Political Careers and Law School

Over this Christmas break, I had the chance to watch the debate in the U.S. Senate over health care reform. Many if not most of the senators are also lawyers.

Of the numerous careers for which law school prepares you, the path to political office is one of the most brightly lit by a legal education.

As a student here at Florida State Law, I am struck by just how easy it would be to step into the political arena. I grew up in rural North Carolina surrounded by tobacco fields and small evangelical churches. Though Tallahassee is also a small Southern city, the people I meet at the law school are decidedly different than those with whom I grew up. Of course I will not mention names, but it is fascinating to attend law school with the children of U.S. congressmen and large company CEOs. Their outlook on life and the way they talk about the world is enlightening and useful. I learn a lot from them.

Hopefully, I do not sound like I am putting down people from rural North Carolina or rural America. I went to high school there with students that were much, much smarter than me. One of my best friends from high school attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology after missing just one question on the math section of the SAT. Another went to the University of North Carolina as a Morehead scholar, and another to the U.S. Naval Academy. It is just that here at Florida State Law, there are about 700 students. I've never been around this many ambitious and intelligent people- many who already have a leg up in society- with an eye toward making their mark in government and business.

These are people who will run the government and businesses in Florida and perhaps the United States in the years to come. Attending school with them while at the same time learning how the law works in this country is a bit like Dorothy peaking behind the curtain to see how the Wizard actually runs Oz. It is an enormous advantage and opportunity for one wishing to start a career in politics.

You can almost stumble into it. Personally, I was asked last summer if I would be interested in working with a candidate for one of the highest offices in the state. I never would have met the candidate if I had decided not to attend law school and Florida State Law. There are all sorts of opportunities for active roles in campaigns and causes at the law school.

So, law school is a great platform for those wishing to enter politics. . . Actually succeeding at politics is a completely different game, though, and one for which I really do not have much advice and absolutely no experience. I respect politicians, no matter what their affiliation. To put yourself out there for public scrutiny takes great courage. You have to be very smart and calculating in what you say and do. It is an easy thing to be friendly to people, but winning at politics takes far more skills than just being friendly.

For those desiring to enter politics in Florida, I would definitely recommend Florida State Law, but perhaps you should do something else right after graduation from college. Get some "real world" experience, one way or the other. Learn from firsthand observation what everyday people have to do to survive in our society. If you go straight from high school to college to law school to political office or a political staff, then that is a pretty insulated path. There is a lot about the human condition you will miss on that narrow of a path.

But the more you understand about all types of people, not just those who send their lobbyists to you as an elected official, the better leader you will be.

Universal Health Care Now,

Nathan Marshburn

A New Hope

This blog is supposed to be about law school.

Today, however, I want to acknowledge the amazing effort of the U.S. Senate to accomplish health care reform.

A bill passed today which, if it becomes law, will represent quite possibly the most important change in domestic policy since I was born. I hope that I am not exaggerating.

Thank you to President Obama, Senator Bill Nelson of Florida, to Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, Senator Max Baucus of Montana, Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, the late Senator Ted Kennedy, and the others of the 60 senators who voted "Yes" today to make this happen.

The bill is not perfect, and the process to get there was messy at times. But the hope and better lives it will bring to Americans far outweighs the flaws.

I was surprised that at least some Republicans did not join in this effort in the Senate. Their objection that it will add debt to the current deficit seems odd to me when the current health care system is literally bankrupting American families every day. People die in this country because they can not afford health care. If that does not motivate you to act-- well then, I'm not sure what to say. Exactly whose interests are you representing?

Health care is an inalienable right. It is not a privilege for the wealthy. This is a moral issue, and it's not even a close one.

But today is a new day. Frankly, I am amazed that we have gotten this far. In my entire life, I have never seen our government working for the people like it is doing right now.

So, to our leaders: Keep pushing! We are almost there!

Hurray for the Senate!

Nathan Marshburn

Racing the Monster

Though exams during my first year of law school were more stressful than they are this semester, the past couple of weeks have still been hectic enough to make me appreciate the runs I go on around Alumni Village, the university-owned complex where I live.

During the evenings, the Tallahassee Star Metro buses come inside the complex to drop off residents. The buses on the 9:20 pm run and the last run, the 10 pm one, are usually pretty empty. The bus drivers speed around the two-mile loop faster than they should, eager to get back to the station and end their shift.

