Nevermind Forum

[eye]

Deleted

[bk1]

Probably something along the lines of thinking law school is similar to undergrad.

[dissonance1848]

You must already have a legal job, right? Because otherwise you are one hell of a masochist.

You understand that if people en masse had the epiphony you describe, it would mean that tons of us who are being prudent and using foresight to do well in law school will be fucked, and will find it much harder (if not impossible), to get the work we want.

I think how things are works well. The people who fall into the traps of the professors are like attorneys led by the nose by the opposing legal team in court, whereas those who are meticulous in seeing how to ace law exams are like those who understand all the angles and will not fall into traps laid by the opposition. Make sense?

[gdane]

[quote="dissonance1848"]You must already have a legal job, right? Because otherwise you are one hell of a masochist.

You understand that if people en masse had the epiphony you describe, it would mean that tons of us who are being prudent and using foresight to do well in law school will be fucked, and will find it much harder (if not impossible), to get the work we want.

I think how things are works well. The people who fall into the traps of the professors are like attorneys led by the nose by the opposing legal team in court, whereas those who are meticulous in seeing how to ace law exams are like those who understand all the angles and will not fall into traps laid by the opposition. Make sense?[quote]

Not one bit.

The answer to OP's question is quite simple. Many of these students are cocky as hell. They think that because they are going to a "top school" and got a good LSAT score that thats enough to carry them through law school. Also, Ive seen law school exams and theres no magic or big confusion about them. If you do the readings, outline the cases and put everything together, you should have no problem being able to answer a few questions.

[vanwinkle]

The answer to OP's question is quite simple. Many of these students are cocky as hell. They think that because they are going to a "top school" and got a good LSAT score that thats enough to carry them through law school. Also, Ive seen law school exams and theres no magic or big confusion about them. If you do the readings, outline the cases and put everything together, you should have no problem being able to answer a few questions.

And thus gdane5 joins the heap of proof as to why 1Ls do badly.

It takes a lot to learn how to do well on a law school exam. You have to teach yourself how to write a "correct" answer, prep hard, and learn a lot of material. Most students will fixate one particular part (usually learning the material) to the detriment of the others. Even though they're working their asses off, they're just not doing the right things, and unlike undergrad, there's nobody there to walk them through it.

Also, remember that it's all graded on a curve. The better the school, the harder the competition, and it takes a hell of a lot of effort just to keep up with the median. I think this is especially true ITE with even folks at top schools freaking out about grades and their connection to job prospects.

[dissonance1848]

vanwinkle spoketh wisdom.

[eye]

You must already have a legal job, right? Because otherwise you are one hell of a masochist.

You understand that if people en masse had the epiphony you describe, it would mean that tons of us who are being prudent and using foresight to do well in law school will be fucked, and will find it much harder (if not impossible), to get the work we want.

I think how things are works well. The people who fall into the traps of the professors are like attorneys led by the nose by the opposing legal team in court, whereas those who are meticulous in seeing how to ace law exams are like those who understand all the angles and will not fall into traps laid by the opposition. Make sense?

You're assuming too much. Just because I'm pondering on this question does not mean that am about to run out and tell everyone about TLS success guides. I respect the fact that the results would be a devastating blow to law students in general if everyone were to figure out the system 1st semester of law school. I'm not asking about the effects of people en masse figuring it out. I'm wondering why so many 'smart' people, with so much at stake, fail to hone in on the fundamental task of successfully taking a law school exam.

EDIT: word to Vanwinkle

[kalvano]

I've noticed a lack of preparation among many students. I did find t odd, given how much time and money school costs.

I think a lot of it stems from pack mentality, though. Someone who briefs cases gets called on, and sounds moderately intelligent, so other people start emulating that person, and so forth. Even some people who know what they should be doing fall into that.

I'm briefing cases. Not in a big way, but some facts and history and what the rule is. Enough to ensure that I understand what I am looking for, and that if I happen to get called on, I won't look like a total idiot. I know it's unimportant as to grades, but not looking any more like an idiot than I already do is nice plus.

But I see some people already writing 2 and 3 page briefs and doing rote memorization exercises, and I fear it's going to spread and more people will fall into the trap to avoid "falling behind". I hear people talking about how much they are studying like it's some kind of competition, and it boggles my mind.

I'm not going to spend 4 hours going over every possible contracts scenario for every reading. I'm going to do my reading, listen in class, understand what I'm being told, and then go watch Modern Family. When I do start doing 4 hours per subject, it's going to be practice exams and writing answers. The law is, really, pretty easy when it's broken down like it is for class. Rules more often than not are right there. Applying the rules is the hard part, not memorizing them.