Texas Class of 2012 Forum

(housing, friendships, future exams, all things 2012)
Locked
User avatar
Daico

New
Posts: 93
Joined: Wed Oct 01, 2008 1:19 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Daico » Mon Jul 27, 2009 10:40 pm

art vandelay wrote:
OperaAttorney wrote:
art vandelay wrote:Speaking of politics, does anyone know how partisan judges are in the Austin area? I'm a Republican, and I have involvement in my undergrad college republicans chapter on my resume, as well as an internship with a Republican congressman. And I'll join the Federalists at UT, so that too. I can just delete the College Republicans and Federalists from my resume, but the work for the congressman is kind of important.

Anyway, for example, I assume that most of the state court of appeals judges in Travis county are Dems, so will that hurt me looking for judicial internships with them next summer? Understandably, they'll probably be more interested in grades, but to what extent would a Democratic judge look down on Republican activism?
Isn't Texas predominantly Repub? Isn't Wallace Jefferson, the Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court, and a few others on that court Rep?
Yeah, the broader state is more Repub than Dem, but I'm talking about state court of appeals judges in Austin. Supreme Court judges are elected on a statewide basis, but the various district court of appeals judges are elected ffrom within the various districts, I think. So as a result a look at the roster of court of appeals judges in the Austin / Travis County district reveals mostly Dems.
I could go either way on party alignment to some extent, I wonder if my original plan to join both FedSoc and ACS could prove fruitful in this regard.

User avatar
JazzOne

Gold
Posts: 2979
Joined: Tue Sep 09, 2008 11:04 am

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by JazzOne » Tue Jul 28, 2009 1:16 am

Daico wrote:
art vandelay wrote:
OperaAttorney wrote:
art vandelay wrote:Speaking of politics, does anyone know how partisan judges are in the Austin area? I'm a Republican, and I have involvement in my undergrad college republicans chapter on my resume, as well as an internship with a Republican congressman. And I'll join the Federalists at UT, so that too. I can just delete the College Republicans and Federalists from my resume, but the work for the congressman is kind of important.

Anyway, for example, I assume that most of the state court of appeals judges in Travis county are Dems, so will that hurt me looking for judicial internships with them next summer? Understandably, they'll probably be more interested in grades, but to what extent would a Democratic judge look down on Republican activism?
Isn't Texas predominantly Repub? Isn't Wallace Jefferson, the Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court, and a few others on that court Rep?
Yeah, the broader state is more Repub than Dem, but I'm talking about state court of appeals judges in Austin. Supreme Court judges are elected on a statewide basis, but the various district court of appeals judges are elected ffrom within the various districts, I think. So as a result a look at the roster of court of appeals judges in the Austin / Travis County district reveals mostly Dems.
I could go either way on party alignment to some extent, I wonder if my original plan to join both FedSoc and ACS could prove fruitful in this regard.
What is ACS? I am also interested in joining groups with opposing positions.

User avatar
OperaAttorney

Silver
Posts: 512
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2007 11:48 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by OperaAttorney » Tue Jul 28, 2009 1:56 am

JazzOne wrote: What is ACS? I am also interested in joining groups with opposing positions.
American Constitutional Society, which I plan to join. Each org thinks the other interprets the Constitution incorrectly.

User avatar
Daico

New
Posts: 93
Joined: Wed Oct 01, 2008 1:19 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Daico » Tue Jul 28, 2009 1:59 am

JazzOne wrote:
What is ACS? I am also interested in joining groups with opposing positions.
ACS is the American Constitution Society described thusly: A legal organization which has as its mission the promotion of, "the vitality of the U.S. Constitution and the fundamental values it expresses: individual rights and liberties, genuine equality, access to justice, democracy and the rule of law."

As I understand it, they're something of a liberal response FedSoc. They both tend to run speakers and debates on different issues and have their own networks of 'adherents' and whatnot.

I'm totally just in it for the diversity of opinion.

