Law Students

Call to Arms

Posted on November 09, 2009
Someone in the comments below has asked for assistance. I leave it to you, dear reader, to get the job done:Anonymous said . . . On an ethics-related note, will someone summarize the potential causes of action against Don Draper and company after what they did in the final episode of Mad Men tonight? Meinhard v...

Liveblogging The Bakesale

Posted on September 29, 2009
10:30 AM-- I'm sitting in Donor Lobby taking part in an age-old (I assume) Boalt Hall student group tradition: the Bake Sale. Shameless plug: BJCL will be peddling its wares until 4:30 PM today (9/29) for a dollar an item. I think that price is double what we charged last year, but hey, recession's a bitch...

Ahab's

Posted on September 29, 2009
Today Starbucks rolled out its "Via" instant coffee. I sampled it, but certainly not with an open mind. And sure enough, it taste like...instant coffee. Ever since Howard Schultz returned as CEO, the company has been going in all the wrong directions (except for the whole let's make everything efficient thing, I like that)...

Do it Yourself Job-Making

Posted on September 29, 2009
The WSJ Law Blog reports that a Denver area solo partitioner who generally does smaller-scale criminal work, like drunk-driving and drug-possession representations, will be "spearheading the defense of accused terrorist mastermind Najibullah Zazi." The Denver attorney recently placed an advertisement with the University of Denver law school seeking an unpaid intern to help with legal research...

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2009 OCIP Callbacks (Part Trois)

Posted on September 22, 2009
Bada-BING. We've maxed out the comment capacity on the 2009 OCIP threads for a second time - you folks are on a roll. I have closed discussion on the previous thread, and opened it here.

"You Just Kinda' Wasted My Precious Time, but Don't Think Twice, It's Alright"

Posted on September 18, 2009
Pop quiz: what?s the appropriate number of times to think about a lover who has just walked out your door?Correct Answer: ONCE.But Dylan's advice has a corollary: If you know you're leaving, then the time to go is now. See, e.g., "It Ain't Me, Babe...

Mad Men Paging Sterling Cooper

Posted on September 15, 2009
As Barney Frank so aptly pointed out, trying to have a conversation with the extreme Right these days is like trying to argue with a dining room table. But at least dining room tables have decent branding. There's a great post over on culture monster that reveals the socialist and communist origins of the logo for Glenn Beck's "9/12 Project" march against socialism (and other less specific evils): But the absurdity doesn't stop there...

Two Cold-Calls and a Funeral (of Sorts)

Posted on September 15, 2009
Week 5 and all is well among the 1Ls. Sure, some of us are starting to wilt a little from the new workload (or mysteriously disappear*) but Fall Break is sure to put a little spunk back into our step!*As in the intriguing case of Prof. L*vy?s torts class last week?Professor: Hmm, let me call on someone who hasn?t spoken yet...

Everyone's a Winner*

Posted on September 14, 2009
Over the weekend the New York Times ran an article about lawyers and online social media like Facebook and Twitter. The article explains something that should be obvious: trial lawyers who blog or tweet about their judge are asking for trouble, as is the attorney whose facebook page suggests a week of partying, after the judge granted a continuance for a death in the attorney's family...

Is Google Flipping Right Past Bad PR?

Posted on September 14, 2009
Just saw a NYT article about a new google news product called Fast Flip. (Article here, Fast Flip site here.) Basically, Google strips the bulky packaging from news websites, catalogues them as images, and allows readers to flip through them in a manner similar to a conventional newspaper...

867-5309

Posted on September 11, 2009
We talked earlier this week about a thread for today's clerkship calls - here it is. Your tales, trials, and tribulations are particularly welcome.Update: if you haven't read The Rat Race: Insider Advice on Landing Judicial Clerkships (pdf) by Judge Aldisert and two former clerks, now is not too late...

Tales from Hotel Durant ? Four (and Twenty) Rooms

Posted on September 09, 2009
Hey All,I'm Maude. First time blogger, long-time snarky bitch. Transition should be seamless. . .Commentators have been asking for a ?lighter-side? of the 2009 OCIP string. There?s a suggestion that perhaps N&B can provide a place where we can all regale each other (anonymously, of course) with tales of awkward exchanges in the hallways and across the interview table...

An OCIP Question for Savvy 2L's

Posted on September 08, 2009
This year at OCIP even the tax firm Ivins, Phillips & Barker's interview slots filled during open signups. So, why is Latham & Watkins now wide-open for open signup interviews with almost every office (DY, NY, LA, OC, and SF)? Did Latham add more interviewers? Are Boalties throwing in the towel at OCIP? Do 2L's really prefer the tax? (Bitter 3L's or deferred Latham associates, please feel free to take a stab at this one, too...

Paging Kevin Smith: Please Give Boalties an OSCAR Win!

Posted on September 07, 2009
It's a fine Labor Day Weekend, I've got a horrendous mix of MJ and Blondie on the stereo, and I'm working my way thorough that second pot of coffee. Yep. OSCAR applications are due today.I have five thoughts, after which I will open up the comments for discussion...

How to Act on Friday, September 11th

Posted on September 07, 2009
Normally.No overjoyed, excited countenances.No walking dejectedly like the world's losiest losers.No nervous smiles to others you know are applying for clerkships.No "Hey, Macarena" ring tones during class.No rushing out of class to answer silently vibrating iPhones...

