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I’m officially done with my 1L year. This is the last post EVER in this category.
Con Law wasn’t too bad. As usual, I wished I had more time to bolster my analysis. But all in all I feel pretty good about the issues spotted.
Heading to work full-time this morning. No rest for the weary! But after two weeks of solitary confinement I’m ready to be around people.
Yesterday I cheerfully carted all of my study guides and casebooks to a student group that cosigns the books for a better return than the bookstore. I was giddy as I rolled wheelie bag stuffed full of books. But as I stacked them on the table and said goodbye, I had an unexpected pang. Those books have been my constant companions since August.
Then I got over it and walked away without a backward glance leaving my stack for the next crop of 1Ls.
All law students know about the Aha! moment. It’s a nice fuzzy warm moment.
Con Law was lacking the aha! moment. I understood the cases and followed along the different eras with no problem. But none of it was fastening itself to my brain in a categorical manner. I felt adrift and out of control. This is quite unpleasant when a final exam looms.
Aha! It clicked. My brain understands and can now analyze the issues. Phew. Not a minute too soon since the exam is at 1:30 today.
I approached my exam prep for Con Law differently. We are allowed to bring in a pocket book of the constitution provided by the prof marked up and tabbed to hell. I did not spend hours front of my computer outlining this time. Our exam is broken up into three areas: Federalism; Separation of Powers; and Liberties (as they apply to the states). Over the past day and a half I have been glued to my review notes, the pocket book and case briefs. The pocket book is tabbed to death (each topic assigned a color of course!) and scribbled on where needed. The Lord of the Rings trilogy kept me company on the DVD player.
Re-reading the briefs on the main cases and going over the text with a fine tooth comb did the job. I’m ready for my last exam ever as a 1L.
Only one more exam left!
Per usual, I felt I did average on the Contracts test. I always feel average.
There were 69 multiple choice questions. I felt pretty good about my selections and my eyeball was catching the word or phrase creating the twist. I also knew exactly where to double-check my answers on my notes. I ended up making a Hail Mary guess on about the last 5 questions. My alloted time was running out before hitting the essay and I didn’t have the time to agonize over the last multiple choice questions.
The Prof did tell us that although the fact pattern was large, there were only a few elements in the essay question. I know I missed discussing the statute of frauds in one area, but I was pressed for time. Otherwise, I think I got most of the issues. My analysis was more cursory than I would have liked. I think the only way to speed up my writing on exams is to do more front-end work to prepare (in other words, don’t work it all into the final week before exams).
I had my first almost overwhelming feeling of dread today. As I pulled off the highway towards the school, I just wanted to turn the car around. I wasn’t panicked about the exam other than normal tension. But, I was just so sick, sick of it all. I forced myself to keep going.
Now I have to force myself to start con law outlining. It’s the last one. I can do it.
Koba made it through the night seizure-free! What a relief. I totally flatlined at 9:00 p.m. last night after spending the day getting ready for Contracts. I was not looking forward to another night of interrupted sleep (and I’m sure Koba wasn’t either).
One and one-half hours to Contracts exam.
Then begin Con Law prep and take exam Wednesday.
Then it’s DONE!
Last night was rough for Koba and I. Let me reintroduce Koba:
Koba has epilepsy. Although he is on medication, he still occasionally has breakthrough seizures – always at night while he sleeps.
He had a seizure in the wee dark hours Saturday morning. Then this morning he had two – one at 3:00 a.m. and one at 4:45 a.m. When he has seizures, I wake up and sit with him. Then he has to roam around bouncing off the walls for a while before he can go back to sleep. It’s rough on both of us.
It’s abnormal for him to have this many in sequence. Fortunately, we have a follow-up appointment after finals with the vet to monitor his medication. He will most likely have his medication increased. I have a nagging suspicion that this round of seizures is the result of his “dad” spraying a few weedy spots in the yard. Damn damn damn. The only thing we can do at this point is water the hell out of the yard and hope that keeps further seizures at bay.
Koba is back to his usual bratty, spunky self this morning. Me, I’m pretty groggy and NOT looking forward to continued prep for tomorrow’s contract exam and Wednesday’s con law exam.
I wish I would have at least made a weak pass at my earlier promise to keep up outlines.
I’ve just laid out the main headings and subheadings for Contracts. It’s ugly. There is a lot of material to outline. I hate myself.
I haven’t even started Con Law – about to do the overall sketch of the outline. I’ll hate myself again.
It’s going to be a very, very intense few days. Thank God I bought the case briefs for these two classes!
Yesterday was Civ Pro – an exercise in psychological warfare.
The five multiple choice questions were designed to catch someone not reading carefully. They took a lot of patience and re-reading to catch the twists. I don’t know if I aced them, but I think I did pretty well.
There were two essay questions. The second was worth 20 more points. The test was designed so it could not be finished in three hours. Even a genuis in these particular areas would have immense difficulty. It was a hard pill to swallow.