Edit: PS: Anybody interested in putting together a UT Law profile for TLS with me?

mpar

New
Posts: 63
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2009 3:41 am

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by mpar » Tue Jul 28, 2009 10:40 am

Daico wrote:
JazzOne wrote:
What is ACS? I am also interested in joining groups with opposing positions.
ACS is the American Constitution Society described thusly: A legal organization which has as its mission the promotion of, "the vitality of the U.S. Constitution and the fundamental values it expresses: individual rights and liberties, genuine equality, access to justice, democracy and the rule of law."

As I understand it, they're something of a liberal response FedSoc. They both tend to run speakers and debates on different issues and have their own networks of 'adherents' and whatnot.

I'm totally just in it for the diversity of opinion.

Edit: PS: Anybody interested in putting together a UT Law profile for TLS with me?
I'd be happy to help out. I've been here for 4 years of undergrad if that can add anything, also.

Want to continue reading?

Register now to search topics and post comments!

Absolutely FREE!


Esc

Silver
Posts: 720
Joined: Thu Jul 31, 2008 4:09 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Esc » Tue Jul 28, 2009 1:09 pm

art vandelay wrote:
OperaAttorney wrote:
art vandelay wrote:Speaking of politics, does anyone know how partisan judges are in the Austin area? I'm a Republican, and I have involvement in my undergrad college republicans chapter on my resume, as well as an internship with a Republican congressman. And I'll join the Federalists at UT, so that too. I can just delete the College Republicans and Federalists from my resume, but the work for the congressman is kind of important.

Anyway, for example, I assume that most of the state court of appeals judges in Travis county are Dems, so will that hurt me looking for judicial internships with them next summer? Understandably, they'll probably be more interested in grades, but to what extent would a Democratic judge look down on Republican activism?
Isn't Texas predominantly Repub? Isn't Wallace Jefferson, the Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court, and a few others on that court Rep?
Yeah, the broader state is more Repub than Dem, but I'm talking about state court of appeals judges in Austin. Supreme Court judges are elected on a statewide basis, but the various district court of appeals judges are elected ffrom within the various districts, I think. So as a result a look at the roster of court of appeals judges in the Austin / Travis County district reveals mostly Dems.
I haven't heard any anecdotes on whether or not one's partisan affiliation/activities are a direct factor in judicial internship (or clerkship) hiring, but I would certainly expect that a partisan Republican applicant would be dinged by a partisan Democratic judge, and vice versa. One would hope that judges of less partisan fervor would be more open to hiring those who might hold opposing views.

Of course, even if you could be hired by a partisan judge of the opposing party, would you want to? Many or most of their connections might be partisan and not of any use to you, and depending on the judge's personality, you might not be able to develop a good relationship with them. Considering the large number of Republican judges in Texas, I may very well apply to judges who are moderate conservatives for 1L summer, but I'm not going near partisan Republican or ultraconservative judges.

FYI: On the Texas 3rd Court of Appeals, there are 3 Democrats and 3 Republicans. The circuit includes not only Austin, but also many of the surrounding rural counties, so it is not dominated by Democrats. 3 of the 6 are UT Law grads, and one of them taught at UT from 1993-2000. Unfortunately (from my perspective) all justices on both the Texas Supreme Court and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals are Republicans. However, I have no idea how partisan the individual justices are.

Regarding the ACS and the FedSoc, posters on other TLS threads have said that members of both groups tend to be partisan enough that it is not recommended (or perhaps even possible) to join both. Their anecdotes suggested that joining one of these groups is best thought of as a commitment done to increase networking among like-minded individuals, rather than as a "debate club" or exploration into differing legal/political philosophy. I don't know if this holds true at UT. I agree with the ACS's perspective, but I'm not going to join until I meet the group for myself and see if I feel comfortable there and if I feel comfortable listing an ACS membership on my resume.

