Hi Friends--
I just wanted to wish you all the merriest of Christmases this year! I hope that you are able to take a break from the books and celebrate the joy of the season.
While I'll personally be on the road for the next couple of weeks, I would be more than happy to take any questions that you might have about criminal law and procedure. Fire away!
Gabe
Friday, December 21, 2007
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Thoughts on Launching a Paralegal Career (Posted by Jenny)
Someone recently asked:
Do you have any advice for those of us who graduated over 10 years ago from paralegal school and have not worked as a paralegal professionally. I realize this is going to be difficult but still want to do my very best. Raising children and then returning to college to get my BA in 2005 is part of the reasons why all this time has passed. Any words of wisdom?
First of all, I would say I am impressed with your commitment and willingness to step out and consider switching careers – a daunting task for anyone at any stage in life! If being a paralegal is what you want to do, then I say go for it! You will have hard work ahead of you (and no doubt those who try and discourage you) but I believe we have been given the gift of life by God and with that the ability to work toward our dreams. Many impossible seeming things become possible with hard work, prayer, and faithfulness.
Some thoughts:
Take CLA exam or Law Course(s)
Since it has been a while since law school I would suggest either taking the CLA exam or doing some law related courses to “brush up” on your knowledge, or both of the above. I suggest this for 2 reasons: 1. although given different levels of recognition depending on what area of the U.S.A you are in, a recent CLA certification will not hurt you by any means – it will show you are up to date on test requirements. 2. Taking a couple of law related courses will refresh your memory and bring you up to date on law changes
Most importantly, you want something to get you in the door for an interview, and this will help (volunteer work helps too! – see below).
Experience, experience experience!!
You will no doubt hear the words “practical experience” many times. Like any job, the most important thing is what you can do or how quick you can learn. There ARE attorneys & paralegals who will teach you how to practice law practically. If you find one of these great people follow them around and soak up everything!!
I don’t know the feasibility of this in regards to your financial situation, but obviously, starting a new career means starting at the bottom in payment terms. I would suggest looking for a volunteer position first (if you can) in a District Attorney office or law firm. I volunteered part time in my local D.A. office for 6 months, and it was time well spent. It also opened doors interview - wise. Experience is experience, whether volunteer or paid.
The ideal situation (if it presents itself and you can afford it) is a part time or full time entry level position with a firm. No matter how clerical the work is, you will learn a great deal by being there. And then be able to take on more responsibility in that firm or use what you’ve learned in the next one you work in.
Interview the Interviewers!
When you interview at firms, scrutinize away! What are the attitudes of the staff that you see? Do they seem stressed / unhappy / enjoying their jobs? What is the attorney that is interviewing you like? How does he appear – kind, stern, laid back, etc.? I am not saying you should be very picky and hard to please about your work environment. There are no perfect work environments, and unless one is just terrible / intolerable, I am not one to condone leaving or job hopping.
What I am saying is: you can tell a great deal about people at a first meeting (by verbal and nonverbal clues) if it looks like something is “fishy” & not above board, or things seem weird (I am speaking of a woman’s intuition here since I am a woman) they probably are.
Just be discerning and don’t feel like you HAVE to take the first offer you get if things don’t seem right. I interviewed at several firms that literally gave me the creeps. And when I walked in the door of the firm I am working for now, I felt like I had come home. Everything that the attorney said confirmed that initial good impression. Things have not been perfect, but I have never regretted coming to work for my 2 attorneys!
OK, a lot of the above sounds a bit like touchy feely stuff, which is NOT how I meant it to sound. Ideally, you will work for a firm where you enjoy (most if not all) your supervising attorneys and fellow staff. But if you find yourself working at a firm with difficult people, hang in there. All experience is valuable.
I hope the above has been helpful. Feel free to contact me by e-mail, fairlady@truevine.net, if you would like to do so. I wish you the best in your pursuit of a paralegal career! Please let me know if there is anything else I can do to help.
Fellow mentors: please weigh in with any comments / advice.
Do you have any advice for those of us who graduated over 10 years ago from paralegal school and have not worked as a paralegal professionally. I realize this is going to be difficult but still want to do my very best. Raising children and then returning to college to get my BA in 2005 is part of the reasons why all this time has passed. Any words of wisdom?
First of all, I would say I am impressed with your commitment and willingness to step out and consider switching careers – a daunting task for anyone at any stage in life! If being a paralegal is what you want to do, then I say go for it! You will have hard work ahead of you (and no doubt those who try and discourage you) but I believe we have been given the gift of life by God and with that the ability to work toward our dreams. Many impossible seeming things become possible with hard work, prayer, and faithfulness.
Some thoughts:
Take CLA exam or Law Course(s)
Since it has been a while since law school I would suggest either taking the CLA exam or doing some law related courses to “brush up” on your knowledge, or both of the above. I suggest this for 2 reasons: 1. although given different levels of recognition depending on what area of the U.S.A you are in, a recent CLA certification will not hurt you by any means – it will show you are up to date on test requirements. 2. Taking a couple of law related courses will refresh your memory and bring you up to date on law changes
Most importantly, you want something to get you in the door for an interview, and this will help (volunteer work helps too! – see below).
Experience, experience experience!!
You will no doubt hear the words “practical experience” many times. Like any job, the most important thing is what you can do or how quick you can learn. There ARE attorneys & paralegals who will teach you how to practice law practically. If you find one of these great people follow them around and soak up everything!!
