Lucky 13!

I'm in my first class of my 2L year and I already want to stab myself in the neck after only 45 minutes

[Edited on August 20, 2007 at 11:53 AM. Reason : .]

8/20/2007 11:53:24 AM

my classes start wednesday at 1pm... we get to indoctrinate the little 1L's

8/20/2007 10:05:37 PM

Here is an interesting blog entry on the bimodal distribution of full-time salaries for 2006 graduates. Anyone considering paying full tuition for a low-ranked school should read this.

http://www.elsblog.org/the_empirical_legal_studi/2007/09/distribution-of.html

9/5/2007 1:06:11 PM

as someone already approaching 80k in debt

at a tier 4 school

that article makes me sick to my stomach

9/5/2007 1:30:18 PM

As I said pages ago.... the market, especially in NC, is saturated as hell. Add to that the fact that the NC Bar just passed 72% of the people who took it, and it's only going to get worse.

I've been practicing 3 years, just turned 29 and I'm still STRUGGLIN'.

[Edited on September 6, 2007 at 4:08 PM. Reason : .]

9/6/2007 4:07:55 PM

define struggling

because honestly i'll need a car (used of course), a decent apartment, some new clothes, and I refuse to eat ramen for dinner


i won't be in NC though most likely... i'll be in VA... which is just as saturated

9/6/2007 4:38:46 PM

Quote :

"define struggling because honestly i'll need a car (used of course), a decent apartment, some new clothes, and I refuse to eat ramen for dinner i won't be in NC though most likely... i'll be in VA... which is just as saturated"

As in.... I've been out for 3 years and have barely put any money back after paying student loans every month.

Also, due to the market being saturated with attorney's in this area, the raises come much fewer and far between than they once did. Many of the bigger firms, like mine, take the attitude of "you can be easily replaced, if you don't like it, we can find someone who will take even less than you just to get their foot in". 3 years later, that person comes to same revelation, then the firm repeats.

Axl---I have a few friends practicing in VA and they haven't had nearly the issues that I've encountered in the Triangle, and all are of comparable class rank and law school tier.

For those in NC---I looked for jobs in Asheville (hometown), Raleigh and Wilmington straight out of school and all of those markets seem to be bad. If you want to move to a small town, or practice in Charlotte, you'll be fine. (it seems). I have had two offers in Charlotte that would be more than 35% increase in pay, but I could never bring myself to live there.

If people are looking at this thread considering law school, if you don't have your heart set on it and you can get into a higher tier business school, I would go that route.

9/9/2007 5:32:15 PM

So far, so good...being a 1L isn't that bad. Albiet, I'll bet my perception is going to change come November/December, but that was to be expected.

That article/statistics didn't settle well with my stomach, but my heart is in it, so I'm not too discouraged. At least I will be able to do what I want with my life.

9/9/2007 6:15:18 PM

how are you liking Grundy?

9/9/2007 8:40:55 PM

Grundy sucks! No wonder I am doing so well, there is only one bar and it closes at 12. This is the least that I have drank since high school, and I'm not sure if that is a good or bad thing.

However, I have been impressed with most of the professors and school faculty.

9/10/2007 5:23:45 PM

I have heard that the Charlotte market is hard to break into.

9/14/2007 9:53:42 AM

come on people, its just like anything else. if you don't have good grades or don't go to a good school you are going to have a tough time finding work... plain and simple.

9/16/2007 8:21:56 AM

Hey fellow law schoolers. I just got Old School access, so I can talk to you guys now.
I'm a 1L at U. of Florida, I'm working my tail off trying to learn all of the terms/concepts. I'm also having a lot of fun in Gainesville
Right now Contracts is the class that is the toughest for me, but I still like it a lot

9/17/2007 11:53:31 AM

yeah contracts seemed toughest to me as well. so many concepts to grasp. but you seem to have the right attitude. just stick with it and you'll be fine

9/17/2007 4:47:58 PM

contracts was hard to grasp at first, but i found the toughest course to be Property

9/17/2007 4:56:37 PM

Yeah I've heard Property is a bear, but that's next semester

9/20/2007 5:38:52 AM

The Singer Hornbook is great for property.

