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Messages - jdmaxey

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21
General Board / Re: Anon LS Dean here taking questions...
« on: January 21, 2006, 07:23:37 PM »
I'm not trying to defend the socratic method here, but I don't see what all the fuss is about. In practice you will have to be prepared at all times for whatever situation might come up. Not only must you be prepared, you must be able to argue your position with competence and confidence. Check Rule 1.1 from the ABA's Model Rules of Professional Conduct. 

Isn't that what your professor wants in class when they call on you? If your reaction to pressure is a quivering lip then you might want to work on that. And if you can't overcome it then maybe LS is just not for you. I'm not trying to be mean but if you crumble during a trial you could cost your client more than a little embarrassment.

Anonymous_Dean: If you were just graduating from law school would you specialize? If so, which field? If not, why? If you had an engineering background would you run to IP law? I'm still early in my legal education, but when asked what kind of law I want to practice I avoid an answer. My background would point to IP law but my heart just isn't doing flips at the prospect. Not that I have anything against the field, I really don't know that much about it. I am just more of a people person and would enjoy the close interaction that a private practice could provide. But I hear how prosperous IP law is and how some lawyers in private practice barely survive. It's a tough call for me, luckily I have a while before I have to decide. What are your thoughts?

22
General Board / Re: Getting legal advice from professors?
« on: January 15, 2006, 09:01:27 PM »
You know if you're wanting free legal advice to point you in the right direction you could always do the research yourself. Granted, you're not a lawyer yet, but you do have at least a basic knowledge of how the law works. Especially if it's a K or Property issue that needs to be answered. Of course you can't take your own advice to court, but the OP didn't say that they were going to be taking the professor to court either.

Just phrase your problem like a RWA assignment and do the research and see what you come up with. If nothing else you could take your results to your professor for verification. I think they would appreciate the fact that you had most of the legwork done instead of just coming to them wanting them to do everything.

Also, if you have issues you can't figure out you can always post them here. Lots of eager young legal minds with nothing but free time on their hands!  ;)

But in the end your parents are going to have to hire a real lawyer before they get to court! They just might be impressed if you can give them the answer before they pay someone else to do it.

23
General Board / Re: LAW SCHOOL, YUCK!
« on: October 01, 2005, 09:18:27 PM »
I've already started book briefing the shorter cases (anything four pages or less). It has really given me a lot of time back! I would suggest that your book briefs be detailed enough to follow in class if called on. You can actually put quite a lot of information in the margins if you write small enough or use good key phrases/words! I'm sure that in the next few weeks I will be book briefing all but the largest cases. I also work full time and go to school at night so it's all about working smarter, not harder. Good luck and hang in there. You've worked hard to get this far, don't give up now.

24
Arkansas - Little Rock / Re: Is there a law school newbie BBQ or event being organized?
« on: July 06, 2005, 08:48:26 PM »
There's always Burns Park, it isn't that far from the city center. Another consideration is one of the many lakes that surround LR. Within an hour drive you can be lakeside at a pavillion. How many people are you talking about?

25
Arkansas - Little Rock / Re: Is there a law school newbie BBQ or event being organized?
« on: June 27, 2005, 10:04:52 PM »
There might be more interest as orientation gets closer. The list-serv has pretty much died down over the summer. Good luck in your house hunt!

26
General Board / Re: Besides a palm pilot, what else is there?
« on: March 18, 2005, 05:42:59 PM »
Carrie,

I don't post too much but you have brought up a topic I can weigh in on. As a computer engineer I have watched the PDA technology develop over the years. I currently have an Ipaq h5550 which is a decent PDA that includes a biometrics fingerprint scanner for secure logon. Slap my little foldout keyboard on it and I'm set for any geek contest.  ;D

I want to caution you before you spend $300 - $700 on a PDA. The PDA market has been in a sharp decline for several years now thanks to smartphones. The current standard for cellphones called 3G is impressive. I don't want to get into the weeds on this, but 3G cellphones come with cable modem/DSL bandwidth speeds, embedded GPS functionality and many other advanced features. What manufacturers have done is take these standards and included features of the common PDA into a phone. These phones have become the cancer to the PDA market because most people do not want to carry a phone and PDA when they can combine that functionality into one device. These smartphones can be costly, but nothing worse than a decent PDA.

Of course it's your money and situation that you have to consider, but don't rule out the smartphone when deciding. I think you will be very happy with one.

If you do decide to stick with a PDA you should test the Palm vs Windows operating system to see which you like better.

I do not work for any cellphone provider or manufacturer. I work for the government, so I'm not trying to sell anything. I don't own a smartphone (yet) and really don't know which provider has the best deal.

Good luck.

Joe

27
General Board / Re: How much $$ for books each semester?
« on: January 14, 2005, 12:32:10 PM »
I had heard that you didn't get your list of required books until the orientation week which forced you to buy your books from the bookstore on campus. And you had to buy the books right then and there to prepare for first week assignmetns. Is that true?

As an undergrad I always contacted my professors before the semester started to get the ISBN of the books needed for their class and then ordered the books online. Without fail I saved around 50% buying online instead of using the bookstore.

So is this a pleasant little surprise awaiting us all this August, or do you think the professors would give out ISBN's during the summer so we could order the books online? If we have to wait, that's quite a neat little racket they have there! Maybe I should skip law school and just open up a book store on campus?

28
General Board / Re: looking back, what you would have done to prepare for law school
« on: January 14, 2005, 12:24:11 PM »
Since there seems to be so many of you saying the same thing, I guess I'll just kick back and quit worrying about everything. I've only read LSC and a legal writing book so far, but my reading list for the summer was pretty intense. Thanks everyone for saving me the trouble. I'm sure my wife thanks you too. I guess I'll just spend my summer enjoying the time with my family and making sure all my chores are done around the house.

For a new guy, what does TTT mean? And why is everyone hammering Cooley so bad?

I have another question, are non-ABA schools really that prevalent? Why would you spend the time and money to attend one of these schools if you can't practice law?

29
General Board / Re: Undergrad Final Semester Courses
« on: January 11, 2005, 05:30:12 PM »
I couldn't agree more. This is my last undergrad semester and I am taking a writing course as my final course. No final and the need to hone my writing skills was my motivator. I'm sure I'll appreciate it come August when class starts.

30
General Board / How important is the school you attend?
« on: January 09, 2005, 11:05:19 AM »
Hello all,

I start a p/t program this fall here in Little Rock. I am 18 years into a military career and moving to attend a different school is not an option for me. Please don't get me wrong, I am very pleased with what I've seen and heard about the school here so far. However, it is a Tier 4 school according to USNWR. My question is whether or not having a JD from this school will affect my ability to choose my job upon graduation? If I'm not looking to slave myself out at a large national firm, does the school name matter at all? From the attorney's I've talked to, this school has a good local reputation.

And while I have your attention, what about transferring? In two years I'll be able to retire. I am originally from Oklahoma and plan on moving there to practice law. Should I transfer after two years in the p/t program to a f/t program at OU (if they'll have me) or should I finish what I start here? How important is it to graduate from a law school that's in the state where you want to practice?

Thanks in advance for your help.

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