of the total legal market, any pay premium for the top academic graduates was still small enough to pass along to clients. In short, there was no economic downside to being an academic snob.
These favorable economic conditions lasted for several decades, and it became the industry-wide presumption that partners from the most elite schools were the best lawyers. The institutionalization of on-campus interviews by large law firms further perpetuated this pattern. In turn, 20-year-old college students looking for a reliable path to prestige and wealth set their sights on the so-called national law schools.
Most current law students are quite familiar with the rest of this story.
As the financial and technology sectors boomed in the late 1990s and early 2000s, law firms went on a hiring spree. And for the first time in history, the demand for elite law school graduates outstripped supply. This produced an entry-level job market that was “bi-modal”—a large proportion of graduates clustered at salaries of $40,000 to $50,000, a second large cluster at $140,000 to $160,000, and only relatively few jobs in between.
By William D. Henderson, professor of Law at Indiana University Maurer School of Law—Bloomington and director, Law Firms Working Group, for The National Jurist magazine.
While staying in tune with the changing job market for law school grads will help you prepare for after law school, the best way to prepare for law school itself is by participating in a preparation course. There are many such courses, however they can be quite pricey. eCasebriefs.com offers a FREE Law School Prep Course Lecture Series. To find out more go to http://www.ecasebriefs.com/blog/category/pre-law-prep-course/
Why the job market is changing
The law firm world that we have all known is changing. Fueled by new economic realities. Law firms are beginning to adapt to a new reality. And that makes it hard for law students to understand the part they care about the most — the entry-level hiring market.
By William D. Henderson, professor of Law at Indiana University Maurer School of Law—Bloomington and director, Law Firms Working Group, for The National Jurist magazine.
As someone who spends a large amount of time studying the history and structure of the legal services industry, I might have some useful insight on the vagaries of the current job market, including how things might change in the future.
Here are three relevant observations:
1. The traditional law firm hiring model (pedigree and grades) doesn’t do a very good job of selecting candidates who are likely to succeed as large firm litigators or corporate lawyers.
2 The traditional credential-based model is gradually being dismantled because clients are no longer willing to absorb the cost of bad hiring decisions.
3. The skills and behaviors you need to set yourself apart are not taught in law school—indeed, your typical law professor is completely unqualified to serve as your jungle guide.
How we got here
Although these observations may seem extravagant, they make more sense when placed in historical context. At the beginning of the post-World War II era, the vast majority of U.S. lawyers were general practitioners working as self-employed businessmen. They did not make much money, primarily because there were more generalist lawyers than work.
In contrast, the average partner working in a “large” law firm made approximately five times as much as the typical solo practitioner. Although big firm lawyers comprised only a small fragment of the private practice bar (less than 4 percent of lawyers worked in firms with five or more partners), they had specialized skills that were in short supply relative to demand.
For the next several decades, market forces favored the larger law firms. During this time period, the rise of the administrative state and the growth of transnational commerce created an enormous need for sophisticated business lawyers. And the only credible way to fill this talent gap was for the specialists — the partners in large firms — to train younger lawyers (associates).
Indeed, if a firm had an established reputation, the business clients were willing pay for this training.
Historically, the leading business law firms recruited at elite, Ivy League law schools, in part because these schools had full-time, learned faculty and required an undergraduate education. In the days before the LSAT and stringent state bar admissions standards, there was a general belief that the Ivy League model produced better thinkers and problem-solvers.
After lawyers and law professors organized themselves nationally — through the ABA and the Association of American Law Schools — they were then able to successfully lobby state governments to adopt the Ivy League model as the template for all law schools. This movement coincided with the rise of the great public law schools, which made legal education affordable to a large number of first generation professionals.
These changes in legal education substantially diluted the business rationale for law firms to recruit at elite law schools. But, the self-image of law firms had become intimately intertwined with the educational pedigree of their lawyers. And because large firms were still only a small proportion of the total legal market, any pay premium for the top academic graduates was still small enough to pass along to clients. In short, there was no economic downside to being an academic snob.
These favorable economic conditions lasted for several decades, and it became the industry-wide presumption that partners from the most elite schools were the best lawyers. The institutionalization of on-campus interviews by large law firms further perpetuated this pattern. In turn, 20-year-old college students looking for a reliable path to prestige and wealth set their sights on the so-called national law schools.
Most current law students are quite familiar with the rest of this story.
As the financial and technology sectors boomed in the late 1990s and early 2000s, law firms went on a hiring spree. And for the first time in history, the demand for elite law school graduates outstripped supply. This produced an entry-level job market that was “bi-modal”—a large proportion of graduates clustered at salaries of $40,000 to $50,000, a second large cluster at $140,000 to $160,000, and only relatively few jobs in between.
By William D. Henderson, professor of Law at Indiana University Maurer School of Law—Bloomington and director, Law Firms Working Group, for The National Jurist magazine.
While staying in tune with the changing job market for law school grads will help you prepare for after law school, the best way to prepare for law school itself is by participating in a preparation course. There are many such courses, however they can be quite pricey. eCasebriefs.com offers a FREE Law School Prep Course Lecture Series. To find out more go to http://www.ecasebriefs.com/blog/category/pre-law-prep-course/
Monday, October 25, 2010
Project Helps Send 2 Ugandan Women to Law School
Recently a U.S based grassroots organization traveled to Uganda to give two women a chance of a lifetime; the opportunity to attend law school in the U.S.
Karen Sloan
The National Law Journal
October 21, 2010
Ms. JD, a grassroots organization committed to advancing women in the legal profession, is looking beyond the borders of the United States.
The group has launched a Global Education Fund that is intended to help women in developing countries become lawyers. The inaugural recipients of the grant are two Ugandan women who will study law at Makerere University in Kampala -- a pursuit that would be out of reach without financial backing.
"We've had this idea kicking around for a long time," said Ms. JD Executive Director Jessie Kornberg. "A lot of what makes Ms. JD work at home is a real sense of solidarity: We're all in this together. That extends beyond borders. We derive our strength and energy from a sense of collaboration and mutual support. This is in keeping in the same vein of women helping women."