User avatar
Alta

New
Posts: 21
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2009 6:01 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Alta » Tue Jul 28, 2009 1:26 pm

Regarding the ACS and the FedSoc, posters on other TLS threads have said that members of both groups tend to be partisan enough that it is not recommended (or perhaps even possible) to join both. Their anecdotes suggested that joining one of these groups is best thought of as a commitment done to increase networking among like-minded individuals, rather than as a "debate club" or exploration into differing legal/political philosophy. I don't know if this holds true at UT. I agree with the ACS's perspective, but I'm not going to join until I meet the group for myself and see if I feel comfortable there and if I feel comfortable listing an ACS membership on my resume.
Agreed. From what I’ve heard, the debating goes on between ACS and FedSoc, not within. I get the impression that both groups cater towards people who share the views of the organization and are not looking to add members of opposing viewpoints. It would be nice, though, if there was a moderate group devoted to encouraging respectful debate. But as nothing like this exists in actual politics, it’s probably too much to ask. Alas.

User avatar
OperaAttorney

Silver
Posts: 512
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2007 11:48 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by OperaAttorney » Tue Jul 28, 2009 1:51 pm

Esc wrote:
Regarding the ACS and the FedSoc, posters on other TLS threads have said that members of both groups tend to be partisan enough that it is not recommended (or perhaps even possible) to join both. Their anecdotes suggested that joining one of these groups is best thought of as a commitment done to increase networking among like-minded individuals, rather than as a "debate club" or exploration into differing legal/political philosophy. I don't know if this holds true at UT. I agree with the ACS's perspective, but I'm not going to join until I meet the group for myself and see if I feel comfortable there and if I feel comfortable listing an ACS membership on my resume.
+ 1 on the bold

ACS ftw.

User avatar
JoeShmo

New
Posts: 33
Joined: Mon Oct 27, 2008 8:18 am

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by JoeShmo » Tue Jul 28, 2009 2:08 pm

Is there a general school schedule out yet? As far as what days we have school and potentially what holidays we have off? I'm trying to book a flight home at the end of September but I want to check a schedule first. Thanks!

Want to continue reading?

Register for access!

Did I mention it was FREE ?


User avatar
Daico

New
Posts: 93
Joined: Wed Oct 01, 2008 1:19 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Daico » Tue Jul 28, 2009 3:05 pm

JoeShmo wrote:Is there a general school schedule out yet? As far as what days we have school and potentially what holidays we have off? I'm trying to book a flight home at the end of September but I want to check a schedule first. Thanks!
http://www.utexas.edu/law/depts/sao/aca ... endar.html
Esc wrote:
Regarding the ACS and the FedSoc, posters on other TLS threads have said that members of both groups tend to be partisan enough that it is not recommended (or perhaps even possible) to join both. Their anecdotes suggested that joining one of these groups is best thought of as a commitment done to increase networking among like-minded individuals, rather than as a "debate club" or exploration into differing legal/political philosophy. I don't know if this holds true at UT. I agree with the ACS's perspective, but I'm not going to join until I meet the group for myself and see if I feel comfortable there and if I feel comfortable listing an ACS membership on my resume.
Oh joy.

User avatar
OperaAttorney

Silver
Posts: 512
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2007 11:48 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by OperaAttorney » Tue Jul 28, 2009 9:14 pm

Hey folks,

Here's a ditty I recorded yesterday for the TLS TALENT SHOW thread yesterday. (To download, click on the link.) Since I sing about UT Law, I think you all should check it out. Don't worry--it's not opera! :lol:

TLS AND BETASTEVE (http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?yme2vtijcgj)

Snooker

Bronze
Posts: 360
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 2:50 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Snooker » Tue Jul 28, 2009 9:31 pm

Of course, even if you could be hired by a partisan judge of the opposing party, would you want to? Many or most of their connections might be partisan and not of any use to you, and depending on the judge's personality, you might not be able to develop a good relationship with them. Considering the large number of Republican judges in Texas, I may very well apply to judges who are moderate conservatives for 1L summer, but I'm not going near partisan Republican or ultraconservative judges.
Is there a good breakdown anywhere of where on the political spectrum judges in Texas tend to fall?

