Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts Forum

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Julio_El_Chavo

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Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by Julio_El_Chavo » Thu Feb 24, 2011 2:33 pm

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flcath

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by flcath » Thu Feb 24, 2011 2:35 pm

Lol.

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BarbellDreams

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by BarbellDreams » Thu Feb 24, 2011 2:42 pm

We have Fed Courts & Fed Jurisdiction as one class. I want to take it but heard that it is the largest gunner class you will ever see. *Gulp*

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Adjudicator

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by Adjudicator » Thu Feb 24, 2011 2:48 pm

I'm planning to take this class when I'm in law school, but I have heard many times that it is like a whole class stacked with the most ambitious gunners.

But, what choice do you really have if your goal is a prestigious clerkship?

flcath

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by flcath » Thu Feb 24, 2011 3:03 pm

Adjudicator wrote:But, what choice do you really have if your goal is a prestigious clerkship?
None. This creates the issue addressed by the OP.

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A'nold

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by A'nold » Thu Feb 24, 2011 3:14 pm

Time to gun baby.

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Kohinoor

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by Kohinoor » Thu Feb 24, 2011 3:15 pm

Sometimes you just randomly get Law Reviewed though. The week before finals, you actually look around your 16 person Law and the Rights of Indigenous Birds seminar and there are 12 people from Law Review there.

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Adjudicator

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by Adjudicator » Thu Feb 24, 2011 3:16 pm

Kohinoor wrote:Sometimes you just randomly get Law Reviewed though. The week before finals, you actually look around your 16 person Law and the Rights of Indigenous Birds seminar and there are 12 people from Law Review there.
I'd imagine this tends to happen with classes that are not curved.

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Kohinoor

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by Kohinoor » Thu Feb 24, 2011 3:18 pm

Adjudicator wrote:
Kohinoor wrote:Sometimes you just randomly get Law Reviewed though. The week before finals, you actually look around your 16 person Law and the Rights of Indigenous Birds seminar and there are 12 people from Law Review there.
I'd imagine this tends to happen with classes that are not curved.
Randomly happened to me in my very not curved PR class.

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A'nold

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by A'nold » Thu Feb 24, 2011 8:47 pm

G. T. L. Rev. wrote:
flcath wrote:
Adjudicator wrote:But, what choice do you really have if your goal is a prestigious clerkship?
None. This creates the issue addressed by the OP.
Actually, you could just wait to take fed courts until 3L year, after the first big wave of clerkship hiring is over. Then, you'd be a lot less worried about a grades-hit.
Does this work if you actually want a clerkship? Like, could just tell the judge that we are taking it "next year?"

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A'nold

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by A'nold » Thu Feb 24, 2011 10:26 pm

A'nold wrote:
G. T. L. Rev. wrote:
flcath wrote:
Adjudicator wrote: None. This creates the issue addressed by the OP.
Actually, you could just wait to take fed courts until 3L year, after the first big wave of clerkship hiring is over. Then, you'd be a lot less worried about a grades-hit.
Does this work if you actually want a clerkship? Like, could just tell the judge that we are taking it "next year?"
Believe it or not, many judges (most?) don't care. They probably want you to take fed courts at some point, but even then, some might not care. I mean, I landed a bunch of COA interviews and an offer without having taken fed courts. I eventually took the class, of course.

And when we looked at people's apps last summer (hiring for my judge for 2011-12), we were impressed by a great grade in fed courts, but I can't recall ever remarking on the absence of fed courts.
Great info, thanks. :)

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by Renzo » Fri Feb 25, 2011 8:40 pm

Kohinoor wrote:
Adjudicator wrote:
Kohinoor wrote:Sometimes you just randomly get Law Reviewed though. The week before finals, you actually look around your 16 person Law and the Rights of Indigenous Birds seminar and there are 12 people from Law Review there.
I'd imagine this tends to happen with classes that are not curved.
Randomly happened to me in my very not curved PR class.
Shiiiit. Same thing happened to me, but the PR class was curved. I was mad as hell when I looked around the room on the first day of class.

