Gonzaga 1L

[aryeal]

I'll give you the rundown on the profs I had last year:

DeWolfe (Torts):  Knows his stuff, I mean really knows his stuff.  His exams are difficult but he has tons of practice exams up on his website.  I didn't appreciate how spoiled we were by the material on his website until class was over.

Vache (Criminal Law):  Policy fanatic.  Don't give him huge dissertations on the rules in exam answers.  Mention the rule and move onto policy arguments.  His classes are pretty free form and he likes creative arguments.

Keller (Contracts):  I love her.  She's a master of the Socratic method, but once you settle in, she's not so scary.  Pay attention to the notes in the case books - she loves the notes.  She gives multiple choice/essay exams.  Her multiple choice questions are tricky but if you've studied carefully, you'll see the "hook" pretty quickly.  She has a lovely opt out system for class participation.

Williams (Civ Pro):  Awesome professor.  Her lectures were by far the best organized.  Her exams are killer.  99% of the students are still typing when they call time. 

Flood (Property):  My least favorite.  Her classes are like watching paint dry.  She basically regurgitates the case book at you (once she figures out what reading she assigned).  Another policy hound.  Also, her exams have quite a few sub-issues.  Get as many as you can quickly because she places a lot of importance on some of her sub-issues.

Because GU is ranked so high in their writing program (in the top 12 nationwide I think), be prepared for your LRW class to suddenly swoop down and take over your life.   

[Angie4Prez]

Thanks Aryeal for the info on the profs.  I meant to thank you earlier but with the start of school fast approaching, and now here, most things got put on the back burner.

I ended up with:

Torts - Daggett
Crim Law - Holland
Contracts - Morrisey
Civ Pro - Williams
Property - Flood
Legal Writing - Bradley

My impressions of them so far are pretty positive.  But it's only the second week so things can change I guess.

Good luck to you this year, and thanks again for all the info.

-Pai

[aryeal]

Paikea, I haven't had any of your profs besides Williams and Flood.  You will enjoy Williams.  She has very prepared lectures and a great sense of humor. Her exams are tough, but they are open book (at least it was last year).  Your rule book is the most important book for the exams.  Highlight the key points in the rules, the places where they "turn", and tab.  She also lets in outlines, so a concise outline as well as a more thorough outline are very helpful. 

I was a overly tough on Flood in my description.  In fact, I seriously considered editing my post.  She's very in tune with property law and will happily answer questions and go into more detail if asked.  I think part of my problem was we were a dead group of students.  Since she doesn't push on the Socratic method my class quickly learned that staying silent usually resulted in her going through the cases herself.  Of course, that's not nearly as helpful or entertaining as having the class participate so I got bored.  I don't know how to avoid the problem without being a gunner, but if you volunteer from time to time, perhaps your other classmates will jump in.

My last tip for survival at GU.  The LRW class will suddenly kick into gear and you'll find yourself overwhelmed.  Get into the habit of reading a little ahead in your other classes as a buffer.  LRW is tough as far as being a time hog, but well worth it.  Most of my classmates worked over the summer and were on par with the 2L interns from other schools.

Good luck! 

Good luck!