If I am out doing my jogs at this time of night, I can hear the bus coming. Its engine roars at varying decibels as it negotiates curves and speed bumps. The hiss of its brakes I can hear from almost anywhere in the Village on a calm and still night.

When I hear the bus coming, I pick up the pace of my run. If I am close enough to the finish and the bus is visible behind me, I go into an all-out sprint. The driver probably thinks that I am strange, to see some guy running full throttle down the street in front of him.

But I don't like to be passed by the bus, and for two reasons. The first is that I have a bus to blame, I believe, for getting sick one of the worst times I have ever been sick in my life.

When I lived in Las Vegas, I would go for runs up Paradise Road, which is parallel to "The Strip" or Las Vegas Boulevard. I ran past the Hilton Hotel and Casino, with its huge electronic advertisement for Barry Manilow, past the Sands Convention Center, until I came to the near convergence of The Strip and Paradise Road at the Sahara Casino. If I jogged south on Paradise Road rather than north, I'd take a right on Flamingo Road, and run to the Bellagio and back.

On one such run in Vegas, a huge bus passed me and blasted an incredible amount of exhaust into my face. I felt particles go into my nose and down my throat. When I got back from my run, I could already feel my throat beginning to tighten and hurt. I caught a fever, lost my voice, and it put me out of action for a few days.

That was quite a scary time, to be sick like that. I had no family in Vegas- no family west of Knoxville, Tennessee for that matter- and no one cared about me out there. Except for my landlord and the coworkers at the car dealership where I worked, no one even knew I existed in that city.

So now, when these Star Tallahassee Metro buses pass me, I can smell that same exhaust, and I try to avoid breathing it.

The second reason is less serious. I make it a game to not let the bus pass me, to make me run faster. When I was a kid, I saw a movie called Duel. It was a made for television movie from the 1970s, but it was Steven Spielberg's first major work as a director (even before he did Jaws). It was a well-made film, better than most of the stuff that is in theaters now (You can see the trailer for the movie at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MtAMc4i8OA, or watch the whole thing at http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5370479393460637420#).

The film is about a salesman, driving alone across the desert in his small car, when for some reason he is targeted by a homicidal truck driver. The brilliance of the movie is that Spielberg makes the truck itself the character, not the driver. In fact, neither the audience nor the salesman ever sees the driver or learns his identity.

So, when I see the headlights of the bus flying around a curve in Alumni Village, when I hear the angry roar of its engine and the hiss of its brakes, I imagine that I am in a duel with it. Can I make it to the finish line and get off the road before it passes me and blasts exhaust into my face?

It's a neat little distraction from the stress of exams.

Universal Health Care Now,

Nathan Marshburn

Advice from a Professor

On the last day of class, one of my professors took the final ten minutes of his class to give us some advice. He is a successful lawyer, a senior partner at a firm with a good reputation in Florida, and he is often in the courtroom. He only teaches at the law school as an adjunct. The professor called this talk, "Things I Wish Someone had Told Me When I was in Law School." This little lecture was among the most valuable I have received in law school. In no particular order, here are some of his tips:

- Do not let winning and losing in the courtroom define who you are.

-You have to be willing to lose. He has personally lost many cases, and it is just part of being a good litigator. Do not believe any lawyer who tells you they have never lost a case. If it is true, then they haven't tried many cases.

- Become active in your local bar association. Get to know the lawyers you litigate against and the judges you appear before. Try not to spend all of your time behind your desk, doing research at the office. Judges and opposing lawyers will be more willing to work with you if they know who you are.

-Save your notes from your law school classes. You may be surprised at how useful these are once you begin practicing.

- Take advantage of Continuing Legal Education (CLE) materials and seminars. The end of law school is not the end of your legal education. Listen to the CLE CDs in your car. He still does this himself, after being in practice many years.

- Casual Fridays. . . Do not do them. You may think you can dress casually on Friday because you don't have anything on your schedule. But you do not control your schedule. An urgent situation will come up where a client needs to see you that day, and then you will have to go home and change. Invest in a professional wardrobe. Look the part of a lawyer, and it will make a difference to your clients and fellow lawyers.

- In dealing with lawyers on the other side during litigation, be courteous and professional. But do not be a wimp. The goal is to win your case while making everyone like you. Sometimes this is not possible, but that should be your goal. Playing hardball 100% of the time is not as productive as being courteous.

- Treat the partners of the law firm just like you would treat a client.

- Always remember that the loyalty of partners is to the other partners in the law firm. Their goal is to make money. What you say to one partner will make it to all of them. Never think that you are "off the clock" with a partner, even if you are on a plane ride or at a social with them.