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by pasteurizedmilk » Sat Feb 26, 2011 1:24 pm

LR people aren't really intimidating at my school. We have a weird system for write-on (not sure if others have the same). A good chunk of spots are entirely write-on based, and some spots are decided by factors besides quality of writing or grades, so it really doesn't correlate all that much with high grades here.

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vanwinkle

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by vanwinkle » Sat Feb 26, 2011 1:33 pm

G. T. L. Rev. wrote:
flcath wrote:
Adjudicator wrote:But, what choice do you really have if your goal is a prestigious clerkship?
None. This creates the issue addressed by the OP.
Actually, you could just wait to take fed courts until 3L year, after the first big wave of clerkship hiring is over. Then, you'd be a lot less worried about a grades-hit.
I wish I had done this.

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HarlandBassett

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by HarlandBassett » Sat Feb 26, 2011 2:10 pm

vanwinkle wrote:
G. T. L. Rev. wrote:
flcath wrote:
Adjudicator wrote:But, what choice do you really have if your goal is a prestigious clerkship?
None. This creates the issue addressed by the OP.
Actually, you could just wait to take fed courts until 3L year, after the first big wave of clerkship hiring is over. Then, you'd be a lot less worried about a grades-hit.
I wish I had done this.
wouldnt u be competing with the 2Ls of the next class

Renzo

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by Renzo » Sat Feb 26, 2011 2:12 pm

HarlandBassett wrote: wouldnt u be competing with the 2Ls of the next class
Yes, but you'd already have been through the clerkship application season, so a bad grade would hurt you less at the end of your 3rd year than during your 2L year.

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vanwinkle

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by vanwinkle » Sat Feb 26, 2011 2:14 pm

HarlandBassett wrote:wouldnt u be competing with the 2Ls of the next class
Uh. What?

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Kohinoor

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by Kohinoor » Sat Feb 26, 2011 3:29 pm

Renzo wrote:
Kohinoor wrote:
Adjudicator wrote:
Kohinoor wrote:Sometimes you just randomly get Law Reviewed though. The week before finals, you actually look around your 16 person Law and the Rights of Indigenous Birds seminar and there are 12 people from Law Review there.
I'd imagine this tends to happen with classes that are not curved.
Randomly happened to me in my very not curved PR class.
Shiiiit. Same thing happened to me, but the PR class was curved. I was mad as hell when I looked around the room on the first day of class.
Typo. My PR also curved.

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HarlandBassett

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by HarlandBassett » Sat Feb 26, 2011 9:38 pm

G. T. L. Rev. wrote:
Renzo wrote:
HarlandBassett wrote: wouldnt u be competing with the 2Ls of the next class
Yes, but you'd already have been through the clerkship application season, so a bad grade would hurt you less at the end of your 3rd year than during your 2L year.
Also, some schools offer fed courts in the fall, whent he 2L gunners are usually paying attention to other things. So you can slip in, face less competition, and still learn the same stuff--all without the pre-clerkship hiring pressure, since you're taking it 3L year. Best of all worlds, really.

Also, while I feel for those of you who regret taking fed courts 2L year, it isn't like you weren't warned.
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Juff

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by Juff » Sun Feb 27, 2011 3:21 pm

HarlandBassett wrote:
G. T. L. Rev. wrote:
Renzo wrote:
HarlandBassett wrote: wouldnt u be competing with the 2Ls of the next class
Yes, but you'd already have been through the clerkship application season, so a bad grade would hurt you less at the end of your 3rd year than during your 2L year.
Also, some schools offer fed courts in the fall, whent he 2L gunners are usually paying attention to other things. So you can slip in, face less competition, and still learn the same stuff--all without the pre-clerkship hiring pressure, since you're taking it 3L year. Best of all worlds, really.

Also, while I feel for those of you who regret taking fed courts 2L year, it isn't like you weren't warned.
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Here's a lesson for you, baby- you come at fed courts, you best not miss.

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Re: Why it's never a good idea to take Fed Courts

Post by keg411 » Sun Feb 27, 2011 6:25 pm

From what I've been told: 3L year, pass/fail :).

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