I don’t know the feasibility of this in regards to your financial situation, but obviously, starting a new career means starting at the bottom in payment terms. I would suggest looking for a volunteer position first (if you can) in a District Attorney office or law firm. I volunteered part time in my local D.A. office for 6 months, and it was time well spent. It also opened doors interview - wise. Experience is experience, whether volunteer or paid.
The ideal situation (if it presents itself and you can afford it) is a part time or full time entry level position with a firm. No matter how clerical the work is, you will learn a great deal by being there. And then be able to take on more responsibility in that firm or use what you’ve learned in the next one you work in.
Interview the Interviewers!
When you interview at firms, scrutinize away! What are the attitudes of the staff that you see? Do they seem stressed / unhappy / enjoying their jobs? What is the attorney that is interviewing you like? How does he appear – kind, stern, laid back, etc.? I am not saying you should be very picky and hard to please about your work environment. There are no perfect work environments, and unless one is just terrible / intolerable, I am not one to condone leaving or job hopping.
What I am saying is: you can tell a great deal about people at a first meeting (by verbal and nonverbal clues) if it looks like something is “fishy” & not above board, or things seem weird (I am speaking of a woman’s intuition here since I am a woman) they probably are.
Just be discerning and don’t feel like you HAVE to take the first offer you get if things don’t seem right. I interviewed at several firms that literally gave me the creeps. And when I walked in the door of the firm I am working for now, I felt like I had come home. Everything that the attorney said confirmed that initial good impression. Things have not been perfect, but I have never regretted coming to work for my 2 attorneys!
OK, a lot of the above sounds a bit like touchy feely stuff, which is NOT how I meant it to sound. Ideally, you will work for a firm where you enjoy (most if not all) your supervising attorneys and fellow staff. But if you find yourself working at a firm with difficult people, hang in there. All experience is valuable.
I hope the above has been helpful. Feel free to contact me by e-mail, fairlady@truevine.net, if you would like to do so. I wish you the best in your pursuit of a paralegal career! Please let me know if there is anything else I can do to help.
Fellow mentors: please weigh in with any comments / advice.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Intro to Criminal Law and Procedure. (Posted by Gabe)
Hi Friends--
I apologize for the long delay here! But I am now back in the country and immersing myself completely in studies for the California Bar, which I'll be taking in February.
But all that aside, let's take a look at some basics ideas to help you study these subjects. (And yes, I do mean the plural; though you study Criminal Law along with Criminal Procedure in this course, they really are very different, so it may help you to think of them as two separate courses.)
Criminal Law - All About the Elements
The key to criminal law is to think elements. Every crime consists of these sub-parts that must be proven by the prosecutor before the jury will return a guilty verdict. They're really building blocks--and without any one of them, the whole crime will fall.
So know your elements. If you know them cold, you have a roadmap through each crime and a checklist of all the issues that you can be tested on in that crime. So memorize the definitions; they have all of the elements.
Criminal Law - Pitfalls to Avoid
Mens Rea
There are also a couple potential pitfalls that I want to warn you about. The first is mens rea. You already know that different crimes have different required mental states, but be sure you know the exact mental state required for each crime.
Sometimes that is easy. For instance, you know that burglary is a specific intent crime, and what that means is easy. You have to have a specific intent to commit a felony in the structure you broke into. Now, if you argue that a "general intent to break and enter" is enough for burglary, you will hurt your grades badly, but with a little study you should certainly not have that problem!
But sometimes it is a little more tough, because sometimes the same mens rea can mean different things. Take "malice." Malice is the mens rea for murder, mayhem, and arson, along with a couple of others, and it means something different for each of these. The Felony Murder Rule, for example, can give you malice for murder, but there is no such thing as the "felony arson rule." So every time you see a malice crime, make sure you know exactly what malice means.
Defenses
Don't get yourself in the rut of just thinking like a prosecutor when you see a criminal law fact pattern! That can be easy, as you study the elements of each crime, but remember, there's another side. So don't forget to think about defenses every time you look at a criminal law hypo.
Criminal Procedure - Going to the Source
Criminal procedure is really little more than an extension of Constitutional Law, focusing on the specific procedural rights given to accused persons in the Bill of Rights. There are lots of them, and many of them are familiar to even the non-legally trained in this nation. We've all heard of the prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment, for instance, and we all know the "You have the right to remain silent..." spiel used by both real and actor police officers every day.
But do not let that familiarity fool you! The layman's knowledge of criminal procedure is often inaccurate and always incomplete. Unless you go to the source, and know how the Supreme Court has treated that source in real-life situations, you will not have the knowledge that you need.
It is on that basis that I would advise you to memorize the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th amendments to the Constitution. That's the source, and the better you know that source the better you can apply it to fact patterns.
Sometimes, though, the source can get confused. For instance, while we've all heard the Miranda warnings: "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to be speak to an attorney, and to have an attorney present during any questioning. If you cannot afford a lawyer, one will be provided for you at government expense." But do you know where they come from? If you read the Constitution, you can't find that list anywhere. The Court used a (the 5th Amendment privilege against self-incrimination, the 6th Amendment right to a lawyer) to come to this conclusion. And while Miranda has been criticized heavily, it is still good law!