Ms. JD will spend about $5,000 a year for five years of undergraduate and law training for recipients Joaninne Nanyange and Monica Athieno. The women were selected for the grant by the Gender Mainstreaming Division at Makerere University based on their financial need and academic credentials. A mere 3 percent of the adult women in Uganda have access to higher education and 45 percent have never received any schooling, according to Ms. JD.
Nanyange intends to use her law degree to assist women and children as a human rights lawyer. She paid her own way through elementary and secondary schools despite the death of her mother and abandonment of her and four younger siblings by her father.
Athieno aspires to become a judge and help develop the rule of law in Uganda. She sold vegetables at a local market to pay for her secondary school education. "In Uganda today, girls and [widows] are faced with challenges from the relatives of a deceased father or husband, they threaten to take the few assets left," Athieno told Ms. JD. "If widows had knowledge about where to seek refuge, they would not be abused in this way."
Ms. JD initially considered supporting women's education in Ghana, but settled on Uganda for this round of funding because the Gender Mainstreaming Division at Makerere University could administer the grant, Kornberg said. The logistics of the program proved far more complicated that initially expected due to tax issues and State Department restrictions on sending money overseas.
Ms. JD is in the process of raising the $25,000 needed to pay for Nanyange and Athieno's education. The organization plans events in New York, Washington, Chicago and Los Angeles. Ms. JD hopes to name more Global Fund recipients, possibly as early as next academic semester.
Ms. JD was founded in 2006 by law students from 12 different schools, and conducts research, offers scholarships and hosts a number of online resources for women in the profession.
"We are open to all suggestions from anyone who wants to help or get involved," Kornberg said. "We think this is just the beginning for the Global Education Fund."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
One can only imagine the hardships these women have endured in order to make their dreams of going to law school come true. However, the ordeal of preparing for law school can be difficult, no matter your upbringing. Being prepared for the law school experience is the only way to ensure that your transition into law will be a smooth one. There are many law school prep courses, but the eCasebriefs.com “Law School Prep Course” Video Lecture Series is the only free online prep course available to student preparing for law school.
Karen Sloan
The National Law Journal
October 21, 2010
Ms. JD, a grassroots organization committed to advancing women in the legal profession, is looking beyond the borders of the United States.
The group has launched a Global Education Fund that is intended to help women in developing countries become lawyers. The inaugural recipients of the grant are two Ugandan women who will study law at Makerere University in Kampala -- a pursuit that would be out of reach without financial backing.
"We've had this idea kicking around for a long time," said Ms. JD Executive Director Jessie Kornberg. "A lot of what makes Ms. JD work at home is a real sense of solidarity: We're all in this together. That extends beyond borders. We derive our strength and energy from a sense of collaboration and mutual support. This is in keeping in the same vein of women helping women."
Ms. JD will spend about $5,000 a year for five years of undergraduate and law training for recipients Joaninne Nanyange and Monica Athieno. The women were selected for the grant by the Gender Mainstreaming Division at Makerere University based on their financial need and academic credentials. A mere 3 percent of the adult women in Uganda have access to higher education and 45 percent have never received any schooling, according to Ms. JD.
Nanyange intends to use her law degree to assist women and children as a human rights lawyer. She paid her own way through elementary and secondary schools despite the death of her mother and abandonment of her and four younger siblings by her father.
Athieno aspires to become a judge and help develop the rule of law in Uganda. She sold vegetables at a local market to pay for her secondary school education. "In Uganda today, girls and [widows] are faced with challenges from the relatives of a deceased father or husband, they threaten to take the few assets left," Athieno told Ms. JD. "If widows had knowledge about where to seek refuge, they would not be abused in this way."
Ms. JD initially considered supporting women's education in Ghana, but settled on Uganda for this round of funding because the Gender Mainstreaming Division at Makerere University could administer the grant, Kornberg said. The logistics of the program proved far more complicated that initially expected due to tax issues and State Department restrictions on sending money overseas.
Ms. JD is in the process of raising the $25,000 needed to pay for Nanyange and Athieno's education. The organization plans events in New York, Washington, Chicago and Los Angeles. Ms. JD hopes to name more Global Fund recipients, possibly as early as next academic semester.
Ms. JD was founded in 2006 by law students from 12 different schools, and conducts research, offers scholarships and hosts a number of online resources for women in the profession.
"We are open to all suggestions from anyone who wants to help or get involved," Kornberg said. "We think this is just the beginning for the Global Education Fund."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
One can only imagine the hardships these women have endured in order to make their dreams of going to law school come true. However, the ordeal of preparing for law school can be difficult, no matter your upbringing. Being prepared for the law school experience is the only way to ensure that your transition into law will be a smooth one. There are many law school prep courses, but the eCasebriefs.com “Law School Prep Course” Video Lecture Series is the only free online prep course available to student preparing for law school.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Best Value Law Schools
In their October issue, National Jurist magazine has listed the top Law Schools based on their value.
•Bar passage higher than the state's average
•Average indebtedness after graduation < $100,000 •Employment rate 9 months after graduation > 85%
These 59 schools were ranked in four tiers, based on this methodology:
•45%: tuition
•45%: average indebtedness
•7%: employment nine months after graduation
•3%: bar passage rate
Here are the Top 20 Best Value Law Schools:
1.Georgia State
2.BYU
3.Louisville
4.Nebraska
5.Kansas
6.New Mexico
7.Mississippi
8.Florida State
9.Memphis
10.Florida International
11.Tennessee
12.South Carolina
13.Northern Illinois
14.Kentucky
15.Georgia
16.Alabama
17.Texas Tech
18.LSU
19.North Dakota
20.Florida
Doing your due diligence on getting the best value for Law School is obviously a neccesary part of preparing for law school, however the only sure fire way to get the best bang for your buck out of law school is to be fully prepared. Try the FREE online Pre Law Prep course at eCasebriefs.com
•Bar passage higher than the state's average
•Average indebtedness after graduation < $100,000 •Employment rate 9 months after graduation > 85%
These 59 schools were ranked in four tiers, based on this methodology:
•45%: tuition
•45%: average indebtedness
•7%: employment nine months after graduation
•3%: bar passage rate
Here are the Top 20 Best Value Law Schools:
1.Georgia State
2.BYU
3.Louisville
4.Nebraska
5.Kansas
6.New Mexico
7.Mississippi
8.Florida State
9.Memphis
10.Florida International
11.Tennessee
12.South Carolina
13.Northern Illinois
14.Kentucky
15.Georgia
16.Alabama
17.Texas Tech
18.LSU
19.North Dakota
20.Florida
Doing your due diligence on getting the best value for Law School is obviously a neccesary part of preparing for law school, however the only sure fire way to get the best bang for your buck out of law school is to be fully prepared. Try the FREE online Pre Law Prep course at eCasebriefs.com
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Angry Law Grads
A troubling story from the National Jurists most recent edition. It is clear that law school alone is not enough, pre-law students must excel academically if they wish to find gainful employment.