9/21/2007 10:00:37 AM

Thanks I'll remember that when I'm mired in it next semester
I'm writing part of my legal research and writing memo...the citations are so tedious

9/23/2007 1:45:21 AM

^ In case you haven't seen this yet. You can appreciate it now.


http://www.hlrecord.org/media/storage/paper609/news/2007/04/05/News/Angry.Students.Stage.Bluebook.Burning-2826068.shtml[/link]

[Edited on September 23, 2007 at 7:40 PM. Reason : adfs]

9/23/2007 7:39:49 PM

WSJ article on job market for students that do not graduate from top-tier schools.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119040786780835602.html

9/24/2007 2:12:15 PM

You are making me want to kill myself Partial.

But seriously, I wish I had known that before beginning school. Although I never intended to work as an attorney and was getting this degree as an alternative to the MBA.

9/24/2007 3:30:15 PM

^Yea, sorry man. I'm not trying to be a downer, I just think people considering law school should have this info and really consider the amount of debt they are taking on.

9/24/2007 4:57:40 PM

^ Good article. I'm glad you posted it. Still, if it is something you want to do I wouldn't let something like that dissuade you. I still believe that what you do with your law degree is ultimately up to you.

9/24/2007 8:44:13 PM

I'm working some overtime in the law library, so I can relax/enjoy the Auburn/Florida game on Saturday
I understand Torts/Crim pretty well, Contracts is getting better...still a touch hazy, PR is almost a throwaway, I don't know what to take away from that class....

My LR+W Prof spent 50 minutes basically reading to us out of the Blue Book last Friday, I wanted to torch it after that....so boring....

That article would make you think twice about going to law school that's for sure. But if it's what you really want to do, it'll probably be worth struggling for a few years. I really like the position I'm in because I wouldn't have any issue with practicing in Florida. I've also got the Gator Nation of lawyers in Florida to help me out, it's best to go to UF if you want to practice in Florida...

[Edited on September 25, 2007 at 8:47 PM. Reason : ]

9/25/2007 8:40:14 PM

I kinda assumed the job market for Lawyers was bottoming out after my previous company (low-rent video game gold farmers) was able to hire one directly out of unc... and considering their salary history, he can't have been making much money at all

9/25/2007 9:38:21 PM

--> hits wall

I hate contracts; property, torts, and civ pro aren't that bad though. Torts midterm coming up...outlining is controlling my life.

Damn, I miss Raleigh and NCSU! I took it for granted while I was there, just went out and had fun all the time, not realizing that it would soon end.

9/25/2007 10:15:47 PM

Partial is doing you a favor to warn you of the market. Study your ass off.

I had a sweet job lined up that did not work out, but potentially 3 leads for other firms looking to expand. I am very picky about the type of lawyers I want to work for (ethical, old school).

On OCI, there were 12 jobs for an associate position. The big firms have already rolled out their offers to their summer associates.

My fiance makes good money and our expenses are next to nothing. I borrowed the bare minimum in loans, but it will still hurt. As a woman, it is best to practice a few years before having children (financially and career wise).

[Edited on September 26, 2007 at 12:22 PM. Reason : k]

9/26/2007 12:18:33 PM

Campbell is heading to Raleigh. It was voted on today. 2009-2010

10/3/2007 5:03:14 PM

I wish they would freaking tell us details. I am glad the mayor of raleigh knows our fate, but not most of the students that will have to move.

10/3/2007 6:22:47 PM

Jenn, i think it is safe to say that you will be the last, or second to last, class to graduate in buies creek.

This thing is at least a year and 1/2 away from take off.

10/3/2007 7:50:05 PM

Good, your class needs to throw mine a party to thank us for all the whining.

I like the new location. There will be some parking for faculty.

They are already working with NCSU on some kick ass IP programs and dual degrees.

10/4/2007 11:59:21 AM

Nichols, you suck. I thought you were gonna come hang out with me in the Dirty-D. Had I waited a few years to go to law school, I'd definitely be going to Campbell in Raleigh.

10/4/2007 12:34:40 PM

"They are already working with NCSU on some kick ass IP programs and dual degrees."

That was the first thing out of my mouth when this thing was finally voted on. To bad i'll only be there for one year.