The first question revolved around the new class action legislation and Rule 23. The prof gave us a big hint that we should read the new legislation carefully and bring it to the exam. Thank God I took that hint to heart. The essay began with a factual snarl involving jurisdiction. Although I saw the issues immediately (having taken the time to read that new legislation carefully), it still took a lot of time to address the issues and pick through the legislation. Then the question shifted to Rule 23. Then, with a few issues left to address, I looked at the clock and had to make the Big Decision: Stick with Essay No. 1 and finish it before taking a crack at the second essay worth more points or abandon ship on Essay 1? I abandoned ship (enter the test of the student’s time management skills).
Essay No. 2 was a Nightmare. It frightened me (not an overstatement, I was truly panicked). The setting was party and claim joinder and the prof created a giant octopus with counter-claims, cross-claims and party joinder going in a gazillion directions. At first I stupidly tried to chart out the claims. After about 5 minutes of lost time I realized that charting this monster out could take up the entirety of the time remaining. So, I pulled back my panic and looked at the questions. Aha – the questions only dealt with discrete sections of the mess. So I started plugging away to answer the call of the questions.
I almost made a huge blunder. The exam told us that personal jurisdiction and venue were not an issue on the second essay. Okay, so I start with question number one content with the knowledge that jurisdiction could be ignored. But wait – can it? I looked again and realized that subject matter jurisdiction was not one of the items to be ignored. A closer look at the facts for the first question revealed a problem with diversity – the issue revealed. Phew. I almost missed that one.
I did not finish either essay but I put up a damn good fight. Numerous times during the exam I had to swallow my stomach contents and re-insert my backbone. Never has an exam caused me so much panic. When we all filed out of the room, my fellow students looked shellshocked. They began to form little groups. Not I. I fled the scene of my torture. I was actually physically shaken from the experience.
All but two of us were still typing when time was called. The two that left, got out 10 minutes early. They either (a) were the most brilliant law students ever; (b) skipped or missed issues to “complete” the exam; (c) gave up because they couldn’t take anymore. I’ll go with (b) or (c).
A couple of times I had to fight the temptation to just throw in the towel and give up. It was that painful. It wasn’t because I didn’t study enough, it was due to the overwhelming amount of information that had to be processed and applied. But I wasn’t about to let the beast kick my ass so I put my head down and kept plowing through.
As to how I did, I have no idea. It’ll all fall out on the curve. I tried to be efficient with my time, but thorough. Ditching completion of the first essay in favor of the second essay was not an easy decision to make. But, I think it was the correct decision.
Now I will begin preparing for my most feared exams – Contracts and Con Law. And then….the scare-you-to-death year will be over!!!!
The Property exam happened yesterday. I left feeling like I rambled and pulled my arguments out of thin air. That’s always how I feel after these exams, so I’m not alarmed.
The question is did I do better than average? I haven’t a clue. On the 50 multiple choice questions, I only felt uncertain on about 5. I beat the first essay to death which resulted in being pressed for time on the second essay. The second essay was answered in a cursory fashion. I have to learn to watch the damn clock when I’m working on my first essay because I do this every time! The majority of the class was still working when time was called. Apparently, we all found the essays difficult (which is a good sign for the curve).
I’m not sure if I pulled my property grade out of the toilet, but I put up a good fight.
Tomorrow is Civ Pro open book. I’m working away on a chart breaking down the rules to bullet points and entering important notes. My nutshell has become dear to me as I try to get comfortable with joinder, impleader and intervention.
For reasons known only to my weird psyche, I thought it would be cool this time around to write out my outlines by hand. The idea was motivated by being completely sick of my laptop after spending endless time in front of it writing my last open memo.
So I bought a couple of notebooks and some kitschy gel pens in different colors. Day one I wrote out just one section in property. Day two I tried to add to it, but I was just fussing with the different colored pens and getting irritated by my sloppy writing. Day two I also realized I was avoiding the entire process because writing the crap out was irritating the hell out of me.
Solution: I’m back at the laptop and it is going faster. I’m really glad I got down to basics for two days (sarcasm). After all, it’s exam time – the perfect time to waste two days getting back to my third grade roots.
As I begin studying for my final exams taking place over the next few weeks, I thought it was time for a wrap-up post for this category. Although I will no doubt pop in during exams to whine and fret, these are the things I learned:
1. Orientation is a pain in the ass.
2. The books are expensive.
3. I had an uncanny ability to spot the 1Ls who wouldn’t return after midterms. I was spot on.
4. Yellow is the only acceptable highlighter. Bic Brite Liner Grips rock my world.
6. One can never have enough tabbies.
7. Don’t get sick in law school. Ever.
8. Don’t procrastinate on legal writing assignments. Ever.
9. A triple grande breve latte each morning is a necessity.
10. Do not debrief after an exam with other students.
11. Policy is important. IRAC should properly be called IRAPC.
12. Every exam answer should include the word “likely” multiple times.
13. A fully charged IPod in the library is mandatory.
14. Leave your cell phone off or in the car.
15. The student who plays solitaire during the entire lecture will not be back after midterms.
16. Shopping for shoes online during class is tacky. Remember everyone else can see your screen. Same goes for endless AIM chats.
17. There are many opportunities for a free lunch.
18. Not partaking in law review will not destroy your career.
19. Ignore every one else’s exam preparation strategy. Find your learning style and use it.
20. Keep your sense of humor.