Law grads are angry
They say that law schools and banks are running a scam. “Dishonest” law schools report misleading employment data, which lures prospective students into the profession like “hapless lemmings” to their death. The “greedy” banks happily give the students oppressive loans to pay for the exorbitant tuition fees. And then the students graduate to discover that the high-paying salaries and jobs are just not there.
“It’s really just a ponzi scheme,” Scott Bullock told the New Jersey Star-Ledger in August. “They’re just cranking kids out for $45,000 a year.”
Bullock was, until recently, one of a dozen or more law school scam bloggers. The 2005 graduate of Seton Hall University School of Law stopped his blog soon after the Star-Ledger story revealed his identity, but not before thousands of readers visited his site.
And his was not the most popular. Shilling Me Softly, a blog by Kimber Russell, a 2008 graduate from DePaul University College of Law, has attracted almost 30,000 visitors in just over three months. Third Tier Reality is the most visited site to date, with more than 100,000 visitors since it launched more than a year ago.
“There are elements of fraud and misrepresentation,” said Fernando Rodriguez, who authors the blog. “The cost is the biggest thing that upsets us. If tuition was more reasonable, it would not be such a scam.”
Rodriguez, who graduated from Drake University Law School in 2008, said his goal, and the goal of most scam bloggers, is to warn prospective students of the dangers of an overpriced legal education. He says it is one of the only things disgruntled recent graduates can do to fight the problem.
While some have referred to these critics as a “deeply unhappy” minority, William Henderson, a law professor at Indiana University Mauer School of Law, said the anger and frustration is real.
“The new math of legal education is grim reading for the large number of today’s law students and new lawyers earning less than they need to meet their loan payments,” Henderson wrote in a recent article. “Prospective law students need better information about the legal marketplace. Law school brochures are filled with glossy pictures of alumni at large law firms. Many law schools fail to provide the complete picture of what their graduates do and how much they earn.”
Last year two Vanderbilt law students started an effort — Law School Transparency — to collect more accurate employment data from law schools. The students, Patrick Lynch and Kyle McEntee, unveiled their plans to schools this summer. In August, another recent graduate, Zenovia Evans, waged a nearly month-long hunger strike to support their cause. While her strike was ridiculed even by some of the scam bloggers, her action shows just how deep the anger and frustration has grown.
The jury is out on whether Law School Transparency’s efforts will succeed. But most agree that it has added to an overall conversation among professors and deans on the matter.
In August, Brian Tamanaha, a law professor at Washington University in St. Louis wrote a wake-up call to his peers (read it on page 6).
“Law professors know there is a problem,” Tamanaha said. “We see students. We know about the heavy debt burdens. I am just the guy who wrote about this one afternoon to prompt some collective conversation.”
The conversation may be making some progress. The American Bar Association accreditation committee has announced that as part of an overall review of its standards, it will look closely at employment data.
But the scam bloggers say the ABA is unlikely to make substantial change.
“If they really feel the pressure they may institute some change,” Rodriguez said. “But I don’t think it would be long term. More of a band-aid approach to make it look like there is real change when there is not."
Read the full story in the 2010 October issue of The National Jurist.
The best way to prepare for the task of excelling academically is to start early. eCasebriefs.com is now offering a FREE pre-law school lecture series that will prepare you for the type of learning you can expect!
Law grads are angry
They say that law schools and banks are running a scam. “Dishonest” law schools report misleading employment data, which lures prospective students into the profession like “hapless lemmings” to their death. The “greedy” banks happily give the students oppressive loans to pay for the exorbitant tuition fees. And then the students graduate to discover that the high-paying salaries and jobs are just not there.
“It’s really just a ponzi scheme,” Scott Bullock told the New Jersey Star-Ledger in August. “They’re just cranking kids out for $45,000 a year.”
Bullock was, until recently, one of a dozen or more law school scam bloggers. The 2005 graduate of Seton Hall University School of Law stopped his blog soon after the Star-Ledger story revealed his identity, but not before thousands of readers visited his site.
And his was not the most popular. Shilling Me Softly, a blog by Kimber Russell, a 2008 graduate from DePaul University College of Law, has attracted almost 30,000 visitors in just over three months. Third Tier Reality is the most visited site to date, with more than 100,000 visitors since it launched more than a year ago.
“There are elements of fraud and misrepresentation,” said Fernando Rodriguez, who authors the blog. “The cost is the biggest thing that upsets us. If tuition was more reasonable, it would not be such a scam.”
Rodriguez, who graduated from Drake University Law School in 2008, said his goal, and the goal of most scam bloggers, is to warn prospective students of the dangers of an overpriced legal education. He says it is one of the only things disgruntled recent graduates can do to fight the problem.
While some have referred to these critics as a “deeply unhappy” minority, William Henderson, a law professor at Indiana University Mauer School of Law, said the anger and frustration is real.
“The new math of legal education is grim reading for the large number of today’s law students and new lawyers earning less than they need to meet their loan payments,” Henderson wrote in a recent article. “Prospective law students need better information about the legal marketplace. Law school brochures are filled with glossy pictures of alumni at large law firms. Many law schools fail to provide the complete picture of what their graduates do and how much they earn.”