I read a former Texas Supreme Court clerk's impression of serving there after law school, and he claimed quite interestingly that he felt politics didn't influence his experience there. I get a strong sense that there's a huge gap between jurisprudence and everyday politics, and while there's certainly points of overlap and a mutual influence there, the business of judges is usually conducted with a much different mindset than a politician's.

The most disturbing ultra-con opinion I have heard of in Texas is that Centex Homes case, but the Texas Legislature overturned a year or two later, perhaps because the whole thing was so preposterous.

Esc

Silver
Posts: 720
Joined: Thu Jul 31, 2008 4:09 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Esc » Tue Jul 28, 2009 11:09 pm

The Freshlaw site has a new feature up. We will have a book discussion session on the first day of orientation.
Book Discussion with Faculty
Monday, August 24
3:15 to 4:15 p.m.

The book discussion program is designed to introduce students to intellectual life in the UT Law community by providing a friendly environment where students may interact with members of the UT Law faculty without the pressure of a classroom setting. The book discussion is not graded, and the professor whose discussion you attend will not necessarily be one of your professors.
I'm trying to narrow down my decision as to which of the 19 odd sections to attend, based on my level of personal interest in the topic and on what I can glean of the different faculty. I'm leaning towards either Chesney's or Rabban's, dealing with terror suspect detention/interrogation and free speech, respectively.

Anyone have any thoughts on their preferences?

Register now!

Resources to assist law school applicants, students & graduates.

It's still FREE!


mpar

New
Posts: 63
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2009 3:41 am

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by mpar » Tue Jul 28, 2009 11:25 pm

I'm thinking McCormack's just because of an ongoing obsession with the play between morality and legality (Jesuit HS will get ya)

Snooker

Bronze
Posts: 360
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 2:50 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Snooker » Tue Jul 28, 2009 11:44 pm

Esc wrote:The Freshlaw site has a new feature up. We will have a book discussion session on the first day of orientation.
Book Discussion with Faculty
Monday, August 24
3:15 to 4:15 p.m.

The book discussion program is designed to introduce students to intellectual life in the UT Law community by providing a friendly environment where students may interact with members of the UT Law faculty without the pressure of a classroom setting. The book discussion is not graded, and the professor whose discussion you attend will not necessarily be one of your professors.
I'm trying to narrow down my decision as to which of the 19 odd sections to attend, based on my level of personal interest in the topic and on what I can glean of the different faculty. I'm leaning towards either Chesney's or Rabban's, dealing with terror suspect detention/interrogation and free speech, respectively.

Anyone have any thoughts on their preferences?
http://www.amazon.com/Going-Broke-Ameri ... 640&sr=8-1

#1 Pick for irony

OK let's sit down in a room full of people going into six figure debt... and talk about why people are going into debt...

Good find! I've already selected my highly nerdy topic.

User avatar
Daico

New
Posts: 93
Joined: Wed Oct 01, 2008 1:19 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Daico » Tue Jul 28, 2009 11:49 pm

I was really tempted to do the Alfred Bester's Demolished Man one, but I decided to go with Sanford Levinson's bit on the undemocratic constitution. I may change if I get my schedule Monday and find out one of my prof's is on there.

User avatar
SSDD

New
Posts: 35
Joined: Mon Apr 06, 2009 5:33 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by SSDD » Wed Jul 29, 2009 8:17 am

I'm going with "Goin' Broke: Why Americans Can't Hold On To Their Money" as well. Ever since high school, one of the main life lessons my father attempted to instill in me was the avoidance of debt. When I say debt avoidance, I don't mean occasionally using "debt as leverage"... No, the lesson was more along the lines of, "If you can't afford it, go back to work and maybe someday you'll have the money."

I agree with snooker on the irony of discussing the topic with a group mostly comprised of individuals going into very large debt, forsaking alternate (stable) careers, to chase after something they know they want.

:lol: Ok enough of the seriousness. I'd be willing to guess that "Goin' Broke" won't be about student loan debt. Dickerson had an interesting article about the mortgage crisis in one of the UT Law magazines; I'd like to hear from her even if she isn't going to be a prof of mine.