One other source question is in the right to counsel. It only appears once in the Constitution, in the 6th Amendment. BUT BE CAREFUL. The Supreme Court has also recognized a 5th Amendment (substantive due process) right to counsel--and it is different in many ways than the 6th Amendment right to counsel! So be sure you study that one carefully.
Criminal Procedure - Breaking it Down
The nice thing about CrimPro is that it can only come up in very limited circumstances, and those circumstances have factual "triggers" that you should use to alert you to the particular right that is being tested.
If you see homes or automobiles, for instance, look for 4th Amendment issues.
If you see arrests, interrogations, and confessions, think 5th Amendment and Miranda (and don't forget both types of the right to counsel).
If you see trials, pleas, or post-conviction actions, make sure you think about the 6th and 8th Amendments.
A Conclusion
Be sure to study carefully, and your questions are most welcome. Feel free to e-mail me!
I apologize for the long delay here! But I am now back in the country and immersing myself completely in studies for the California Bar, which I'll be taking in February.
But all that aside, let's take a look at some basics ideas to help you study these subjects. (And yes, I do mean the plural; though you study Criminal Law along with Criminal Procedure in this course, they really are very different, so it may help you to think of them as two separate courses.)
Criminal Law - All About the Elements
The key to criminal law is to think elements. Every crime consists of these sub-parts that must be proven by the prosecutor before the jury will return a guilty verdict. They're really building blocks--and without any one of them, the whole crime will fall.
So know your elements. If you know them cold, you have a roadmap through each crime and a checklist of all the issues that you can be tested on in that crime. So memorize the definitions; they have all of the elements.
Criminal Law - Pitfalls to Avoid
Mens Rea
There are also a couple potential pitfalls that I want to warn you about. The first is mens rea. You already know that different crimes have different required mental states, but be sure you know the exact mental state required for each crime.
Sometimes that is easy. For instance, you know that burglary is a specific intent crime, and what that means is easy. You have to have a specific intent to commit a felony in the structure you broke into. Now, if you argue that a "general intent to break and enter" is enough for burglary, you will hurt your grades badly, but with a little study you should certainly not have that problem!
But sometimes it is a little more tough, because sometimes the same mens rea can mean different things. Take "malice." Malice is the mens rea for murder, mayhem, and arson, along with a couple of others, and it means something different for each of these. The Felony Murder Rule, for example, can give you malice for murder, but there is no such thing as the "felony arson rule." So every time you see a malice crime, make sure you know exactly what malice means.
Defenses
Don't get yourself in the rut of just thinking like a prosecutor when you see a criminal law fact pattern! That can be easy, as you study the elements of each crime, but remember, there's another side. So don't forget to think about defenses every time you look at a criminal law hypo.
Criminal Procedure - Going to the Source
Criminal procedure is really little more than an extension of Constitutional Law, focusing on the specific procedural rights given to accused persons in the Bill of Rights. There are lots of them, and many of them are familiar to even the non-legally trained in this nation. We've all heard of the prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment, for instance, and we all know the "You have the right to remain silent..." spiel used by both real and actor police officers every day.
But do not let that familiarity fool you! The layman's knowledge of criminal procedure is often inaccurate and always incomplete. Unless you go to the source, and know how the Supreme Court has treated that source in real-life situations, you will not have the knowledge that you need.
It is on that basis that I would advise you to memorize the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th amendments to the Constitution. That's the source, and the better you know that source the better you can apply it to fact patterns.
Sometimes, though, the source can get confused. For instance, while we've all heard the Miranda warnings: "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to be speak to an attorney, and to have an attorney present during any questioning. If you cannot afford a lawyer, one will be provided for you at government expense." But do you know where they come from? If you read the Constitution, you can't find that list anywhere. The Court used a (the 5th Amendment privilege against self-incrimination, the 6th Amendment right to a lawyer) to come to this conclusion. And while Miranda has been criticized heavily, it is still good law!
One other source question is in the right to counsel. It only appears once in the Constitution, in the 6th Amendment. BUT BE CAREFUL. The Supreme Court has also recognized a 5th Amendment (substantive due process) right to counsel--and it is different in many ways than the 6th Amendment right to counsel! So be sure you study that one carefully.
Criminal Procedure - Breaking it Down
The nice thing about CrimPro is that it can only come up in very limited circumstances, and those circumstances have factual "triggers" that you should use to alert you to the particular right that is being tested.
If you see homes or automobiles, for instance, look for 4th Amendment issues.
If you see arrests, interrogations, and confessions, think 5th Amendment and Miranda (and don't forget both types of the right to counsel).
If you see trials, pleas, or post-conviction actions, make sure you think about the 6th and 8th Amendments.
A Conclusion
Be sure to study carefully, and your questions are most welcome. Feel free to e-mail me!
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Welcome to the 2nd Quarter! (Posted by Jenny)
Hello everyone! I hope you had a great break and spent it doing lots of fun things unrelated to law school!:) I also hope you are ready to hit the books again for the 2nd quarter.:)
Just wanted to drop you a quick note and let you know who the mentors will be for the 2nd quarter courses:
Gabe Waddell - Criminal Law & Procedure
Steven Sanderson - Real Estate Transactions
Alex Mansfield - Legal Philosophy & Reasoning
Jenny Harris - Basic Principles of Counseling
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and we look forward to hearing from you!