I hope that we will start up some kind of LLM program. That would be huge for the area.

10/4/2007 1:56:10 PM

I feel like the red headed step child locked in the moldy tower.

The new building looks great, along with the new lay out.

[Edited on October 4, 2007 at 3:36 PM. Reason : i was screwed over.]

10/4/2007 3:35:28 PM

Eat me, Nichols.

10/8/2007 9:24:32 PM

so is everyone psyched about finals in a few weeks?

11/13/2007 7:41:17 PM

I'm studying a bunch like everyone else I'm sure....about one more month and I'll be back in North Carolina for about a 2 week break haha...

11/13/2007 9:42:27 PM

what do you do if you haven't kept up with any reading and haven't started outlining yet? me = dead.

11/13/2007 10:28:04 PM

get outlines from other people / 2L's and 3L's that have already taken the course

wikipedia your cases

hit up emanuels or gilberts outlines, or a barbri book

pray.

11/13/2007 11:56:16 PM

Eh that's a pickle....get some good outlines from 2L/3L's or from your friends/classmates....at least here at Florida no one's a bitch about sharing/helping each other out...yeah and pray

11/14/2007 2:38:36 PM

Not dead yet, just have to get off TWW. Get class syllabus and and look at the headings. Then Westlaw, Lexis every case covered in the section. The Shephard those cases and see if the law is still good and check the followed, distinguished, or reversed decisions.

By the way, skip Thanksgiving...eat McDonalds and read those cases.

If you can get old exams then get them and practice them.

Get outlines from others review them with the cases.

As long as you are not NCCU School of Law you will get at least B+. If you at NCCU, you got a shot at a D+, maybe a C-.


III

11/14/2007 4:24:19 PM

is NCCU really that rigorous?

what's their attrition rate?

11/14/2007 4:43:09 PM

they usually lose about 25% of their 1L class. this is because they grade on a C curve whereas most other schools grade on a B or B+ curve. with them grading to a C, it makes it tougher to have a high gpa and if it is below 2.0, you are not invited back. that being said, our 1L class last year did much better in terms of making it to our second year. still it makes it tough to have a competitive gpa with other schools because of the curve but they do it because they also allow in more students that would not normally be allowed in at other schools.

11/14/2007 8:12:02 PM

same as my school, and we lost alot of people... but 25% sounded high until i realize how many people we lost last year to this year...

and yeah, my gpa is shit because of that damn curve.

11/15/2007 12:37:27 AM

Campbell and NCCU are really big about not graduating students that cannot cut it. The median at Campbell is 78-80 for first year classes. Anyone below a 75 two semesters in a row cannot return.

We had about 10 people fail out of my class.

As for studying, just get someone's outline that did well in the class. At Campbell, Laura Creasy outlines have been passed down for the last few years and are pretty reliable. They are a combo of class notes and book outline. Most of the professors use the same lecture and textbook from year to year, so it works.

I sometimes feel that I can do nothing in a class and make a good grade by using the right outline. It is a lot to risk. I would not look up case briefs, but they would not really help with our style of exams.

11/15/2007 1:42:38 PM

thanks for all the advice... i guess i should mention im a 2L.... hopefully will still be one after a couple weeks. just have a bunch of 2 credit electives and two 3 credit classes. some of them are paper classes, some are take homes, and the rest are regular finals. been doing a lot of outlining from older outlines. just pulling rules, etc., but i wonder if i should even try and go back to read cases. seriously, i feel like the commercial stuff can get you a b+ if you just hunker down on that shit.

11/27/2007 6:23:52 PM

^ that's nice, i have 5 finals, one for each of my classes. none are take home but i can use my outlines for two of them. that's a big change from last year when we couldn't use any outlines on our finals. next semester i should have two classes that require a final paper instead of an exam. but for now it's grind time...

11/27/2007 6:58:53 PM

5 finals.

1 1-hour
3 three-hour
1 four-hour (evidence)


bah. i've got a lot of learning to do in the next 2 weeks.

11/28/2007 1:22:33 PM

can anyone explain the doctrine of imputation for me? (stupid ethics rules)

12/1/2007 12:24:34 PM

One more day and about 6 hours till my first law school exam...Criminal Law

12/4/2007 2:38:00 AM