"I don't know wheeeere I'd be, without TLS or betasteve." Good job OperaAttorney! Have you thought about going for Assault & Flattery?

Get unlimited access to all forums and topics

Register now!

I'm pretty sure I told you it's FREE...


User avatar
penni_rose

Bronze
Posts: 166
Joined: Wed May 06, 2009 5:17 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by penni_rose » Wed Jul 29, 2009 12:52 pm

I'm torn between Anderson's group with the Grisham book (because I've heard great things about him and would honestly prefer to read a novel) and Bracha's discussion on To Steal a Book, which is about Chinese copyright law (because I have a publishing background and a particular interest in intellectual property). I will most likely end up in Bracha's, but will wait until Monday to see if I end up in the section that has Anderson first semester. That might make me want to pick his group.

User avatar
Neverknowsbest

New
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Feb 01, 2009 2:12 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Neverknowsbest » Wed Jul 29, 2009 1:15 pm

Shakespeare with Sager just seems like it would be interesting, if not a little crazy. The Goin' Broke one does seem like the book I'd most want to read though.

User avatar
OperaAttorney

Silver
Posts: 512
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2007 11:48 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by OperaAttorney » Wed Jul 29, 2009 2:13 pm

I'm deciding between The Merchant of Venice (with Cohen & Sager) and Lawyerland (with William Fobarth). I'm also considering (not as strongly, though) To Steal a Book Is an Elegant Offense: Intellectual Property Law in Chinese Civilization (with Bracha).

YoungFella

New
Posts: 12
Joined: Sun Oct 05, 2008 4:17 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by YoungFella » Wed Jul 29, 2009 2:56 pm

Hey guys. Just made my final decision today that I will be attending UTexas this fall! Very excited to get down there in August.

I do not have the time to read through all 45 pages of posts, so I am hoping a few of you can get me up to speed on some of these simple questions. Your help is greatly appreciated.

1) Is there a way to register for classes BEFORE the August 24 registration date? I would assume the answer is NO, nut I am asking anyway.

2) Can someone briefly summarize the whole "society" thing I have seen mentioned, and is it possible to join one now, or must we wait?

3) Is there a UTexas recommended or preferred organization through which we can get our loans?

4) When are most of you moving to Austin? I move there from NYC on August 14, I have an apartment in the Village Oaks Complex in Arboretum, about 7 miles from campus.

Thanks in advance for the help, and I hope to conversate with you until August 14, where we hopefully can all meet.

Communicate now with those who not only know what a legal education is, but can offer you worthy advice and commentary as you complete the three most educational, yet challenging years of your law related post graduate life.

Register now, it's still FREE!


User avatar
Daico

New
Posts: 93
Joined: Wed Oct 01, 2008 1:19 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Daico » Wed Jul 29, 2009 3:07 pm

Hey there, youngfella, welcome aboard!
YoungFella wrote:Hey guys. Just made my final decision today that I will be attending UTexas this fall! Very excited to get down there in August.

I do not have the time to read through all 45 pages of posts, so I am hoping a few of you can get me up to speed on some of these simple questions. Your help is greatly appreciated.

1) Is there a way to register for classes BEFORE the August 24 registration date? I would assume the answer is NO, nut I am asking anyway.

2) Can someone briefly summarize the whole "society" thing I have seen mentioned, and is it possible to join one now, or must we wait?

3) Is there a UTexas recommended or preferred organization through which we can get our loans?

4) When are most of you moving to Austin? I move there from NYC on August 14, I have an apartment in the Village Oaks Complex in Arboretum, about 7 miles from campus.

Thanks in advance for the help, and I hope to conversate with you until August 14, where we hopefully can all meet.
1) Classes are all assigned. We've been told class assignments are to be posted on Monday, August 3rd.

2) In order to compensate for the fact that UT has one of the larger law school classes--though they've been shrinking; ideally we'll be the first class to be under 400 enrollment--we get divided into something like eight society groups which provide a smaller social network/environment to operate in. I want to say that you take classes with your society members, but can't recall for sure.

