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Blawg Wisdom Upsy Datesy
A handful of good questions and and answers have appeared on Blawg Wisdom in the last few weeks. Please head on over and offer any advice you can to the law student who works full time but still wants to get legal experience this summer, and to the 1L choosing between a judicial externship and a firm this summer. You may not have “answers” for these questions, but your two cents might be more helpful than you think. Plus, karma-wise, this can only be good for you, and let's be honest here, you can use all the help you can get in the karma department, right?
Your fellow law students thank you for your wisdom and support!
Spring Break Shuffle
Question: Spring break starts today, so why do I feel no sense of relief or relaxation?
Answer: Because I'm a 3L and class is virtually meaningless.
In other words, class requires such a tiny amount of my time and energy that a week without class but w/everything else I have to do is not that much of a break. On the to-do list at the moment:
- Call chambers to try to schedule a plea for my client to get him out of jail. Long story, that. I hate that this client wants to plead!
- Work on some research for a professor. Is anyone out there familiar with the Supreme Court Database? It looks like I need a $500 stats program to use that data, making it not very helpful. Am I wrong?
- Write four short (5-page) papers for my Law and Lit. class.
- Apply for more jobs. Grr.
- Finish the bar application: I did get the main packet of the Montana Bar application in the mail on Wednesday but I have about a half dozen additional documents to complete and send on their way.
- Plan that vegan menu w/which you've all been so helpful, then do the shopping for it.
- Clean house for company.
Posted 12:06 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack | 3L
Did we learn that?
On the train the other day I ran into a Class of 2005 GW Law grad. I hadn't seen her since a few weeks before she graduated so I asked how things were going. She works in the city and said she's mostly happy although doesn't feel very challenged by her government job. She stays for many reasons, one of which being that at the time I ran into her it was not long after 3 p.m. and she was going home for the day. Now that's a lawyer's work schedule I could love!
Of course she asked how my job search was going and I said that criminal defense jobs aren't exactly falling at my feet. She said one of her co-graduates just took a criminal defense job in NY about three weeks ago and was finding it quite the challenge. One of their recent phone conversations went something like this:
DC Lawyer: So how's the new job?NY Defender: It's hard. I'm researching standards of review for motions to suppress and when do you get a hearing on that and stuff like that. Did we learn this stuff in law school?
DC Lawyer: You're kidding, right? Something practical about how to actually practice law? No, we didn't learn anything like that.
Kind of makes your $100-150k law degree seem pretty worthwhile, doesn't it?
Posted 07:13 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack | 3L
Can you cook up sumpn' good?
If you were going to make a nice meal for some good friends who don't eat meat or dairy, what would you make? Fish may be ok (I have to find out); eggs are ok, too. Any suggestions?
Posted 08:03 AM | Comments (9) | TrackBack | life generally
Mail? Like, with stamps?
In the ongoing saga of “where oh where is the imbroglio going to get a job!?”: I've had a fairly positive response from someone in the new Montana Public Defender's Office. It was basically “you look good, we're not hiring yet, but we will be soon, so if you don't hear from me in two months then check back.” That's a far cry from “you're hired,” but it's also a lot better than the handful of letters I've received saying “thanks, we're not hiring, we'll keep your resume on file.”
Therefore it seems wise to be at least prepared to take the Montana bar exam. I've known for some time that the deadline to apply for the exam was March 1, so over the weekend I sat down to finally download and complete the application. Except when I went to the cartel Montana Bar website I found this:
To obtain the application packet, please send a written request and a $15 check or money order to:
State Bar of Montana
P.O. Box 577
Helena MT 59624Or contact Jan Weber (406) 447-2202 or at jweber@montanabar.org with your Visa or Mastercard number.
Requests are usually processed within 3 working days.
Yeah, you read that right: You have to pay for the application and they mail it to you! As in the U.S. Postal service, snail mail, you know, with stamps and everything. Can you believe that? I mean, hello, what century is this?
Needless to say, this did not make me happy. I mean, I know it was totally irresponsible and stupid of me to wait to such a late date to finally sit down to apply, but I have already collected most of the info I think I'll need so I figured it wouldn't take me more than a couple of hours to complete the application, I could drop it in the mail today via overnight, and it would be there by Wednesday, easy. I never dreamed I'd have to pay just to get the application and also wait to have it physically sent to me. Honestly it makes me mad because it's so stupid. How easy would it be to post a PDF version of the application online for applicants to download? So easy. And how much would it cost? Virtually nothing. So why does the Montana Bar operate largely as if the internet doesn't exist with regard to applying for their bar exam? I think they just want to hassle me and make me mad. Well, can you think of a better explanation?
My complaining aside, I called Ms. Weber today and found her to be incredibly helpful. She's overnighting me an application (at my expense, of course, but thankfully no three-day wait) and she explained that as long as it's postmarked by March 1 then I'm fine. So I should still be able to make the deadline even if I do have to pay $45 for the privilege (the charge for the application plus overnight shipping).
So does anyone have any suggestions for how I can complete a fingerprint card in a big hurry tomorrow afternoon or early Wednesday morning?
Posted 10:20 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack | 3L
Res Ipsa Ludificatur*
Congratulations to the cast of GW's Law Revue for putting on a terrific show last night. This was the second year I attended and once again I was astounded by the level of talent displayed by the cast. A special shoutout goes to the 5-man cast of my favorite number, “I Want to Get Paid” (sung to the tune of the Backstreet Boys' “I want it that way”), and also to the woman who sang the soprano solo in the first number of the Rent finale—awesome job there! That was also a great number that turned the Broadway show's “154,600 minutes” into “154,600 payments, 154,000 dollars I owe.” Funny, but sadly true.
As expected, not every performance was flawless and not every joke was funny (some were, in fact, undoubtedly offensive to many in the audience), but taken as a whole, another very entertaining success.
*Supposedly the title of the show means “the thing mocks itself.”
Ambivalent Question: Lexis or Westlaw?
This week's Ambivalent Question® asks: “Do you prefer Lexis or Westlaw for your legal research?”
This one is pretty self-explanatory. It was inspired by Bad Glacier's post about how much he dislikes Westlaw's interface. Some people seem to love that interface and find it much easier to use than what Lexis provides; others feel the opposite. Long-time readers of this blog already know where I stand on the issue but I'll save the rest for next week after you've all voted.
Meanwhile, the poll is open and I'd love to hear your comments about why you prefer one, the other, or neither. Vote and comment away!
Posted 08:30 AM | Comments (12) | TrackBack | ambivalent questions
Domestic Spying? You're lovin' it!
The last Ambivalent Question was: “It's legality aside, does the U.S. need Bush's NSA domestic spying program?” (Related post.) The final results were:
- 48.5% of respondents said “Yes. It makes us safer.”
- 27.9% said “Impeach Bush.”
- 23.5% said “No. The costs to our civil liberties are not worth whatever benefits it may offer.”
So you're lovin' the spying. I'm hatin' it, but hey, I'm just one crazy person, I guess. Some of you in the comments explained your positions more completely and while I appreciate the distinctions you attempt to make and agree that we don't have full information about the program, I know enough to be certain that this program is not good for the country I want to live in. The Supreme Court has said our right to privacy is defined by our collective expectations—if we expect more privacy, the Constitution grants it; if we expect less, that's what we get. And a majority of those responding to this poll obviously expect and even want less privacy. That's awesome. Big Brother hearts you.
Posted 08:18 AM | Comments (6) | TrackBack | ambivalent questions