Last year two Vanderbilt law students started an effort — Law School Transparency — to collect more accurate employment data from law schools. The students, Patrick Lynch and Kyle McEntee, unveiled their plans to schools this summer. In August, another recent graduate, Zenovia Evans, waged a nearly month-long hunger strike to support their cause. While her strike was ridiculed even by some of the scam bloggers, her action shows just how deep the anger and frustration has grown.
The jury is out on whether Law School Transparency’s efforts will succeed. But most agree that it has added to an overall conversation among professors and deans on the matter.
In August, Brian Tamanaha, a law professor at Washington University in St. Louis wrote a wake-up call to his peers (read it on page 6).
“Law professors know there is a problem,” Tamanaha said. “We see students. We know about the heavy debt burdens. I am just the guy who wrote about this one afternoon to prompt some collective conversation.”
The conversation may be making some progress. The American Bar Association accreditation committee has announced that as part of an overall review of its standards, it will look closely at employment data.
But the scam bloggers say the ABA is unlikely to make substantial change.
“If they really feel the pressure they may institute some change,” Rodriguez said. “But I don’t think it would be long term. More of a band-aid approach to make it look like there is real change when there is not."
Read the full story in the 2010 October issue of The National Jurist.
The best way to prepare for the task of excelling academically is to start early. eCasebriefs.com is now offering a FREE pre-law school lecture series that will prepare you for the type of learning you can expect!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Preparing For Law School
If you are an undergraduate student preparing for Law School you already know the stresses of preparing for your Law studies. The majority of this anxiety comes from not knowing exactly what to expect. This article should help you be as prepared as possible for your tenure as a Law Student.
Prepared by the Pre-Law Committee of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar
Introduction:
There is no single path that will prepare you for a legal education. Students who are successful in law school, and who become accomplished professionals, come from many walks of life and educational backgrounds. Some law students enter law school directly from their undergraduate studies without having had any post-baccalaureate work experience. Others begin their legal education significantly later in life, and they bring to their law school education the insights and perspectives gained from those life experiences. Legal education welcomes and values diversity and you will benefit from the exchange of ideas and different points of view that your colleagues will bring to the classroom.
Undergraduate Education:
The ABA does not recommend any undergraduate majors or group of courses to prepare for a legal education. Students are admitted to law school from almost every academic discipline. You may choose to major in subjects that are considered to be traditional preparation for law school, such as history, English, philosophy, political science, economics or business, or you may focus your undergraduate studies in areas as diverse as art, music, science and mathematics, computer science, engineering, nursing or education. Whatever major you select, you are encouraged to pursue an area of study that interests and challenges you, while taking advantage of opportunities to develop your research and writing skills. Taking a broad range of difficult courses from demanding instructors is excellent preparation for legal education.
A sound legal education will build upon and further refine the skills, values and knowledge that you already possess. The student who comes to law school lacking a broad range of basic skills and knowledge will face a difficult challenge.
Pre-Law Advisor:
Undergraduate institutions often assign a person to act as an advisor to current and former students who are interested in pursuing a legal education. That individual can help you with researching and identifying law schools to which you may want to apply. If you are still attending undergraduate school, your prelaw advisor can be helpful in selecting courses that can help you achieve your goal.
Core Skills and Values:
* Analytic / Problem Solving Skills
* Critical Reading
* Writing Skills
* Oral Communication / Listening Abilities
* General Research Skills
* Task Organization / Management Skills
* Public Service and Promotion of Justice
There are important skills and values, and significant bodies of knowledge that you can acquire prior to law school and that will provide a sound foundation for a legal education. These include analytic and problem-solving skills , critical reading abilities, writing skills, oral communication and listening abilities, general research skills, task organization and management skills, and the values of serving faithfully the interests of others while also promoting justice. If you wish to prepare adequately for a legal education, and for a career in law or for other professional service that involves the use of lawyering skills, you should seek educational, extra-curricular and life experiences that will assist you in developing those attributes. Some brief comments about each of the listed skills and values follow.
Analytic / Problem Solving Skills
You should seek courses and other experiences that will engage you in critical thinking about important issues, challenge your beliefs and improve your tolerance for uncertainty. Your legal education will demand that you structure and evaluate arguments for and against propositions that are susceptible to reasoned debate. Good legal education will teach you to "think like a lawyer", but the analytic and problem solving skills required of lawyers are not fundamentally different from those employed by other professionals. Your law school experience will develop and refine those crucial skills, but you must enter law school with a reasonably well developed set of analytic and problem solving abilities.
Critical Reading Abilities
Preparation for legal education should include substantial experience at close reading and critical analysis of complex textual material, for much of what you will do as a law student and lawyer involves careful reading and comprehension of judicial opinions, statues, documents, and other written materials. As with the other skills discussed in this Statement, you can develop your critical reading ability in a wide range of experiences, including the close reading of complex material in literature, political or economic theory, philosophy, or history. The particular nature of the materials examined is not crucial; what is important is that law school should not be the first time that you are rigorously engaged in the enterprise of carefully reading and understanding, and critically analyzing, complex written material of substantial length.
Writing Skills
As you seek to prepare for a legal education, you should develop a high degree of skill at written communication. Language is the most important tool of a lawyer, and lawyers must learn to express themselves clearly and concisely.
Legal education will provide you with good training in writing, and particularly in the specific techniques and forms of written expression that are common in the law. Fundamental writing skills, however, must be acquired and refined before you enter law school. You should seek as many experiences as possible that will require rigorous and analytical writing, including preparing original pieces of substantial length and revising written work in response to constructive criticism.
Oral Communication and Listening Abilities
The ability to speak clearly and persuasively is another skill that is essential to your success in law school and the practice of law. You must also have excellent listening skills if you are to understand your clients and others with whom you will interact daily. As with writing skills, legal education provides excellent opportunities for refining oral communication skills, and particularly for practicing the forms and techniques of oral expression that are most common in the practice of law. Before coming to law school, however, you should seek to develop your basic speaking and listening skills, such as by engaging in debate, making formal presentations in class, or speaking before groups in school, the community, or the workplace.
