Now comes my first competition of law school- other than grades.
Mock Trial tryouts are next week. We received our fictional case packets a couple of days ago. I have to write a motion to the court as my entry into the contest, and then on Wednesday evening I will give an opening argument. On Thursday, I cross-examine a witness. If I make it to the final round on Friday, then I perform a closing argument for the opposite party.
It should be interesting- as well as nerve racking. Hopefully, I'll be able to keep my voice and thoughts steady. The judges will be local attorneys, professors, and members of the Mock Trial team.
Even if I don't make the team, it should be a great "thrown into the deep end" experience. I have to go through with this, and I have to get good at it if I'm going to be representing real people with real problems in a couple of years.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
Friday, January 23, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Thinking Like a... Lawyer?
My second semester of law school is off and running. It feels a little different than the first one. All of us have our grades now and know how we stack up- at least for round one. There isn't much time to dwell on our grades, though, and the work is coming fast and furious again.
Things are a bit sad. One of my favorite students from last semester, a highly intelligent and beautiful woman, decided she was not coming back to FSU College of Law. I hate to see her name on the daily attendance sheet with the blank space beside it, but she had good reasons for choosing a different career. Otherwise, attrition from the first semester is low. I believe only one or two other people from my section of over 80 students did not return. Not many people want to drop out of a good law school in this economy, I guess.
Before law school began in August, several people told me that it would change the way I see the world. I wonder if what I am feeling now is what they meant...
I feel sort of blank. The academic subjects are enjoyable, but there is just so much to learn that stopping to become passionate about a certain topic or thinking about how I "feel" about it requires too much time and energy. I'm focused on learning the concepts presented as they come at me, one right after another.
Is this how a lawyer is supposed to feel, think and function? It's not bad, I guess. Perhaps it makes me more rational and objective. Perhaps I am better suited to seeing multiple sides of arguments.
Or maybe the "blank" feeling is just a version of being tired. But on this cold January morning, I'd much rather be at law school at 7:30 am than reporting to some of the other jobs I've held.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
Things are a bit sad. One of my favorite students from last semester, a highly intelligent and beautiful woman, decided she was not coming back to FSU College of Law. I hate to see her name on the daily attendance sheet with the blank space beside it, but she had good reasons for choosing a different career. Otherwise, attrition from the first semester is low. I believe only one or two other people from my section of over 80 students did not return. Not many people want to drop out of a good law school in this economy, I guess.
Before law school began in August, several people told me that it would change the way I see the world. I wonder if what I am feeling now is what they meant...
I feel sort of blank. The academic subjects are enjoyable, but there is just so much to learn that stopping to become passionate about a certain topic or thinking about how I "feel" about it requires too much time and energy. I'm focused on learning the concepts presented as they come at me, one right after another.
Is this how a lawyer is supposed to feel, think and function? It's not bad, I guess. Perhaps it makes me more rational and objective. Perhaps I am better suited to seeing multiple sides of arguments.
Or maybe the "blank" feeling is just a version of being tired. But on this cold January morning, I'd much rather be at law school at 7:30 am than reporting to some of the other jobs I've held.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
Sunday, January 4, 2009
The Talent Here
About a week ago, I watched an interview on C-Span between Brian Lamb and Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Lamb, the founder of C-Span, is perhaps the best interviewer I have ever seen on television. Scalia appeared on "Q&A," a C-Span series. It was a fascinating exchange. Here is the link to the episode: http://www.q-and-a.org/search.aspx?For=scalia&x=9&y=14
Scalia was on the show to discuss his book, Making Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges.
Lamb and Scalia talked about many things, but one of the topics I remember best is Scalia's note of the tremendous amount of talent coming into the profession of law. It is an "excessive proportion" of the talent out there. In his opinion, too many of the best and brightest are making the law their career when they might better serve society in some other capacity.
Scalia said that such a fact was perhaps a sad commentary on how complex the legal system has become in this country. It also showed, he said, that it is worth paying a lot of money to hire the best and brightest minds for legal disputes.
After one semester of law school, I recognize some of what Scalia is talking about. I see with more clarity than in any other academic system just where I'm beginning to stack up in relation to my colleagues and professors.
I won't make sweeping judgements about my potential after only one semester. Law school and a legal career is a marathon, not a one semester sprint. A joke someone told me earlier this year remains prominent in my mind, however: "Students who get As in law school become the professors. Students who get Bs become the judges, and the students who make Cs become the lawyers who make all the money."
