Learn to separate the wheat from the chaff when it comes to taking notes during class discussions. Some of your classmates will have valuable information to share during class discussion; others may bring up irrelevant or even incorrect points. Learn what you should write down, and what’s best to leave out of your notes. Look for clues from your professor: when the professor mentions that a student asked a “good question,” for instance, write that question (and any ensuing points of discussion) in your notes. You should, of course, write down what the professor writes on the board. After class, go home and get your class notes down to just a few sentences of what the discussion was about and why it was significant. Then, incorporate your class notes into your reading notes so that you have one unified document.
Don’t record everything. The first year of law school means lots of new materials, but understanding which parts of the material are most essential – and being able to cull that essential information – is crucial not just for academic success, but also for success in preparing for the bar.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Sunday, November 1, 2009
S.O.U.N.D. Advice: Addressing Contracts Questions
Approach each contract or potential contract in the fact pattern one relevant issue at a time:
1. Address first whether a valid contract was formed between the parties;
2. then address whether the contract is enforceable, including any defenses to enforceability;
3. then address whether there was a breach;
4. then address whether the non-breaching party was ready to perform at the time of the breach;
5. then address whether the breach(es) may be excused for any reason;
6. and finally address the proper remedy that may be afforded to one or more of the parties.
1. Address first whether a valid contract was formed between the parties;
2. then address whether the contract is enforceable, including any defenses to enforceability;
3. then address whether there was a breach;
4. then address whether the non-breaching party was ready to perform at the time of the breach;
5. then address whether the breach(es) may be excused for any reason;
6. and finally address the proper remedy that may be afforded to one or more of the parties.
Monday, September 7, 2009
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Law School, 9.8.09
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Addressing Torts Questions:
Remember the mnemonic “MUFI” to retain the following causes of action that a Plaintiff may bring in the “invasion of privacy” family of torts:
o Misappropriating Plaintiff’s name or image
o Unduly publicizing Plaintiff’s private life
o False light: Placing Plaintiff in false light
o Intruding upon Plaintiff’s solitude
Remember the mnemonic “MUFI” to retain the following causes of action that a Plaintiff may bring in the “invasion of privacy” family of torts:
o Misappropriating Plaintiff’s name or image
o Unduly publicizing Plaintiff’s private life
o False light: Placing Plaintiff in false light
o Intruding upon Plaintiff’s solitude
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Your Weekly Dose of S.O.U.N.D. Advice, 8.25.09
As you practice law school essays, diagram your issues by:
1. deconstructing the question and reading it one sentence at a time;
2. spotting all of the issues within each sentence;
3. spotting the facts or “buzz words” that go to each issue you’ve spotted;
4. and then reconstructing the question based on the issues—diagramming each issue, and including under it the facts that dealt with that issue in the question.
Remember that your professors won’t necessarily present each fact in chronological order; they won’t necessarily present each issue in the order on which they’d like you to discuss them. By deconstructing and then reconstructing the question and paying attention to which facts and “buzz words” go with each issue, you can draw up an organized diagram to help you better organize your thoughts and points.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Law School, 8.15.09
S.O.U.N.D. Advice on Time Management:
Develop a time management system for yourself and learn to love it and use it. Whether it’s a diligently kept calendar, reminder messages that pop up on your email account, or a spreadsheet that keeps track of all of your commitments, you need to have a foolproof system for managing your time and your assignments. You may have gotten through college without the need to schedule and plan commitments in advance, but this isn’t the case here. In law school, you must have a continuous plan for everything you need to get done—and you must stick to that plan!
Develop a time management system for yourself and learn to love it and use it. Whether it’s a diligently kept calendar, reminder messages that pop up on your email account, or a spreadsheet that keeps track of all of your commitments, you need to have a foolproof system for managing your time and your assignments. You may have gotten through college without the need to schedule and plan commitments in advance, but this isn’t the case here. In law school, you must have a continuous plan for everything you need to get done—and you must stick to that plan!
Monday, August 10, 2009
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Law School, 8.8.09
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Briefing Cases:
Getting your case briefs done is a great start, but simply knowing what happened in a case is by no means enough for law school success. To succeed in law school and on the bar exam, you must be able to “see the forest from the trees:” you must recognize that each case is assigned in order to illustrate a legal concept, and that each legal concept (rule of law) you cull from a case is an important part of the black letter law you’ll have to know for your essay exams. Keep the “big picture” in mind: for each case, discern what rule of law the case illustrates and then figure out how that rule of law fits into your overall course outline.
