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5 Things to Include in Your Law School Class Notes

March 25, 2012 By Alison Monahan 2 Comments

We’ve gotten several questions recently about a very important topic: What should go into your law school class notes?

It’s a great question, for a couple of reasons:

Thinking about how to structure your class notes can help you make sense of the sometimes unfocused Socratic method.
Your class notes are very useful in understanding how your professor thinks about the law (and how he wants you to analyze an exam question).

What Goes in Your Class Notes?

There are five critical things to include in your class notes:

Time Management Tip: Think of Law School Like a Law Job

March 23, 2012 By Lee Burgess 14 Comments

This is the time of year when students come to my office and ask:

Where am I going to find the time to study and create outlines for finals? I have no more time to offer to law school.

Yes, law school is very time-consuming. And all of us in law school (or who have completed law school) can agree that while in law school it feels like you work all the time.

But I am here to pose the question to you: Do you really work all the time?

A Handy Template for Answering “Hard” Law School Exam Questions

March 22, 2012 By Alison Monahan 7 Comments

What’s the first thing most law students do when they get to the a “hard” part of a law school exam? No, not cry (most people do that after the exam). The average law student starts drawing conclusions.

If you think about it dispassionately, this doesn’t make a lot of sense.

Why would you jump right to a conclusion, when you know the analysis is difficult? Um, there’s your answer. If it’s hard to do the analysis, it’s tempting to skip it! (Who really likes doing hard things?)

Why This is a Bad Idea

Writing conclusory answers to hard questions is a bad idea for several reasons:

Where Can You Find Sample Law School Essay Exams?

March 20, 2012 By Lee Burgess Leave a Comment

If you are visiting the Law School Toolbox, it is likely that you want to do better on your law school essay exams. And one of the things we talk about on this site is the importance of practicing writing out exam answers.

Practice is how we learn how to apply the law we learn in law school. And the application of the law is exactly what we do when we are practicing lawyers.

Think about it — a client walks in, tells you her story, and asks your legal opinion as to whether or not she can sue.

How do you know the answer to that? You think about the law and apply it to the fact pattern! So practicing this skill is not just good for preparing for finals, it is important as part of your path to becoming a licensed attorney!

Where Can You Find Practice Materials?

Hopefully we have sold you on the need to practice writing. But with that comes a very common question from students: Where do I find practice materials?

Flashcards or Flowcharts: What’s Best?

March 12, 2012 By Alison Monahan 10 Comments

Law students get lots of advice about study aids. Some people swear by flashcards, others by flowcharts. What’s best?

What’s “Best” is What Works for You

There’s no one “best” option. The question is what works best for YOU.

That being said, flashcards and flowcharts are useful for different purposes.

Avoiding Office Hours? Go, and Get Something Out of It

March 7, 2012 By Lee Burgess Leave a Comment

When I meet with a student who is having academic difficulties (or just not happy with their grades) one of the first questions I ask him/her is, “Do you go to office hours?” Guess what the answer typically is? You guessed it, “No.”

Should you be going to law school office hours? Well, yes! But you shouldn’t just go to office hours — you should go with a plan to get the most out of it. Just going without questions or comments is pretty worthless and likely won’t give you an opportunity to engage the professor.

Blog

What Goes in Your Class Notes?

Why This is a Bad Idea

Where Can You Find Practice Materials?

What’s “Best” is What Works for You

What Are Office Hours Good For?

Want Better Law School Grades?

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