I am beginning to sense the enormous complexity of the law, and I see how it can constantly change so that my learning should never stop, even after I earn a Juris Doctor. Being sharp enough to grasp a concept the first time it is presented to you is an enormous advantage, as you simply do not have enough time to repeatedly study it before something new is thrown at you that builds on the previous concept.
Earlier this semester, I attended a luncheon with FSU Law alumni Daryl Parks and Sean Desmond. They both have their own practices in Tallahassee. Both of them emphasized the need for a new lawyer to pick an area of the law and become an expert in it, rather than trying to survive as a Jack of all trades.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
Scalia was on the show to discuss his book, Making Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges.
Lamb and Scalia talked about many things, but one of the topics I remember best is Scalia's note of the tremendous amount of talent coming into the profession of law. It is an "excessive proportion" of the talent out there. In his opinion, too many of the best and brightest are making the law their career when they might better serve society in some other capacity.
Scalia said that such a fact was perhaps a sad commentary on how complex the legal system has become in this country. It also showed, he said, that it is worth paying a lot of money to hire the best and brightest minds for legal disputes.
After one semester of law school, I recognize some of what Scalia is talking about. I see with more clarity than in any other academic system just where I'm beginning to stack up in relation to my colleagues and professors.
I won't make sweeping judgements about my potential after only one semester. Law school and a legal career is a marathon, not a one semester sprint. A joke someone told me earlier this year remains prominent in my mind, however: "Students who get As in law school become the professors. Students who get Bs become the judges, and the students who make Cs become the lawyers who make all the money."
I am beginning to sense the enormous complexity of the law, and I see how it can constantly change so that my learning should never stop, even after I earn a Juris Doctor. Being sharp enough to grasp a concept the first time it is presented to you is an enormous advantage, as you simply do not have enough time to repeatedly study it before something new is thrown at you that builds on the previous concept.
Earlier this semester, I attended a luncheon with FSU Law alumni Daryl Parks and Sean Desmond. They both have their own practices in Tallahassee. Both of them emphasized the need for a new lawyer to pick an area of the law and become an expert in it, rather than trying to survive as a Jack of all trades.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Exam Advice from the Professors
I thought I would use this entry to pass along some exam advice that my class received from a couple of professors...
One instructor told us before the exam to relax, that the exam we were about to take was worth just three hours of credit. We need 88 hours of credit to graduate from law school. In the scheme of things, one exam is not going to greatly impact our lives. We've studied and prepared, he said, but there will be exams where we don't perform as well as we should, and other exams where we get a better grade than we deserved. Our results should even out over the course of three years. There was nothing we were going to do over the next three hours of the exam that would greatly impact our legal career, he said. "Nothing, that is, unless you cheat."
Another professor echoed this advice when she said, at some point over our law school careers, we will probably have to take an exam when we are sick.
I thought both of these were good efforts on the part of the instructors to try and keep things in perspective as the class readied itself for the tests.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
One instructor told us before the exam to relax, that the exam we were about to take was worth just three hours of credit. We need 88 hours of credit to graduate from law school. In the scheme of things, one exam is not going to greatly impact our lives. We've studied and prepared, he said, but there will be exams where we don't perform as well as we should, and other exams where we get a better grade than we deserved. Our results should even out over the course of three years. There was nothing we were going to do over the next three hours of the exam that would greatly impact our legal career, he said. "Nothing, that is, unless you cheat."
Another professor echoed this advice when she said, at some point over our law school careers, we will probably have to take an exam when we are sick.
I thought both of these were good efforts on the part of the instructors to try and keep things in perspective as the class readied itself for the tests.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
Thursday, January 1, 2009
My Changing World
All of my grades from my first semester of law school have now posted. I feel pretty good about them. Given how hard I worked, I would have liked to score higher. I think, however, that my grades establish me as a solid student. In an earlier blog, I wondered if my exam performance would put me at the top of my class, or if I would have to continue to work as hard as I can just to remain average. Based on the first semester, the answer is closer to the latter.
My world is changing yet again. Now that I know a career in law is for me and that I am on my way at a solid school, I feel the need to be more careful. All of a sudden, I have more to lose. FSU College of Law is presenting me with a great opportunity to become successful, and I don't want to blow it. I find myself becoming more reserved and thoughtful in social settings... more careful with the image I am trying to present to others. Hopefully, this does not mean I am becoming pretentious or cliquish. But I feel my value system changing.
This time last year, I was in graduate school at Western Carolina University. Last year was probably the happiest of my life. I had the chance to go back to my alma mater and live life like I wish I had done when I was there as an undergraduate. It was a great year and I had a fantastic time with a lot of new people. But I also knew it was temporary. I couldn't stay in that world for long, cushioned from the responsibilities and pressures of the "real" world.