3) No.

4) I'm moving up on Saturday.

art vandelay

Bronze
Posts: 106
Joined: Sat Oct 11, 2008 4:41 am

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by art vandelay » Wed Jul 29, 2009 3:10 pm

Esc wrote:
art vandelay wrote:
OperaAttorney wrote:
art vandelay wrote:Speaking of politics, does anyone know how partisan judges are in the Austin area? I'm a Republican, and I have involvement in my undergrad college republicans chapter on my resume, as well as an internship with a Republican congressman. And I'll join the Federalists at UT, so that too. I can just delete the College Republicans and Federalists from my resume, but the work for the congressman is kind of important.

Anyway, for example, I assume that most of the state court of appeals judges in Travis county are Dems, so will that hurt me looking for judicial internships with them next summer? Understandably, they'll probably be more interested in grades, but to what extent would a Democratic judge look down on Republican activism?
Isn't Texas predominantly Repub? Isn't Wallace Jefferson, the Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court, and a few others on that court Rep?
Yeah, the broader state is more Repub than Dem, but I'm talking about state court of appeals judges in Austin. Supreme Court judges are elected on a statewide basis, but the various district court of appeals judges are elected ffrom within the various districts, I think. So as a result a look at the roster of court of appeals judges in the Austin / Travis County district reveals mostly Dems.
I haven't heard any anecdotes on whether or not one's partisan affiliation/activities are a direct factor in judicial internship (or clerkship) hiring, but I would certainly expect that a partisan Republican applicant would be dinged by a partisan Democratic judge, and vice versa. One would hope that judges of less partisan fervor would be more open to hiring those who might hold opposing views.

Of course, even if you could be hired by a partisan judge of the opposing party, would you want to? Many or most of their connections might be partisan and not of any use to you, and depending on the judge's personality, you might not be able to develop a good relationship with them. Considering the large number of Republican judges in Texas, I may very well apply to judges who are moderate conservatives for 1L summer, but I'm not going near partisan Republican or ultraconservative judges.

FYI: On the Texas 3rd Court of Appeals, there are 3 Democrats and 3 Republicans. The circuit includes not only Austin, but also many of the surrounding rural counties, so it is not dominated by Democrats. 3 of the 6 are UT Law grads, and one of them taught at UT from 1993-2000. Unfortunately (from my perspective) all justices on both the Texas Supreme Court and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals are Republicans. However, I have no idea how partisan the individual justices are.

Regarding the ACS and the FedSoc, posters on other TLS threads have said that members of both groups tend to be partisan enough that it is not recommended (or perhaps even possible) to join both. Their anecdotes suggested that joining one of these groups is best thought of as a commitment done to increase networking among like-minded individuals, rather than as a "debate club" or exploration into differing legal/political philosophy. I don't know if this holds true at UT. I agree with the ACS's perspective, but I'm not going to join until I meet the group for myself and see if I feel comfortable there and if I feel comfortable listing an ACS membership on my resume.
Well now I feel dumb for assuming the 3rd would be mostly Dems.

YoungFella

New
Posts: 12
Joined: Sun Oct 05, 2008 4:17 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by YoungFella » Wed Jul 29, 2009 3:15 pm

Daico - thanks a lot for the help. I am so excited about all of this. I feel much more up to speed now.

Also, I chose The Merchant of Venice as my book discussion group...anyone else do the same?

Esc

Silver
Posts: 720
Joined: Thu Jul 31, 2008 4:09 pm

Re: Texas Class of 2012

Post by Esc » Wed Jul 29, 2009 3:20 pm

art vandelay wrote: Well now I feel dumb for assuming the 3rd would be mostly Dems.
You weren't far off, and if the 3rd was entirely based in Travis County, you would be right. All the local and District Courts in Travis County/Austin are held by Democrats, except, I think, for one lone Republican judge who is expected to be unseated in the next election.

Seriously? What are you waiting for?

Now there's a charge.
Just kidding ... it's still FREE!


Locked

Return to “TLS Class of 2012 Forum”