0L Questions before entering Forum

[TheatreofDreams1]

Hey TLS,

You guys have been incredibly helpful in shepherding me through the law school application process. So thank you for that.

I had a question in regards to the summer prior to 1L. I am coming into law school with a very limited understanding of law and how law school works, for the better or worse.

I was wondering, are there any website or books that I can read to familiarize myself as 1L approaches?

Thank you for all your advice and help.

[twenty]

The a priori answer is "don't do anything." That said, there will be some subjects that you will almost definitely learn about - supremacy and commerce clause in constitutional law, consideration in contracts, negligence in torts, etc. But those subjects are honestly really easy to learn. The difficulty of law school isn't that the material is hard, it's that you're with a bunch of people that are equally smart.

[kaiser]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKt7eAHQ6JU

This vid had some good points on this matter

[golden44]

Disclaimer, 0L. Personally, not planning on doing any actual prep, but these videos were recommended to me by several friends as a way to get a quick, general overview. Free and put on by Penn Law for a non-law continuing education audience.

https://www.coursera.org/course/americanlaw

[TLSModBot]

Also: you want to learn what the professors teach, not what some prep course or commercial outline says. No bonus points on exams for outside knowledge, and if you get a different gloss on a case's takeaway than the prof, the final is NOT the place to air that. So prior studying/research can hurt more than help sometimes.

Basically, take it easy and make sure your social life and finances are ready for the coming storm.

[okaygo]

Read Getting to Maybe.
Read the "how to succeed in law school" threads.
Relax.

[kaiser]

Read something like Law School Confidential, or some other book about the law school experience if you want to know what to expect. Maybe Getting to Maybe to get an idea for what exams are like. Just don't waste time with substantive prep.

[BmoreOrLess]

If you slept through US History like I did, reading up on it might be helpful. Other than that read books that you enjoy, because you won't want to during law school.

Reading for fun is probably the thing I miss most right now.

[cannibal ox]

If you slept through US History like I did, reading up on it might be helpful. Other than that read books that you enjoy, because you won't want to during law school.

Reading for fun is probably the thing I miss most right now.

Totally agree with this. Con Law is the only class thus far where I've felt somewhat at a disadvantage for coming in as a blank-slate-dummy. Everything else has been fine, arguably better, because you can focus completely on what your prof. wants to see on an exam instead of what you came in thinking you knew.

Also I'd read Getting To Maybe, but read it lightly. It'll just make it easier to reread when you're ~6 weeks out from your first set of finals.

Aside from that, don't do anything. Hell, if you don't do a single thing to prepare you're definitely doing it right.

[BigZuck]

If you slept through US History like I did, reading up on it might be helpful. Other than that read books that you enjoy, because you won't want to during law school.

Reading for fun is probably the thing I miss most right now.

Totally agree with this. Con Law is the only class thus far where I've felt somewhat at a disadvantage for coming in as a blank-slate-dummy. Everything else has been fine, arguably better, because you can focus completely on what your prof. wants to see on an exam instead of what you came in thinking you knew.

Also I'd read Getting To Maybe, but read it lightly. It'll just make it easier to reread when you're ~6 weeks out from your first set of finals.

Aside from that, don't do anything. Hell, if you don't do a single thing to prepare you're definitely doing it right.

Can confirm an advanced degree in US History won't save someone from median pwnage in Con Law

[malleus discentium]

Don't worry about learning the law beforehand. If you really want to do something productive, read history, basic economics and game theory texts and get in the habit of reading the news. Not having this background knowledge will be more annoying in law school than not having read about footnote four.

As for law school itself, if you've read a lot of TLS you'll know more than pretty much everyone about how law school works coming in.

[snow24]

Do whatever you want. There's a lot of discussion on 0L prep and in my opinion, any advantage is negligible. Practically everyone will be at the same spot when finals comes around and any reading in the summer at that point will be of no use.

[lawschoolftw]

Read Getting to Maybe.
Read the "how to succeed in law school" threads.
Relax.

[swampman]

Read Getting to Maybe.
Read the "how to succeed in law school" threads.
Relax.

[MagicMike80]

Getting to Maybe is still on my desk. I can't say I actually went back to it before 1L exams, but it will definitely get you in the mood.