General Research Skills
Although there are many research sources and techniques that are specific to the law, you do not have to have developed any familiarity with these specific skills or materials before entering law school. However, it would be to your advantage to come to law school having had the experience of undertaking a project that requires significant library research and the analysis of large amounts of information obtained from that research. The ability to use a personal computer is also necessary for law students, both for word processing and for computerized legal research.
Task Organization and Management Skills
To study and practice law, you are going to need to be able to organize large amounts of information, identify objectives, and create a structure for applying that information in an efficient way in order to achieve desired results. Many law school courses, for example, are graded primarily on the basis of one examination at the end of the course, and many projects in the practice of law require the compilation of large amounts of information from a wide variety of sources. You are going to need to be able to prepare and assimilate large amounts of information in an effective and efficient manner. Some of the requisite experience can be obtained through undertaking school projects that require substantial research and writing, or through the preparation of major reports for an employer, a school, or a civic organization.
The Values of Serving Others and Promoting Justice
Each member of the legal profession should be dedicated both to the objectives of serving others honestly, competently, and responsibly, and to the goals of improving fairness and the quality of justice in the legal system. If you are thinking of entering the legal profession, you should seek some significant experience, before coming to law school, in which you may devote substantial effort toward assisting others. Participation in public service projects or similar efforts at achieving objectives established for common purposes can be particularly helpful.
General Knowledge
In addition to the fundamental skills and values listed above, there are some basic areas of knowledge that are helpful to a legal education and to the development of a competent lawyer. Some of the types of knowledge that would maximize your ability to benefit from a legal education include:
* A broad understanding of history, including the various factors (social, political, economic, and cultural) that have influenced the development of our society in the United States.
* A fundamental understanding of political thought and of the contemporary American political system.
* Some basic mathematical and financial skills, such as an understanding of basic pre-calculus mathematics and an ability to analyze financial data.
* A basic understanding of human behavior and social interaction.
* An understanding of diverse cultures within and beyond the United States, of international institutions and issues, of world events, and of the increasing interdependence of the nations and communities within our world.
Conclusion
The skills, values and knowledge discussed in this Statement may be acquired in a wide variety of ways. You may take undergraduate, graduate, or even high school courses that can assist you in acquiring much of this information. You may also gain much of this background through self-learning by reading, in the workplace, or through various other life experiences. Moreover, it is not essential that you come to law school having fully developed all of the skills, values and knowledge suggested in this Statement. Some of that foundation can be acquired during the initial years of law school. However, if you begin law school having already acquired many of the skills, values and knowledge listed in this Statement, you will have a significant advantage and will be well prepared to benefit fully from a challenging legal education.
While knowing the skills necessary to succeed will undoubtedly be a great tool for preparation, the only way to truly prepare for the Law School experience is to take part in a Law School Prep lecture series. These types of lecture series are available in person all over the country, however they can be very pricey. eCasebriefs.com now offers a FREE online version of the Law School Prep course. This course offers 12 video lectures given by top professors. Each lecture is roughly 2 hours long and covers topics that range from "How to Briefs a Case" to "Constitutional Law" and everything in between.
Prepared by the Pre-Law Committee of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar
Introduction:
There is no single path that will prepare you for a legal education. Students who are successful in law school, and who become accomplished professionals, come from many walks of life and educational backgrounds. Some law students enter law school directly from their undergraduate studies without having had any post-baccalaureate work experience. Others begin their legal education significantly later in life, and they bring to their law school education the insights and perspectives gained from those life experiences. Legal education welcomes and values diversity and you will benefit from the exchange of ideas and different points of view that your colleagues will bring to the classroom.
Undergraduate Education:
The ABA does not recommend any undergraduate majors or group of courses to prepare for a legal education. Students are admitted to law school from almost every academic discipline. You may choose to major in subjects that are considered to be traditional preparation for law school, such as history, English, philosophy, political science, economics or business, or you may focus your undergraduate studies in areas as diverse as art, music, science and mathematics, computer science, engineering, nursing or education. Whatever major you select, you are encouraged to pursue an area of study that interests and challenges you, while taking advantage of opportunities to develop your research and writing skills. Taking a broad range of difficult courses from demanding instructors is excellent preparation for legal education.
A sound legal education will build upon and further refine the skills, values and knowledge that you already possess. The student who comes to law school lacking a broad range of basic skills and knowledge will face a difficult challenge.
Pre-Law Advisor:
Undergraduate institutions often assign a person to act as an advisor to current and former students who are interested in pursuing a legal education. That individual can help you with researching and identifying law schools to which you may want to apply. If you are still attending undergraduate school, your prelaw advisor can be helpful in selecting courses that can help you achieve your goal.
Core Skills and Values:
* Analytic / Problem Solving Skills
* Critical Reading
* Writing Skills
* Oral Communication / Listening Abilities
* General Research Skills
* Task Organization / Management Skills
* Public Service and Promotion of Justice
There are important skills and values, and significant bodies of knowledge that you can acquire prior to law school and that will provide a sound foundation for a legal education. These include analytic and problem-solving skills , critical reading abilities, writing skills, oral communication and listening abilities, general research skills, task organization and management skills, and the values of serving faithfully the interests of others while also promoting justice. If you wish to prepare adequately for a legal education, and for a career in law or for other professional service that involves the use of lawyering skills, you should seek educational, extra-curricular and life experiences that will assist you in developing those attributes. Some brief comments about each of the listed skills and values follow.
Analytic / Problem Solving Skills
You should seek courses and other experiences that will engage you in critical thinking about important issues, challenge your beliefs and improve your tolerance for uncertainty. Your legal education will demand that you structure and evaluate arguments for and against propositions that are susceptible to reasoned debate. Good legal education will teach you to "think like a lawyer", but the analytic and problem solving skills required of lawyers are not fundamentally different from those employed by other professionals. Your law school experience will develop and refine those crucial skills, but you must enter law school with a reasonably well developed set of analytic and problem solving abilities.
Critical Reading Abilities
Preparation for legal education should include substantial experience at close reading and critical analysis of complex textual material, for much of what you will do as a law student and lawyer involves careful reading and comprehension of judicial opinions, statues, documents, and other written materials. As with the other skills discussed in this Statement, you can develop your critical reading ability in a wide range of experiences, including the close reading of complex material in literature, political or economic theory, philosophy, or history. The particular nature of the materials examined is not crucial; what is important is that law school should not be the first time that you are rigorously engaged in the enterprise of carefully reading and understanding, and critically analyzing, complex written material of substantial length.