Law school, on the other hand, is a more serious and competitive environment for me. It is a long term game and more like a job than studying at WCU could ever be. Still, law school is a job that I enjoy. Since I have to choose a path that will enable me and my family to survive and thrive in the "real" world for years to come, a career in the law is at the top of the list. FSU College of Law is showing me that I chose correctly and that I belong here.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
My world is changing yet again. Now that I know a career in law is for me and that I am on my way at a solid school, I feel the need to be more careful. All of a sudden, I have more to lose. FSU College of Law is presenting me with a great opportunity to become successful, and I don't want to blow it. I find myself becoming more reserved and thoughtful in social settings... more careful with the image I am trying to present to others. Hopefully, this does not mean I am becoming pretentious or cliquish. But I feel my value system changing.
This time last year, I was in graduate school at Western Carolina University. Last year was probably the happiest of my life. I had the chance to go back to my alma mater and live life like I wish I had done when I was there as an undergraduate. It was a great year and I had a fantastic time with a lot of new people. But I also knew it was temporary. I couldn't stay in that world for long, cushioned from the responsibilities and pressures of the "real" world.
Law school, on the other hand, is a more serious and competitive environment for me. It is a long term game and more like a job than studying at WCU could ever be. Still, law school is a job that I enjoy. Since I have to choose a path that will enable me and my family to survive and thrive in the "real" world for years to come, a career in the law is at the top of the list. FSU College of Law is showing me that I chose correctly and that I belong here.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
Monday, December 22, 2008
Now We're Talking!
Whoo!
I just got notice of two more grades. I am glad to say that I now have the experience in law school of receiving a grade higher than a "B." I clapped my hands and let out a "H%*# yeah!", which was probably inappropriate since I'm at my parents' house. They promptly asked from the living room, "What did you get?"
Man, this feels good. And it was in a course whose material I considered exceptionally difficult. I really enjoyed the class, though, and I wanted to do well because I can certainly see the relevancy of this material in a field where I'd like to practice.
The other grade was not so hot. I have three grades now, with two to go. My three grades vary widely. This lets me know that, going forward, I'm likely to grasp certain areas of law significantly better than others (at least in relation to my classmates, which is what exam grades are about). I probably won't give an even performance across the board over the next two and a half years, though my effort in each of my classes this semester was fairly even.
My highest grade and my lowest grade kind of even out my mood. It also establishes that I have no idea what to expect for my last two grades.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
I just got notice of two more grades. I am glad to say that I now have the experience in law school of receiving a grade higher than a "B." I clapped my hands and let out a "H%*# yeah!", which was probably inappropriate since I'm at my parents' house. They promptly asked from the living room, "What did you get?"
Man, this feels good. And it was in a course whose material I considered exceptionally difficult. I really enjoyed the class, though, and I wanted to do well because I can certainly see the relevancy of this material in a field where I'd like to practice.
The other grade was not so hot. I have three grades now, with two to go. My three grades vary widely. This lets me know that, going forward, I'm likely to grasp certain areas of law significantly better than others (at least in relation to my classmates, which is what exam grades are about). I probably won't give an even performance across the board over the next two and a half years, though my effort in each of my classes this semester was fairly even.
My highest grade and my lowest grade kind of even out my mood. It also establishes that I have no idea what to expect for my last two grades.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Waiting...
After you complete one semester of law school, you can expect to be held in suspense for weeks while the professors grade the exams.
It's just the way the system is set up. The entire grade for the class rides on the exam, and there were 82 people in my class. One exam was four hours long, so I can understand how it takes the professors a while to go through and rank them.
I wish I had something substantive to tell my friends and family at the Christmas gatherings, but I really can't say how my semester went yet.
One grade has posted. It was an exam I felt pretty good about when I took it. However, just based on this one score, it looks like I'll have to continue to work as hard as I can just to stay with the pack.
That's another thing to guard against: Not getting too high or too low based on one exam. I can't say yet whether my first exam score is par for the course or an anomaly.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
It's just the way the system is set up. The entire grade for the class rides on the exam, and there were 82 people in my class. One exam was four hours long, so I can understand how it takes the professors a while to go through and rank them.
I wish I had something substantive to tell my friends and family at the Christmas gatherings, but I really can't say how my semester went yet.
One grade has posted. It was an exam I felt pretty good about when I took it. However, just based on this one score, it looks like I'll have to continue to work as hard as I can just to stay with the pack.
That's another thing to guard against: Not getting too high or too low based on one exam. I can't say yet whether my first exam score is par for the course or an anomaly.
Until Next Time,
Nathan Marshburn
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