Just wanted to drop you a quick note and let you know who the mentors will be for the 2nd quarter courses:
Gabe Waddell - Criminal Law & Procedure
Steven Sanderson - Real Estate Transactions
Alex Mansfield - Legal Philosophy & Reasoning
Jenny Harris - Basic Principles of Counseling
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and we look forward to hearing from you!
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Contract Drafting Assignment (Posted by Gabe)
Hello Friends!
I hope that your studies are coming along well. I apologize that I have not updated this blog lately; having just finished up my JD studies, I'm hoping to change that. Please feel free to e-mail any questions that you may have!
In the meantime, a classmate asked the following question about the contracts drafting assignment:
I would recommend, though, that you take the time to make the contract look the best it can, which may involve pretending to have certain facts. I'd recommend that you go ahead and add "facts" that would add to the reality of the assignment without changing the facts. If you add your state of residence as the place where the transaction occurs, and put in fictitious addresses, I think that would add to the reality of the assignment.
But don't add facts that would change the terms of the contract itself. For instance, adding warranties that aren't in your facts could change the terms of the contract--don't do that.
As a final blog note, send me your website URL if you would like to be listed in the OBCL paralegal blogroll on the right.
More to come soon. Fire your questions away if we can help with finals prep!
I hope that your studies are coming along well. I apologize that I have not updated this blog lately; having just finished up my JD studies, I'm hoping to change that. Please feel free to e-mail any questions that you may have!
In the meantime, a classmate asked the following question about the contracts drafting assignment:
My question involves the drafting assignment for this week's lesson. The assignment itself I understand, however, there are not enough details given to create a whole contract. So my question is, am I supposed to make up the necessary details that have not been given (such as addresses, state in which the transaction takes place, specific details about the vehicle in question - such as year, miles,etc. for description of consideration, whether or not there are any warranties involved, etc.)? Or do I just write a contract that leaves all those details out?Great question, and the most "correct" answer is that either way should work just fine. The Professor knows that you don't have those details, and isn't expecting you to "know" them, so if you draft the contract with those details left out you should be fine.
I would recommend, though, that you take the time to make the contract look the best it can, which may involve pretending to have certain facts. I'd recommend that you go ahead and add "facts" that would add to the reality of the assignment without changing the facts. If you add your state of residence as the place where the transaction occurs, and put in fictitious addresses, I think that would add to the reality of the assignment.
But don't add facts that would change the terms of the contract itself. For instance, adding warranties that aren't in your facts could change the terms of the contract--don't do that.
As a final blog note, send me your website URL if you would like to be listed in the OBCL paralegal blogroll on the right.
More to come soon. Fire your questions away if we can help with finals prep!
Sunday, October 07, 2007
Mentor Course Assignment Corrections (Posted by Jenny)
Hello everyone!
Well, the mentors became aware recently that the courses in the 1st quarter have been changed somewhat. If Prof. G. and the college was testing us to see if we were on our toes, I think we flunked.:) This should be a lesson to all of you to never assume that just because something has been a certain way for several years, doesn't mean it can't change suddenly!:) Here is a corrected breakdown for this quarter:
Gabe - contracts
Steven - torts
Jenny - family law
Alex - common law jurisprudence
That said, I hope your 7th week of coursework is off to a great start and I am looking forward to working with you during the last weeks of this quarter and throughout the rest of the year. I hope you will not hesitate to contact me at any time. My phone line and e-mail are always available to you. I am NOT here just to answer questions about the particular course I am assigned to help with - you are welcome to use me for general encouragement, to pray for you, - in short, support you in whatever way I can during your time in Oak Brook.
To tell you a little about me, I live in the great state of Texas in the Dallas / Fort Worth area. I work for a law firm that specializes in civil and criminal law. I currently work primarily for the criminal defense attorney and it is, needless to say, never boring.:) No matter whether a person is guilty or not, the law of our land guarantees them a fair trial / their day in court. If you were accused of doing something, you would want someone like my supervising attorney, Mr. Brent Bowen, to be there to represent you. He is a wonderful attorney & a great man. May his tribe increase!
I also currently serve on the Alumni Association Board as Paralegal Representative. You will begin receiving the e-mails I send out to the paralegals (even though you aren't alumni yet) so you can stay informed on what is happening, give me your feedback, and take advantage of as much as you can while you are still a student. I'll explain more about all that later.
I am planning on giving each of you a call sometime in the next couple of weeks (before finals prep hits and you don't answer the phone:) to say hello & introduce myself, answer questions, explain my job as paralegal rep and how that relates to you, etc. I look forward to speaking with each of you for a few minutes. If I miss you for some reason, please call me back!
Happy studying & talk to you soon!
Well, the mentors became aware recently that the courses in the 1st quarter have been changed somewhat. If Prof. G. and the college was testing us to see if we were on our toes, I think we flunked.:) This should be a lesson to all of you to never assume that just because something has been a certain way for several years, doesn't mean it can't change suddenly!:) Here is a corrected breakdown for this quarter:
Gabe - contracts
Steven - torts
Jenny - family law
Alex - common law jurisprudence
That said, I hope your 7th week of coursework is off to a great start and I am looking forward to working with you during the last weeks of this quarter and throughout the rest of the year. I hope you will not hesitate to contact me at any time. My phone line and e-mail are always available to you. I am NOT here just to answer questions about the particular course I am assigned to help with - you are welcome to use me for general encouragement, to pray for you, - in short, support you in whatever way I can during your time in Oak Brook.