Getting your case briefs done is a great start, but simply knowing what happened in a case is by no means enough for law school success. To succeed in law school and on the bar exam, you must be able to “see the forest from the trees:” you must recognize that each case is assigned in order to illustrate a legal concept, and that each legal concept (rule of law) you cull from a case is an important part of the black letter law you’ll have to know for your essay exams. Keep the “big picture” in mind: for each case, discern what rule of law the case illustrates and then figure out how that rule of law fits into your overall course outline.
Good Luck in the New School Year!
To all entering and upper-level law students: good luck in the upcoming school year! We look forward to meeting our new students at Orientation at the Massachusetts School of Law this week.
Remember to visit www.1LBootCamp.com for valuable law school advice.
Remember to visit www.1LBootCamp.com for valuable law school advice.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Law School, 7.13.09
A Contracts S.O.U.N.D. Byte:
The Mirror Image Rule: Under common law, if the offeree changes any of the terms of the offer in her acceptance, it is not a valid acceptance. Rather, it is a counter-offer, which the original offeror is free to accept or reject.
The Mirror Image Rule: Under common law, if the offeree changes any of the terms of the offer in her acceptance, it is not a valid acceptance. Rather, it is a counter-offer, which the original offeror is free to accept or reject.
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Law School, 7.6.09
S.O.U.N.D. Advice on Law School Essay Exams:
Recognize that analysis is perhaps the most important component of each paragraph on each essay that you'll write in law school. Though reaching the correct conclusion on an issue may help you pick up points, so will stating and thoroughly analyzing the correct issue and the applicable principles of law—even if you didn’t reach the right answer.
Recognize that analysis is perhaps the most important component of each paragraph on each essay that you'll write in law school. Though reaching the correct conclusion on an issue may help you pick up points, so will stating and thoroughly analyzing the correct issue and the applicable principles of law—even if you didn’t reach the right answer.
Monday, June 22, 2009
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Law School, 6.22.09
S.O.U.N.D. Advice on Practicing Law School Essay Exams:
As you practice essays and continue honing your writing skills, developing reverse outlines can serve as a helpful exercise. Put simply, a reverse outline is prepared after the fact: after you’ve written an essay, you go back and outline the essay you’ve written, focusing on your writing one sentence and one paragraph at a time. Reverse outlines allow you deconstruct and then re-engineer your answers, and they help you pinpoint where your essays are disorganized or unclear. For example, you may see places where you repeat yourself unnecessarily; places where you leave out pertinent information; and places where a sentence or even an entire paragraph appear to be out-of-place.
As you practice essays and continue honing your writing skills, developing reverse outlines can serve as a helpful exercise. Put simply, a reverse outline is prepared after the fact: after you’ve written an essay, you go back and outline the essay you’ve written, focusing on your writing one sentence and one paragraph at a time. Reverse outlines allow you deconstruct and then re-engineer your answers, and they help you pinpoint where your essays are disorganized or unclear. For example, you may see places where you repeat yourself unnecessarily; places where you leave out pertinent information; and places where a sentence or even an entire paragraph appear to be out-of-place.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Law School, 6.15.09
S.O.U.N.D. Advice on Civil Procedure Questions:
Remember the five-part test for injunctions. When analyzing whether an injunction should be granted, the court looks at the following five factors:
(1) whether there is an adequate remedy at law (meaning whether money damages would be sufficient to make the plaintiff “whole”);
(2) whether the plaintiff is likely to succeed on the merits of the case;
(3) whether there is an immediate and irreparable injury being suffered;
(4) whether the balance of the harms tip in favor of granting the injunction; and
(5) whether public policy considerations favor granting the injunction.
Remember the five-part test for injunctions. When analyzing whether an injunction should be granted, the court looks at the following five factors:
(1) whether there is an adequate remedy at law (meaning whether money damages would be sufficient to make the plaintiff “whole”);
(2) whether the plaintiff is likely to succeed on the merits of the case;
(3) whether there is an immediate and irreparable injury being suffered;
(4) whether the balance of the harms tip in favor of granting the injunction; and
(5) whether public policy considerations favor granting the injunction.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Law School, 6.8.09
S.O.U.N.D. Issue Spotting--a Property hypothetical to help you prepare for exams:
You see the following: “Seller agreed to sell Blackacre to Buyer. Buyer was to finance the purchase by giving a mortgage to Bank. Bank’s attorney asked Seller and Buyer to appear at the Registry of Deeds for the closing at a designated date and time, and they did so. At the closing, the Bank’s attorney asked Seller if he brought the deed. Seller said yes, and handed the deed to Bank’s attorney. Bank’s attorney reviewed the deed and stated that it appeared to be in order. He asked Seller to sign it, which he did, and then Bank’s attorney notarized the deed. Bank’s attorney then excused himself so he could do a final title rundown, and then record the deed. When he arrived back at the closing table 15 minutes later, he said that everything was fine, and that he had recorded the deed. Buyer neither saw nor touched the deed before it was recorded.”