Universal Health Care Now,

Nathan Marshburn

Powder Puff Football

Well, for the first time in my life I was a cheerleader at a football game. Luckily, the resources were not in place to dress me in drag with a wig and a skirt. Instead, my uniform consisted of Adidas running pants, a Florida State t-shirt, a Florida State baseball cap turned around backwards on my head, and a stripe of garnet and gold face paint on each cheek.

On Wednesday of this past week, the women of the law school paired off against each other in a powder puff flag football game on the green just outside the law school rotunda. The teams were the Florida State Seminoles versus the University of Florida Gators. Most of the girls playing the game went to those respective schools for their undergraduate years (there are actually far more students from the University of Florida enrolled at the law school than from any other institution). However, it was a "pledge your allegiance" game, so others, like me, also participated. The coach for the Gators played football for Stanford, and the star quarterback for the 'Noles went to a small Baptist school in Arkansas.

I was surprised at how smoothly everything went. The Seminoles won the game, 25-0. A few girls complained about jammed fingers, but only one received a more serious injury with a busted nose.

What was most impressive was the spirit people showed. Each team had matching uniforms. At the beginning of the game, a student dressed as a Seminole rode out on a stick horse and threw a toy spear into the ground while the Florida State fight song played on speakers. A former president of the university came out and watched the game, sitting in a chair on a porch in a suit and bow-tie. Another professor wore a Florida Gators hat but a t-shirt that read "Charlie Ward for Heisman Trophy."

At the two minute warning before the end of the game, the coaches for Florida State lit up cigars, and when the final whistle sounded, the winning girls got sprayed with the usual championship celebratory beverage.

"The LitiGators," an organization in the law school for students who went to the University of Florida, organized the event with some help from the Student Bar Association. Afterwards, they served food and drinks.

During the game, the cheerleading coach tried to talk me into doing some basket tosses with the others, but I told her that I was not signing a waiver and my feet were not leaving the ground. I can see the headlines now: "Law Student Breaks Neck at Powder Puff Football Game." But I think I did a good job of cheering, anyway. I knew almost all of the players by name, and shouted my encouragement.

After it was over, I sat down with some of my friends on the steps of the law school rotunda. The sun was going down, and I saw a flock of birds off in the distance land on top of the executive building where the Governor of Florida works. The weather felt warm, and I made note that I was wearing a short sleeve t-shirt on November 19th.

"This weather is fantastic, " I said. "Imagine, what if we were in law school in Minnesota right now."

One of my friends replied, "Yes, I know. I am going to live my whole life in Florida."

We sat there for a few minutes more, enjoying being outside and watching the sun reflect off of the glass on the tall buildings of downtown Tallahassee.

It was a fun time with a good crowd, and hopefully the event will continue in future years.

Universal Health Care Now,

Nathan Marshburn

The Moot Court Final Four Competition

On Thursday of this week, I had the privilege of attending the "Moot Court Final Four Competition" at the Florida Supreme Court.

The event featured four of my classmates, Tiffany Roddenberry, Thomas Philpot, Brian Bohm and Lauren Davis as they argued a fictitious case on appeal before the Justices of the Florida Supreme Court (I realize that I have just created a Google "hit" on the web for these four students, and I hope they won't mind if they ever read this. If they do, they can Facebook message me and I will take it down).

For those who do not know, Moot Court is a prestigious extra-curricular activity in law schools. After graduation, it is called appellate law. Most people on the street are familiar with trial law- those cases that take place in front of a jury. Moot Court, however, involves the potential next step after the trial has come to a close and the jury has rendered a verdict. Moot Court is the appeal.

For example, what if you lost your case, but you think the judge made an error during the trial? Perhaps he/she kept out evidence that was essential to your case. Perhaps he interpreted the law incorrectly. The recourse is for you to appeal to the next highest court. Appellate law is a small niche in the overall scheme of what lawyers do (often the lawyers handling a case on appeal are not the same ones who argued it during the trial), but it takes highly intelligent people capable of writing well, speaking well, and thinking on their feet. In a regular trial, the lawyer argues before a jury and has to deal with "objections" from the other lawyer. But in appellate law and Moot Court, there is no jury. The lawyer submits a writing or "brief" beforehand to the appeals court, then stands at a podium before the panel of judges or justices and argues the issues in the brief, while at irregular intervals being interrupted by the justices with tough questions. Arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court are done by the country's best appellate lawyers.