Writing Skills
As you seek to prepare for a legal education, you should develop a high degree of skill at written communication. Language is the most important tool of a lawyer, and lawyers must learn to express themselves clearly and concisely.
Legal education will provide you with good training in writing, and particularly in the specific techniques and forms of written expression that are common in the law. Fundamental writing skills, however, must be acquired and refined before you enter law school. You should seek as many experiences as possible that will require rigorous and analytical writing, including preparing original pieces of substantial length and revising written work in response to constructive criticism.
Oral Communication and Listening Abilities
The ability to speak clearly and persuasively is another skill that is essential to your success in law school and the practice of law. You must also have excellent listening skills if you are to understand your clients and others with whom you will interact daily. As with writing skills, legal education provides excellent opportunities for refining oral communication skills, and particularly for practicing the forms and techniques of oral expression that are most common in the practice of law. Before coming to law school, however, you should seek to develop your basic speaking and listening skills, such as by engaging in debate, making formal presentations in class, or speaking before groups in school, the community, or the workplace.
General Research Skills
Although there are many research sources and techniques that are specific to the law, you do not have to have developed any familiarity with these specific skills or materials before entering law school. However, it would be to your advantage to come to law school having had the experience of undertaking a project that requires significant library research and the analysis of large amounts of information obtained from that research. The ability to use a personal computer is also necessary for law students, both for word processing and for computerized legal research.
Task Organization and Management Skills
To study and practice law, you are going to need to be able to organize large amounts of information, identify objectives, and create a structure for applying that information in an efficient way in order to achieve desired results. Many law school courses, for example, are graded primarily on the basis of one examination at the end of the course, and many projects in the practice of law require the compilation of large amounts of information from a wide variety of sources. You are going to need to be able to prepare and assimilate large amounts of information in an effective and efficient manner. Some of the requisite experience can be obtained through undertaking school projects that require substantial research and writing, or through the preparation of major reports for an employer, a school, or a civic organization.
The Values of Serving Others and Promoting Justice
Each member of the legal profession should be dedicated both to the objectives of serving others honestly, competently, and responsibly, and to the goals of improving fairness and the quality of justice in the legal system. If you are thinking of entering the legal profession, you should seek some significant experience, before coming to law school, in which you may devote substantial effort toward assisting others. Participation in public service projects or similar efforts at achieving objectives established for common purposes can be particularly helpful.
General Knowledge
In addition to the fundamental skills and values listed above, there are some basic areas of knowledge that are helpful to a legal education and to the development of a competent lawyer. Some of the types of knowledge that would maximize your ability to benefit from a legal education include:
* A broad understanding of history, including the various factors (social, political, economic, and cultural) that have influenced the development of our society in the United States.
* A fundamental understanding of political thought and of the contemporary American political system.
* Some basic mathematical and financial skills, such as an understanding of basic pre-calculus mathematics and an ability to analyze financial data.
* A basic understanding of human behavior and social interaction.
* An understanding of diverse cultures within and beyond the United States, of international institutions and issues, of world events, and of the increasing interdependence of the nations and communities within our world.
Conclusion
The skills, values and knowledge discussed in this Statement may be acquired in a wide variety of ways. You may take undergraduate, graduate, or even high school courses that can assist you in acquiring much of this information. You may also gain much of this background through self-learning by reading, in the workplace, or through various other life experiences. Moreover, it is not essential that you come to law school having fully developed all of the skills, values and knowledge suggested in this Statement. Some of that foundation can be acquired during the initial years of law school. However, if you begin law school having already acquired many of the skills, values and knowledge listed in this Statement, you will have a significant advantage and will be well prepared to benefit fully from a challenging legal education.
While knowing the skills necessary to succeed will undoubtedly be a great tool for preparation, the only way to truly prepare for the Law School experience is to take part in a Law School Prep lecture series. These types of lecture series are available in person all over the country, however they can be very pricey. eCasebriefs.com now offers a FREE online version of the Law School Prep course. This course offers 12 video lectures given by top professors. Each lecture is roughly 2 hours long and covers topics that range from "How to Briefs a Case" to "Constitutional Law" and everything in between.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Law School Prep
Phi Alpha Delta Reporter
Law and Technology Column
Fall 2010
By: David Gray, CEO, www.eCasebriefs.com
Law School Prep Course…for FREE!
Now that the year is in full swing and that you have begun applying to law school, the pressure of being a one L may soon start to develop just a little more. I mean how often to you engage in a graduate school program? Probably not too many times during your life time will you study with such intensity as you will when going through the study of law.
Law school is a very challenging environment and quite scary for most of us who have never endured the wonderful study of law. What most of us wished we would have been exposed to was a better introduction on what to expect in law school. Of course we all read One L, and have seen all of the law TV shows and movies, but for the most part these types of explanations of law school have been developed by very experienced TV, media and movie executives made for the purpose of exciting the general public. What they don’t show you is what it’s really like to be a law student.
Many of the law schools today have a brief introduction to the law school process and what to expect in law school on a day to day basis, but again it is more of a shortened and very brief overview of the experience. I mean how can the school itself condense the study of law? It is they who you will spend three years of your life with so they really don’t want to tell you too much before you actually go through the experience. Next, there are some other courses in the market that are geared to introducing you to the law school experience. The issue with these
courses is that they are usually only given via a specific week during the summer, and if you are not around in your city during that week then you basically missed the boat. Enter the Law School Prep Course on eCasebriefs.com.
The Law School Prep Course on eCasebriefs.com is the most comprehensive introduction to the study of law. Furthermore, the course is open for anyone to attend whether you have been accepted to law school or are just pondering whether becoming a lawyer is for you. Finally, the Course is absolutely free for all to enjoy.