To tell you a little about me, I live in the great state of Texas in the Dallas / Fort Worth area. I work for a law firm that specializes in civil and criminal law. I currently work primarily for the criminal defense attorney and it is, needless to say, never boring.:) No matter whether a person is guilty or not, the law of our land guarantees them a fair trial / their day in court. If you were accused of doing something, you would want someone like my supervising attorney, Mr. Brent Bowen, to be there to represent you. He is a wonderful attorney & a great man. May his tribe increase!
I also currently serve on the Alumni Association Board as Paralegal Representative. You will begin receiving the e-mails I send out to the paralegals (even though you aren't alumni yet) so you can stay informed on what is happening, give me your feedback, and take advantage of as much as you can while you are still a student. I'll explain more about all that later.
I am planning on giving each of you a call sometime in the next couple of weeks (before finals prep hits and you don't answer the phone:) to say hello & introduce myself, answer questions, explain my job as paralegal rep and how that relates to you, etc. I look forward to speaking with each of you for a few minutes. If I miss you for some reason, please call me back!
Happy studying & talk to you soon!
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Welcome, P07B! (Posted by Gabe)
Welcome to the OBCL Paralegal Program! Whether you are here because you want to practice as a paralegal, want to use this as a stepping stone to something else, or just want to increase your legal knowledge, I hope that you are excited about what the next year will hold.
This blog and the people behind it are here to help you be as successful as possible through this course. All four of us have graduated the paralegal program and applied its knowledge in our own respective careers. Even though we have all used the paralegal program as a foundation, our different paths reflect the amazing possibilities that this course can open up for you--in law and elsewhere.
This blog also has the goal of connecting paralegal students and graduates into a comprehensive network that we can use to assist each other. If you have a website, please e-mail me and I will add you to the blogroll in the sidebar.
I would encourage you to ask questions of the mentors, and leave comments here on the blog, as you plow ahead through the paralegal program. We will reply to you, and post answers to those questions here for the benefit of all the students. Don't worry; we won't put your names up here without your permission or anything like that, so ask away!
You will get to know all of us throughout the year, and I will let each mentor introduce themselves as they see fit. To let you know a little bit about me, I graduated with the P01B class (way back in the dark ages!) and am about a month from being finished with my OBCL Juris Doctor studies. I'm in my third year of serving as the Criminal Law Teaching Assistant for the OBCL JD program. I do a some legal work here in Charleston, SC, but primarily I am in the non-profit world, where I direct Remember, a ministry to the widows and orphans of martyrs worldwide. If you would like to know more about me, feel free to visit my personal blog.
Here is the mentor breakdown for the first quarter:
Looking forward to working with you!
This blog and the people behind it are here to help you be as successful as possible through this course. All four of us have graduated the paralegal program and applied its knowledge in our own respective careers. Even though we have all used the paralegal program as a foundation, our different paths reflect the amazing possibilities that this course can open up for you--in law and elsewhere.
This blog also has the goal of connecting paralegal students and graduates into a comprehensive network that we can use to assist each other. If you have a website, please e-mail me and I will add you to the blogroll in the sidebar.
I would encourage you to ask questions of the mentors, and leave comments here on the blog, as you plow ahead through the paralegal program. We will reply to you, and post answers to those questions here for the benefit of all the students. Don't worry; we won't put your names up here without your permission or anything like that, so ask away!
You will get to know all of us throughout the year, and I will let each mentor introduce themselves as they see fit. To let you know a little bit about me, I graduated with the P01B class (way back in the dark ages!) and am about a month from being finished with my OBCL Juris Doctor studies. I'm in my third year of serving as the Criminal Law Teaching Assistant for the OBCL JD program. I do a some legal work here in Charleston, SC, but primarily I am in the non-profit world, where I direct Remember, a ministry to the widows and orphans of martyrs worldwide. If you would like to know more about me, feel free to visit my personal blog.
Here is the mentor breakdown for the first quarter:
Jenny - Legal Philosophy and ReasoningYou should have contact information for us in your letter from Professor Gundlach. If you don't, leave a comment and I will make sure you know how to get your questions to the right mentor.
Alex - Basic Principles of Counseling
Steven - Torts
Gabe - Contracts
Looking forward to working with you!
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Apology (posted by Steven)
Alrighty everyone. I need to apologize for not posting anything further. I was confused as to the schedule as they have revised the program since I took it. It was my error in not confirming the schedule with the calendar Jenny sent me. I've been extremely busy with my new job, friends, relationships, studying, and everything just blew me away. I apologize.
I trust that you all did well on the exams. Good luck on your future plans, be they academic or career. I know that the skills and mental processes you have learned this past year will serve you well for whatever you do.
If anyone has any questions or wishes to discuss anything, please do not hesitate to contact me. I stand available.
Sincerely,
Steven Sanderson
I trust that you all did well on the exams. Good luck on your future plans, be they academic or career. I know that the skills and mental processes you have learned this past year will serve you well for whatever you do.
If anyone has any questions or wishes to discuss anything, please do not hesitate to contact me. I stand available.
Sincerely,
Steven Sanderson
Friday, August 03, 2007
The Limits of Training. (Posted by Gabe)
Today I got a dose of the limits of training, when it comes to applying that training in real life. I posted about it over on my blog, and you can read it here.