You should have spotted the following issue: Whether there was valid delivery of the deed?
You should have paid attention to the following buzz words: “Buyer neither saw nor touched the deed before it was recorded.”
You see the following: “Seller agreed to sell Blackacre to Buyer. Buyer was to finance the purchase by giving a mortgage to Bank. Bank’s attorney asked Seller and Buyer to appear at the Registry of Deeds for the closing at a designated date and time, and they did so. At the closing, the Bank’s attorney asked Seller if he brought the deed. Seller said yes, and handed the deed to Bank’s attorney. Bank’s attorney reviewed the deed and stated that it appeared to be in order. He asked Seller to sign it, which he did, and then Bank’s attorney notarized the deed. Bank’s attorney then excused himself so he could do a final title rundown, and then record the deed. When he arrived back at the closing table 15 minutes later, he said that everything was fine, and that he had recorded the deed. Buyer neither saw nor touched the deed before it was recorded.”
You should have spotted the following issue: Whether there was valid delivery of the deed?
You should have paid attention to the following buzz words: “Buyer neither saw nor touched the deed before it was recorded.”
Another School Year Over!
Congratulations to all you overworked law students who made it through another year of law school!
Remember that S.O.U.N.D. preparation makes all the difference when it comes to academic success next year. Check out the 1L BootCamp website for information about study materials that will be released just in time for the new school year!
Remember that S.O.U.N.D. preparation makes all the difference when it comes to academic success next year. Check out the 1L BootCamp website for information about study materials that will be released just in time for the new school year!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Law School, 6.1.09
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Addressing Criminal Procedure Questions:
When examining the admission of statements of an accused, look for Miranda violations. Remember that Custody + Interrogation = Miranda Rights. If either custody or interrogation is lacking, then Miranda does not apply.
When examining the admission of statements of an accused, look for Miranda violations. Remember that Custody + Interrogation = Miranda Rights. If either custody or interrogation is lacking, then Miranda does not apply.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
S.O.U.N.D. Advice for Law School, 5.25.09
S.O.U.N.D. Advice on Addressing a Respondeat Superior Issue on a Torts Exam:
When you’re addressing a respondeat superior issue, remember that the employer’s potential liability does not mean that there isn’t a potential cause of action against the employee in negligence—there is. An agent is always liable his or her own actions, and any potential respondeat superior claims spring from those actions. So, you should discuss both potential claims in your essay answer:
· begin by addressing the employee’s underlying negligence,
· then address the employer’s potential liability under the respondeat superior doctrine.
Note, of course, that if there is no negligence by the employee, then there is no claim under respondeat superior against the employer.
Do you need to repeat yourself by listing the elements of negligence when discussing both potential issues? Probably not. If you’ve already addressed all four elements of negligence in detail in your discussion of the employee’s liability, there is no need to do the same when discussing the employer’s liability in the same essay; rather, quickly apply the law to the facts as it applies to the employer, and then conclude. Note, though, that you shouldn’t move on to an entirely new essay question and refer to your discussion of negligence in an earlier question— your knowledge of the law must come across on all applicable principles of law in every single essay you write.
When you’re addressing a respondeat superior issue, remember that the employer’s potential liability does not mean that there isn’t a potential cause of action against the employee in negligence—there is. An agent is always liable his or her own actions, and any potential respondeat superior claims spring from those actions. So, you should discuss both potential claims in your essay answer:
· begin by addressing the employee’s underlying negligence,
· then address the employer’s potential liability under the respondeat superior doctrine.
Note, of course, that if there is no negligence by the employee, then there is no claim under respondeat superior against the employer.
Do you need to repeat yourself by listing the elements of negligence when discussing both potential issues? Probably not. If you’ve already addressed all four elements of negligence in detail in your discussion of the employee’s liability, there is no need to do the same when discussing the employer’s liability in the same essay; rather, quickly apply the law to the facts as it applies to the employer, and then conclude. Note, though, that you shouldn’t move on to an entirely new essay question and refer to your discussion of negligence in an earlier question— your knowledge of the law must come across on all applicable principles of law in every single essay you write.
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