The Course opens with an introduction to the law professors who will teach you what to expect in law school. Professors Tania Shah and Melissa Gill are both esteemed law professors at the University of Massachusetts School of Law, Dartmouth, and will guide you step by step through the law school experience. Furthermore, they both are tutors at LawTutors.net, the nation’s most widely used law tutoring company. The Course then proceeds to build upon itself by following a proper syllabus developed by the professors. You first learn How to Brief a Case. This lecture focuses on what is probably the most important exercise you will perform daily in
the study of law – the case briefing process. Next you move into What to Expect in Class, or how a typical class is taught using the Socratic method of teaching. Then into How to Prepare a Course Outline, which are the materials you personally develop for studying for exams. Then the Professors take you into the Final Exam experience and what to expect. They tell you how to use your course outline in mastering your final exams. It is only at this point that you they have to look forward to the overview of the six core 1L courses: Torts, Property, Contracts, Constitutional Law, Civil Procedure and Criminal Law.
Each of the different lectures mentioned above come with exercises that you perform and submit and are reviewed by Professor’s Shah and Gill who then send you a correct answer to each exercise that you submit. Finally, the Course ends with a full discussion on Study Tips and Hints and a discussion on the proper use of Study Aids to assist with your law school studies.
Taking advantage of the Law School Prep Course on eCasebriefs.com will help you understand the process, and provide you comfort with what to expect when entering law school. There is no other course that provides more substantive information for the introduction to law school than the Law School Prep Course, and one of the biggest benefits of all is that it fits with everyone’s budget – it’s completely free.
David Gray is CEO of eCasebriefs.com and can be reached at
dgray@eCasebriefs.com
Law and Technology Column
Fall 2010
By: David Gray, CEO, www.eCasebriefs.com
Law School Prep Course…for FREE!
Now that the year is in full swing and that you have begun applying to law school, the pressure of being a one L may soon start to develop just a little more. I mean how often to you engage in a graduate school program? Probably not too many times during your life time will you study with such intensity as you will when going through the study of law.
Law school is a very challenging environment and quite scary for most of us who have never endured the wonderful study of law. What most of us wished we would have been exposed to was a better introduction on what to expect in law school. Of course we all read One L, and have seen all of the law TV shows and movies, but for the most part these types of explanations of law school have been developed by very experienced TV, media and movie executives made for the purpose of exciting the general public. What they don’t show you is what it’s really like to be a law student.
Many of the law schools today have a brief introduction to the law school process and what to expect in law school on a day to day basis, but again it is more of a shortened and very brief overview of the experience. I mean how can the school itself condense the study of law? It is they who you will spend three years of your life with so they really don’t want to tell you too much before you actually go through the experience. Next, there are some other courses in the market that are geared to introducing you to the law school experience. The issue with these
courses is that they are usually only given via a specific week during the summer, and if you are not around in your city during that week then you basically missed the boat. Enter the Law School Prep Course on eCasebriefs.com.
The Law School Prep Course on eCasebriefs.com is the most comprehensive introduction to the study of law. Furthermore, the course is open for anyone to attend whether you have been accepted to law school or are just pondering whether becoming a lawyer is for you. Finally, the Course is absolutely free for all to enjoy.
The Course opens with an introduction to the law professors who will teach you what to expect in law school. Professors Tania Shah and Melissa Gill are both esteemed law professors at the University of Massachusetts School of Law, Dartmouth, and will guide you step by step through the law school experience. Furthermore, they both are tutors at LawTutors.net, the nation’s most widely used law tutoring company. The Course then proceeds to build upon itself by following a proper syllabus developed by the professors. You first learn How to Brief a Case. This lecture focuses on what is probably the most important exercise you will perform daily in
the study of law – the case briefing process. Next you move into What to Expect in Class, or how a typical class is taught using the Socratic method of teaching. Then into How to Prepare a Course Outline, which are the materials you personally develop for studying for exams. Then the Professors take you into the Final Exam experience and what to expect. They tell you how to use your course outline in mastering your final exams. It is only at this point that you they have to look forward to the overview of the six core 1L courses: Torts, Property, Contracts, Constitutional Law, Civil Procedure and Criminal Law.
Each of the different lectures mentioned above come with exercises that you perform and submit and are reviewed by Professor’s Shah and Gill who then send you a correct answer to each exercise that you submit. Finally, the Course ends with a full discussion on Study Tips and Hints and a discussion on the proper use of Study Aids to assist with your law school studies.
Taking advantage of the Law School Prep Course on eCasebriefs.com will help you understand the process, and provide you comfort with what to expect when entering law school. There is no other course that provides more substantive information for the introduction to law school than the Law School Prep Course, and one of the biggest benefits of all is that it fits with everyone’s budget – it’s completely free.
David Gray is CEO of eCasebriefs.com and can be reached at
dgray@eCasebriefs.com
Monday, September 13, 2010
Tips For Future Law Students
Ever wonder what you can expect from your upcoming Law School Career? Here are a few tips that may save you time and a significant amount of stress:
Excerpts taken from http://resipsablog.com/category/future-attorneys/
1. Get advice from 2Ls and 3Ls who are successful in the areas you want to be successful in. Find students who are at the top of their class and find what worked for them, how they managed their time, and how they prepared for their finals. Find students who have had the professors you are taking to get an idea of what to expect and what the professor expects of you. If you want to focus on honing your litigation skills, seek out a mentor who has been on a national mock trial or moot court team. If you want to become an editor on law review or a law journal, focus on improving your writing skills, pay attention to detail, and find someone who already is on a journal to learn about what it is like being on a journal and tips on effectively managing your time.
2. How you do on the final is much more important than how you answer a question in class. Knowing the minutiae of every case is not what is going to get you the best grades, you need to be able to step back and see the big picture, so don’t sweat it if you get an answer wrong in class, but make sure you understand why you missed it, and focus on preparing for the final.
3. Don’t reinvent the wheel. Make the best use of your time by using existing outlines as a starting point, which you can then tweak and make your own. Conversely, you will never want to rely solely on someone else’s outline. Make sure you agree with their conclusions and summary of the law.
4. Get to know your professors. Take the time to meet with professors when questions in during the semester, rather than waiting till the end of the semester to approach them. Successful students seek out prior exams or model exams that the professor has made available, and contemplates questions that could arise while they study, so that they know what to expect on test day.