The four students who argued before the Florida Supreme Court on Thursday were the top four finishers from last year's Moot Court tryouts at Florida State Law (I tried out for the Moot Court Team myself last year, but only advanced past the first round). As a "reward" for being the top four, they were given the chance to work hard all this semester getting ready for a competition amongst themselves-- to argue before the Florida Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court building is about a five minute walk from the law school in downtown Tallahassee. I went to the chamber of the Florida Supreme Court a couple of times this summer while working with the Summer for Undergraduates Program. When I walked into the large ornate room, full of oil canvas paintings, plush carpet, and a high ceiling on Thursday, I tried to put myself in the shoes of these students. My blood pressure immediately went up and I felt a catch in my throat.

Though I certainly would not have turned down the opportunity to do this competition myself if I had been asked, I cannot say that I envied these students. The courtroom was full with interested onlookers. When the Justices were ready to enter, a man called out in a loud voice, "All rise! Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Hear Ye! The Supreme Court of Florida is now in session! All those having business before this Court draw near, give attention and ye shall be heard! God save the United States, the great state of Florida, and this Honorable Court!"

Intense.

The students were spectacular, and the Justices did not go easy on them. The fictitious case involved an arrest of a man at a routine traffic stop, a possible illegal search of his person, and then perhaps a Sixth Amendment violation of the Constitution when his admission to a cell mate was used to impeach him at trial.

The whole thing lasted about an hour. Lauren Davis won as best advocate. She certainly deserved the award, though I personally think the decision was very close.

I appreciate the hard work and the performances of my fellow students. Emily Whelchel and Jennifer Gutai, two of last year's Final Four participants, obviously did a great job of coaching these four. Mr. M. Stephen Turner, a partner at Broad and Cassel, sponsored the event, and he gave a nice speech at the reception afterwards about what an appellate lawyer goes through and what it takes to be a good appellate lawyer.

This is a great event, and the Moot Court Team at Florida State Law is a great organization. I encourage all of this year's 1Ls to put themselves through the fire of the tryouts and see if appellate law is an area where they can excel.

Universal Health Care Now,

Nathan Marshburn

Turnover

Things were much harder and more intense for me during my first year of law school than right now, in my second year. I trust that I am still studying right, and hopefully my exam grades from this semester will not be an unhappy surprise.

One of the hardest things for me as a 2L is meeting the new 1L students.

Law school, generally speaking, is probably a little colder for a student than undergraduate school. The students in all three classes seemed to have divided into their own cliques, and you really have to put in some effort if you want to break the ice and meet new people.

What also struck me from the beginning of my 2L year is the the disappearing act of the class that graduated in May 2009. They are simply gone. I don't see any of my friends who graduated out at the law school socials anymore. They are spread to all parts of Florida or the country, and have now begun the work of repaying their student loans.

I do not know anyone from Florida State Law who graduated in say, 2006 or 2007 before I arrived. Right now, I am a constant presence in the law school library. But when I (hopefully) graduate in May 2011, I know that I will quickly be forgotten and the library will become the province of new, different students.

It's a little sad, this abrupt turnover in the law school. I'm sure there are many students who appreciate it, though. I know several 3Ls who are ready to graduate, start working, start families, and couldn't care less about meeting new 1L students. I felt that way during my senior year of college. But now that I've had some experience in the "real world," I appreciate school.

I try to keep most of my blog entries positive, and I also try to give advice now and again. I was invited to a 1L's birthday party this weekend, and met some new students there. So, here are some of my own observations about meeting people.

If you want to meet new people in law school, I'll throw out three rules that I use. Rule number one: Be assertive. Don't be afraid to be the first to speak. Don't just look at the person you want to meet and smile. Rule number two: Once you've made the first assertive move, then back off. Let them respond to you. If they do not seem receptive to talking to you, then let it go. Rule number three: Keep speaking to people. If you don't keep acknowledging the new people you've met, your efforts will dissolve and it will become like they never knew you.

Okay, I know this is just common sense and it is nothing that will sell any "self-help" books. But I find that constantly trying to meet new people, to stay interested in what is new, is a healthy habit to have.

***

Hurray for The House! They have passed the landmark "Affordable Health Care for America Act." Now it is on for a tough fight in the Senate. Write your senators (both of them), tell them your health care stories, and how important it is that they pass this bill.

No one should die because they cannot afford health care, and no one should go broke because they get sick.

Universal Health Care Now,

Nathan Marshburn