There's certainly something to be said for practical experience--if any of you have the chance to get that experience while you are in the midst of this program, I would certainly encourage you to do so.
There's certainly something to be said for practical experience--if any of you have the chance to get that experience while you are in the midst of this program, I would certainly encourage you to do so.
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Thoughts from Diplomacy. (Posted by Gabe)
Friends, I'm feeling your pain. As you are getting your feet wet in the world of legal writing, I am slogging (with already wet feet) towards accomplishing the biggest legal writing project I've ever tried. My Senior Seminar Paper, in its final state, will be between 30 and 50 pages. Right now it is at a couple pages of notes, a bunch of research, and a mind full of jumbled thoughts--thus the pain.
In my research for my particular topic, though, I read a book called "Arts of Power," discussing diplomacy in general. In the section on the skills of the diplomat, I could not help but see the parallel between diplomatic skills and the skills of legal writing. I thought I'd share those similarities with you.
"Ambassadors represent their chief of state and are empowered to speak authoritatively for their chief of government."
For your lawyer, this is important. For you, as a paralegal, it is especially important. Lawyers don't speak for themselves when they engage in legal writing--they must speak for the client. The lawyer is empowered to represent the client, and to speak authoritatively for that client, so the lawyer had better know what the client wants.
The paralegal must also speak for the client to be effective. What is even more important, though, is that the paralegal's writing must speak for the lawyer, too! The effective paralegal must have a solid grasp on the client's goals, and the lawyer's means to that goal.
The lawyer is the agent of the client, and the paralegal is the agent of the lawyer. As "Arts of Power" says, "The role of the agent requires the subordination of personal interests to those of the principal being represented."
"An agent must wield language with uncommon exactitude."
Even the slightest misstatement can wreak amazing havoc. Even worse, if you are unclear and give the wrong impression, the same thing can happen. Legal writing has to be both clear and accurate.
Even though the lawyer will actually sign the papers, these are often the job of the paralegal. If you draft the paper, you must do so with a full knowledge of the facts and the legal arguments that you are making. If you edit the paper, you must do so word by word, sentence by sentence, to verify that it is saying what you are trying to say. If you don't, you run the risk of major headaches later on.
"Diplomatic dialogue consists of exchanges of assessments, estimates, apprehension, preferences, options, intentions, commitments, reassurances, and verifications."
When I read these steps, I could not believe just how much they mirrored the legal process. From start to finish--from the initial asset check to determine whether a case is worth it, to the settlement negotiations or trial. The lawyer relies on the information from the paralegal to assess the case's value, estimate values, apprehend the opponents arguments, find the client's preferences, evaluate legal options, create plans and intentions, commit to a course of action, reassure the client and the opposing parties, and finally verify how everything will conclude.
The list could go on, but these nine steps are also vital in legal writing. Even as you begin your assignments, go through these steps consciously, from start to finish, and you will be well on your way.
In my research for my particular topic, though, I read a book called "Arts of Power," discussing diplomacy in general. In the section on the skills of the diplomat, I could not help but see the parallel between diplomatic skills and the skills of legal writing. I thought I'd share those similarities with you.
"Ambassadors represent their chief of state and are empowered to speak authoritatively for their chief of government."
For your lawyer, this is important. For you, as a paralegal, it is especially important. Lawyers don't speak for themselves when they engage in legal writing--they must speak for the client. The lawyer is empowered to represent the client, and to speak authoritatively for that client, so the lawyer had better know what the client wants.
The paralegal must also speak for the client to be effective. What is even more important, though, is that the paralegal's writing must speak for the lawyer, too! The effective paralegal must have a solid grasp on the client's goals, and the lawyer's means to that goal.
The lawyer is the agent of the client, and the paralegal is the agent of the lawyer. As "Arts of Power" says, "The role of the agent requires the subordination of personal interests to those of the principal being represented."
"An agent must wield language with uncommon exactitude."
Even the slightest misstatement can wreak amazing havoc. Even worse, if you are unclear and give the wrong impression, the same thing can happen. Legal writing has to be both clear and accurate.
Even though the lawyer will actually sign the papers, these are often the job of the paralegal. If you draft the paper, you must do so with a full knowledge of the facts and the legal arguments that you are making. If you edit the paper, you must do so word by word, sentence by sentence, to verify that it is saying what you are trying to say. If you don't, you run the risk of major headaches later on.
"Diplomatic dialogue consists of exchanges of assessments, estimates, apprehension, preferences, options, intentions, commitments, reassurances, and verifications."
When I read these steps, I could not believe just how much they mirrored the legal process. From start to finish--from the initial asset check to determine whether a case is worth it, to the settlement negotiations or trial. The lawyer relies on the information from the paralegal to assess the case's value, estimate values, apprehend the opponents arguments, find the client's preferences, evaluate legal options, create plans and intentions, commit to a course of action, reassure the client and the opposing parties, and finally verify how everything will conclude.
The list could go on, but these nine steps are also vital in legal writing. Even as you begin your assignments, go through these steps consciously, from start to finish, and you will be well on your way.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
America's Pastime, 1040 Style. (Posted by Gabe)
Every once in a while, friends, it can be quite a trip to step back and view old favorites through a novel lens. Take baseball, for instance. When was the last time that you thought about baseball in terms of income tax ramifications?