2009 OCIP Callbacks (Part Deux)

Posted on September 05, 2009
[Update: if you have been interviewing with law firms and have not yet seen this video ("what do you mean you didn't 'exactly' get in"?) you should. I meant to share it earlier but it slipped my mind.]___________________________________________We have come very close to maxing out the comments on the other thread...

Oompa-Loompa Ant Farm Boalt!

Posted on September 04, 2009
Check out:Time lapse video of the Boalt Hall South Edition from December 2008 through August 2009, here.Video response to this post, set to Howlin' Wolf here.I've watched that last one about six times - something clearly has me transfixed. Could be the blues, could be the Oompa-Loompa ant-dance theme, could be because I'm weird, or it could be some combination of the three...

Two Articles on the Entry Level Legal Market

Posted on September 03, 2009
This comment from the thread below deserves a stand-alone post:John Steele has left a new comment on your post "2009 OCIP Callbacks":Although these two pieces by Bill Henderson are sobering reading, if you are interested in the economics of law school and how the changing economy might affect legal education, you will want to read them:Drawing the Right Lessons from the Bleak Entry-Level Legal Job Market...

Won't Somebody Think of the Children

Posted on September 03, 2009
Just saw this post on Leiter about a proposed walkout by UC faculty on 9/24 because...drum roll please.Forced furloughs on days when they're not teaching or holding office hours. This, the fine academics consider an unacceptable violation of their umm well I'm not sure what it's a violation of, but they'll be damned if they have to give a talk on Renaissance art in Florence and not get paid by the UC for it...

Prison Reform

Posted on August 31, 2009
Q: How long will it be before the Philip Garrido story derails court-ordered prison reform in California?

Pretext? Earl, it's the Post-text I'm Worried About

Posted on August 28, 2009
*Full disclosure: I'm still feisty after yesterday afternoon, when some dude on the phone while driving an Annie's Catering nearly creamed me and my motorcycle by changing lanes without signaling.Under new statutes, people who text behind the wheel and causes a fatality accident in Utah can be punished by up to 15 years in prison...

Full boat? Fold.

Posted on August 27, 2009
I remember reading somewhere (probably ATL, maybe here) about a newly minted associate asking what sort of car he should buy so that he could roll into his firm's garage looking 1) professional enough to avoid the "he drives THAT?!?" commentative end of the automotive spectrum, but 2) modest enough to avoid the cocky/radical/crusty-old-partner-thinks-its-too-flashy end...

If Information's a Drug, Multitasking is a Disease

Posted on August 26, 2009
Earlier this week, researchers at Stanford announced a ?surprise finding? that people with access to many kinds of media tend to be more distracted than those who don?t. Come on Stanford, is that really the best you c?[checks facebook]The article itself is rather entertaining...

Lawyering Like the Fonz

Posted on August 25, 2009
During my first full week of law school, I received many pearls of wisdom from my peers and the administration ? some solicited, others not so much (I?m looking at you, 3L who told me to rename my book budget ?Beer Budget.?) The one tip that struck me as most poignant: Take LRW and WOA seriously, they are the only thing standing between you and imminent doom this summer...

The Argument No One is Making

Posted on August 25, 2009
I am not a politico. My experience in political strategy consists mostly of having seen every episode of The West Wing twice. That said, I've been crafting arguments for most of my life, and it seems to me there is an argument that could win the health care debate that no one is making...

The Requested No-Offer Survey

Posted on August 24, 2009
I'm timid to do this, because I don't want to out anyone and because I don't want to contribute to a general state of unrest. On the other hand, several people have pointed out that it would be helpful to 2L's to know whether they are interviewing with firms that no-offered the class of 2010...

2009 OCIP Callbacks

Posted on August 24, 2009
This is the 2009 OCIP callback thread. If you are unsure about what that might mean, look here, and here.Still unsure? Here is a short explanation: people seem to think it's helpful to learn whether firms are calling back as soon as possible. This thread is designed to satiate that obsessive desire (hey, I had it too) by publicly disseminating that information as quickly as possible...

A Silver Cloud with a Black Lining

Posted on August 23, 2009
I just learned that some 1L's aren't taking any Civ Pro this semester. This is bad news in disguise. No Rule 26, but instead they get to suffer through Contracts, Property, and Torts, all at the same time. Plus LRW. In the spring, they'll presumably get Crim, Civ Pro, Con Law, and WOA...

How About a Raincheck on that No-Offer?

Posted on August 23, 2009
Commentators have been asking for a thread for 3L's who left their summer internship without an offer. It seemed like a good idea the first time it was suggested, and it still does. Problem is, I'm not quite certain how to broach the subject. Some things are personal and therefore private, and some things only feel personal and in fact need not be private at all...

Journalism 101

Posted on August 21, 2009
I just watched the TV version of Jon Stewart's interview with Betsey McCaughey (former Lt. Gov of New York, which I think is an elected office(!!!) and inventor and propagator of the term "death panels" in the current health care debate). First, it's sad, pathetic, and downright depressing that a comic is pretty much the most intelligent, thoughtful, and probing news reporter on television right now...

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