5. Get to know your law librarians. There are numerous databases and resources that are often overlooked by even experienced researchers or lawyers that law librarians are familiar with, librarians may be the best resources in helping navigate these resources. They can also assist you in forming good Boolean searches, give you search tips, and point you to the best starting point for your topic.
6. Find time for yourself. It is important, now more than ever, to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Regular sleep patterns and exercise may seem hard to fit into your schedule, but are even more important now that it seems like you don’t have time for either.
7. Use technology wisely. The smaller the laptop, the better. You law school books are going to take up a lot of space and the last thing you need is a 17 inch laptop to lug around every day. Back up your work religiously. Email yourself documents that you are working on at the end of each day. On the weekends, back your laptop up to external drives or at the very least to a thumb drive. Finally, use a free service like Mozy to back up your documents on a regular basis.
8. Master the law school exam. Your entire grade for a law school class is often based on a single final exam. At the very least, pick up old exams and do practice questions under timed conditions. Also, be aware that very often commercial outlines go into areas of law not covered by your professor, so to maximize your study time, seek out old exams or practice questions from the professor, the law school library, or other students. Law school exams usually consist of a long fact pattern followed by a series of questions. There are often no right or wrong answers. You are getting graded on spotting issues and them analyzing the potential outcomes. A very simple way to think of a law school answer is set forth by the IRAC Method: Issue, Rule of Law, Analysis, and Conclusion.
9. Consider joining a study group. Going over the material with another person or a small group of people will help you hash out concepts, and ensure a thorough overview of the subject. Study groups sessions should be secondary to extensive individual study, so as a group you can focus on practice questions, clarifying issues, and making sure you have hit all the main concepts.
10. Don’t underestimate the value of after-class review or overestimate the value of reading for class. It should be the third time you are covering the material, the first being when you read before class, and the second being when you went over it in class. After-class review also allows you the opportunity to take any questions you still have on a topic to your professor for clarification. After class review sessions are also the perfect time to review and make notes to your outline.
These tips will definitely be helpful in preparing you for Law School, however the most effective preparation for any future law student is to complete a law school preparation course. There are a few free courses available in the market place.
Excerpts taken from http://resipsablog.com/category/future-attorneys/
1. Get advice from 2Ls and 3Ls who are successful in the areas you want to be successful in. Find students who are at the top of their class and find what worked for them, how they managed their time, and how they prepared for their finals. Find students who have had the professors you are taking to get an idea of what to expect and what the professor expects of you. If you want to focus on honing your litigation skills, seek out a mentor who has been on a national mock trial or moot court team. If you want to become an editor on law review or a law journal, focus on improving your writing skills, pay attention to detail, and find someone who already is on a journal to learn about what it is like being on a journal and tips on effectively managing your time.
2. How you do on the final is much more important than how you answer a question in class. Knowing the minutiae of every case is not what is going to get you the best grades, you need to be able to step back and see the big picture, so don’t sweat it if you get an answer wrong in class, but make sure you understand why you missed it, and focus on preparing for the final.
3. Don’t reinvent the wheel. Make the best use of your time by using existing outlines as a starting point, which you can then tweak and make your own. Conversely, you will never want to rely solely on someone else’s outline. Make sure you agree with their conclusions and summary of the law.
4. Get to know your professors. Take the time to meet with professors when questions in during the semester, rather than waiting till the end of the semester to approach them. Successful students seek out prior exams or model exams that the professor has made available, and contemplates questions that could arise while they study, so that they know what to expect on test day.
5. Get to know your law librarians. There are numerous databases and resources that are often overlooked by even experienced researchers or lawyers that law librarians are familiar with, librarians may be the best resources in helping navigate these resources. They can also assist you in forming good Boolean searches, give you search tips, and point you to the best starting point for your topic.
6. Find time for yourself. It is important, now more than ever, to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Regular sleep patterns and exercise may seem hard to fit into your schedule, but are even more important now that it seems like you don’t have time for either.
7. Use technology wisely. The smaller the laptop, the better. You law school books are going to take up a lot of space and the last thing you need is a 17 inch laptop to lug around every day. Back up your work religiously. Email yourself documents that you are working on at the end of each day. On the weekends, back your laptop up to external drives or at the very least to a thumb drive. Finally, use a free service like Mozy to back up your documents on a regular basis.
8. Master the law school exam. Your entire grade for a law school class is often based on a single final exam. At the very least, pick up old exams and do practice questions under timed conditions. Also, be aware that very often commercial outlines go into areas of law not covered by your professor, so to maximize your study time, seek out old exams or practice questions from the professor, the law school library, or other students. Law school exams usually consist of a long fact pattern followed by a series of questions. There are often no right or wrong answers. You are getting graded on spotting issues and them analyzing the potential outcomes. A very simple way to think of a law school answer is set forth by the IRAC Method: Issue, Rule of Law, Analysis, and Conclusion.
9. Consider joining a study group. Going over the material with another person or a small group of people will help you hash out concepts, and ensure a thorough overview of the subject. Study groups sessions should be secondary to extensive individual study, so as a group you can focus on practice questions, clarifying issues, and making sure you have hit all the main concepts.
10. Don’t underestimate the value of after-class review or overestimate the value of reading for class. It should be the third time you are covering the material, the first being when you read before class, and the second being when you went over it in class. After-class review also allows you the opportunity to take any questions you still have on a topic to your professor for clarification. After class review sessions are also the perfect time to review and make notes to your outline.
These tips will definitely be helpful in preparing you for Law School, however the most effective preparation for any future law student is to complete a law school preparation course. There are a few free courses available in the market place.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
FREE lecture series
eCasebriefs.com is the most widely used free law student study aid resource for current law students. Now, as of July 2010, eCasebriefs.com is introducing to Pre-Law students the only free complete course to introduce students who are interested in attending law school and those students who have been admitted to law school and want an overview of the law student experience. Students now get the opportunity to experience lectures given by law professors from top universities. Additionally, the Course offers students interaction with the law professors teaching the Course. The Course is the first of its kind and is offered online and is 100% free!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)