Ah yes, it is the stuff of final exams. And it's got the folks over at the WSJ Law Blog wondering how it will all turn out.
Tax Law Final Exam Question: Barry Bonds's Ball
Based on your studies this semester, what are your thoughts?
Ah yes, it is the stuff of final exams. And it's got the folks over at the WSJ Law Blog wondering how it will all turn out.
Tax Law Final Exam Question: Barry Bonds's Ball
Based on your studies this semester, what are your thoughts?
Monday, July 23, 2007
Ethics- Lessons 1-5 (Posted by Steven)
Alrighty. I shall attempt to break down ethics in this blog for you. Unfortunately, I did not have the foresight to obtain my textbooks out of storage this weekend (they are out of town) so I am working off the syllabus. I had forgotten exactly how little information was contained in it. However, with this course, hopefully you all should have the smarts to figure it out. It is pretty much common sense; however, the number one rule of life is "People Are Stupid." Unfortunate, yes, but due to this fact, the government was compelled to create a list of do's and do-not's to regulate attorneys and paralegals just to make your life difficult. Now, in lesson one, you learned that the government does not directly regulate paralegals. BUT, your supervising attorney (or general supervisor if you do not work in the legal industry) can and will be held responsible for your breach of conduct. This is an excellent incentive for you to do the correct and moral thing in your line of work. Most of the work in this course is contained in the textbook, under the Model RULES. These Rules are fairly straight-forward, so I suggest that you go through it and create an outline in a notebook with the main points. You all are pretty smart from what I hear, so hopefully you can take one phrase from the main points and soliloquize about them at length. I cannot stress how much this will bring together the rest of the course.
Now, about 75% of ethics can be summed up in one phrase: "Keep your stupid mouth shut." Yes, you are given permission to substitute any appropriate French adjective in place of "stupid." In any scenario, if you see someone blabbing off at the mouth, it should automatically scream "ETHICS BREACH!!!" in your mind. Plus, it helps that you will have a separate exam for this course, so you will know that you are looking for one. Do NOT discuss your cases outside the office; do NOT "share information" with a third-party regarding any case; do NOT speak with someone regarding a case, even a co-professional, without your supervisor's permission. Just keep...your...mouth...shut. If you do that, you have nothing to worry about.
In a breach of ethics, corrective action is determined, not by any paralegal oversight committe, and not by legislature, but by the state court system. Attorney's are not actually REGULATED by the ABA, but rather by the State Supreme Court. This is a common misconception in the secular world. The ABA merely provides guidelines, but actual sanctions and decisions stem from the Supreme Beings in the appropriate state. Therefore, any question about specific state-rules in an ethics situation will be found in the state Supreme Court's publications. This tid-bit of trivia knowledge will more than likely be tested on both the exam and the CLA.
As I do not have access to the textbook, I am unable to give guidelines on specific sanctions that may be placed on attorneys, but know that they are varied in both attitude and severeness. These are explained in detail in the text. I also suggest that you jot down an outline here titled "Sanctions for Breach of Conduct" and just make a list. It will be good to know them, and they will probably be tested as well.
Moving on to Unauthorized Practice of Law, commonly known as UPL. This is an interesting topic. What, exactly, constitutes the practice of law? Well, who knows? Attorneys have been around for several centuries, and they are still working that one out. But we DO know a few things. First, never, ever, EVER give a client ANY legal advice. This will unequivocally count. As a paralegal, you may be put in a unique position interacting with clients. As they get comfortable with you, they will tend to turn to you with their questions. You may answer questions about procedure- the next step the attorney is going to take, which forms are being filed, and all that stuff. But do NOT tell a client what to DO if it pertains to the legal system or to statute. You MAY suggest that they see a medical counselor, you MAY offer encouragement (however, do NOT state that they ARE going to win a case), and general hopes and suggestions along those lines. Do NOT tell them what to do with assets relating to a case, do NOT offer interpretations about the law, unless directed to do so by your supervising attorney. And if directed to do so, make absotively, posilutely sure that you remain within the strict guidelines given for that exact, particular situation by the attorney and do not stray from them.
The other areas that are well-defined about UPL are fairly clear: do not sign documents with your name, do not take depositions (your attorney will handle this and know (s)he has to anyway), and do not represent a client in court. Now, for those of you with friends representing themselves in a proceeding pro-se, they may turn to you for assistance because of your specific knowledge of the legal mysteries. This is a dangerous area to wade through. If you decide to assist them QUIETLY, you are taking too much risk, in my not-so-humble opinion. Because, if you slip, they can always blame it on you and get you for UPL. Do not let friendships stand in the way of your own professional safety.
Some states have a special certification as a Certified Legal Document Preparer. You might want to look into this. It allows for a certain amount quasi-legal work. Basically, someone comes to you and says they want to change their name or file for divorce or something. What you do is hand them the appropriate documents to fill out. Then they bring the completed docs back to you, and you file them with the court and publish any appropriate public announcement. It might be a viable supplement to look into. However, always remain on the alert to what you say. Again, NEVER GIVE ADVICE. (also, and duh, do not ever represent yourself as an attorney. Rather, always make it explicit that you are NOT one.)
Confidentiality: when you are interviewing a client, it is always wise to clearly state to them that any information they share with you will be kept secret between you and the office. This will break down at least a few barriers for the client and allow them to be more honest with you. Do not trust their Hollywood/Law & Order knowledge which they will bring with them. Make things clear from the beginning that what they say is confidential and will not be shared outside the office. Even if they admit that they did in fact murder someone, you still cannot broadcast that information. None at all, no matter how serious. This is known as the Attorney-Client privilege. Note it in your outline. Also, there is a Work Product privilege. This allows for all the attorney's documents to be protected against opposing counsel. Again, the rule holds: Keep Your Mouth Shut. When the client knows that you willnot AND cannot share the information they tender to you, you are ensured against obtaining inaccurate information. BUT, always hold to another premise: Whatever you are told is a lie. Always look for contradictions in clients' statements, and always attempt to verify facts independently. This will ensure that the attorney is fully informed as the facts so he doesn't look like an idiot later on. Pay attention to the chart given on page 6 of the syllabus.
People are stupid, and whatever you are told is a lie. These are the two most powerful weapons you can have in your arsenal when approaching any new situation. And your backup safety is the general consideration of Confidentiality. Keep this moral standard in your mind 24/7. Now, those of you that drink have to pay special attention to this rule. I have seen it personally more than once- a paralegal gets drunk, loses his inhibitions and doesn't know what he is doing/saying, and inadvertantly starts talking about the case weighing on his mind most at the time. You have a very special position as a paralegal with access to very special information; and this information should be very closely guarded. Decide for yourself if you can handle this risk.
On to a more practical area: Conflicts of Interest. This is a difficult one to discuss. Basically, any situation that will tear an attorney between two clients is a conflict. For instance, he cannot represent two opposing parties in the same proceeding; he cannot use knowledge obtained confidentially from his representation of a client against that client in the future; an attorney cannot be bribed (duh); cannot front funds for the client (except when working on contingency); etc. Again, without the aid of the text, this is a difficult topic to discuss. However, the text does cover this very succinctly. Take your notebook and create an outline of the nine specific conflicts brought up in the text and syllabus, and this time make a summary about them.
Solicitation and Advertising: two fairly separate and clear methods. In advertising, the attorney is allowed to put up posters, billboards, phone ads, ect. as long as he makes no specific representations to his clients. This is why all the advertising you see fluffs up the prior experience of the attorney- to give the public knowledge of who and what he is. However, he is refrained from saying things like "I win all divorce cases" and stupid things like that, and from making false statements (duh). Advertisements just must be extremely general.
Solicitations, on the other hand, are much more highly regulated. A solicitation occurs when the attorney or his agent initiate personal contact with a potential client, unilaterally. This is pretty much never allowed, it's really a form of victimization. The client must come to you, unless the person being solicited is family or a former client. These special relationships allow for direct approach of the attorney to the client. The rules governing solicitation, however, only apply to cases where the attorney will make money. If the attorney wants a case pro-bono because he has to get his hours in, he is allowed to go out and make that direct contact.
It's 2:30 am over here, so I am going to cut this off with lesson 5. Hopefully, this will allow at least a little clarification about the material. It is mostly common sense all conditioned and explained. I have attempted to give an overview, and supplement the syllabus, as opposed to breaking each lesson's individual components down. Please e-mail me your input as to this, any feedback will be appreciated as I have never done this before.
Steven
Now, about 75% of ethics can be summed up in one phrase: "Keep your stupid mouth shut." Yes, you are given permission to substitute any appropriate French adjective in place of "stupid." In any scenario, if you see someone blabbing off at the mouth, it should automatically scream "ETHICS BREACH!!!" in your mind. Plus, it helps that you will have a separate exam for this course, so you will know that you are looking for one. Do NOT discuss your cases outside the office; do NOT "share information" with a third-party regarding any case; do NOT speak with someone regarding a case, even a co-professional, without your supervisor's permission. Just keep...your...mouth...shut. If you do that, you have nothing to worry about.
In a breach of ethics, corrective action is determined, not by any paralegal oversight committe, and not by legislature, but by the state court system. Attorney's are not actually REGULATED by the ABA, but rather by the State Supreme Court. This is a common misconception in the secular world. The ABA merely provides guidelines, but actual sanctions and decisions stem from the Supreme Beings in the appropriate state. Therefore, any question about specific state-rules in an ethics situation will be found in the state Supreme Court's publications. This tid-bit of trivia knowledge will more than likely be tested on both the exam and the CLA.
As I do not have access to the textbook, I am unable to give guidelines on specific sanctions that may be placed on attorneys, but know that they are varied in both attitude and severeness. These are explained in detail in the text. I also suggest that you jot down an outline here titled "Sanctions for Breach of Conduct" and just make a list. It will be good to know them, and they will probably be tested as well.
Moving on to Unauthorized Practice of Law, commonly known as UPL. This is an interesting topic. What, exactly, constitutes the practice of law? Well, who knows? Attorneys have been around for several centuries, and they are still working that one out. But we DO know a few things. First, never, ever, EVER give a client ANY legal advice. This will unequivocally count. As a paralegal, you may be put in a unique position interacting with clients. As they get comfortable with you, they will tend to turn to you with their questions. You may answer questions about procedure- the next step the attorney is going to take, which forms are being filed, and all that stuff. But do NOT tell a client what to DO if it pertains to the legal system or to statute. You MAY suggest that they see a medical counselor, you MAY offer encouragement (however, do NOT state that they ARE going to win a case), and general hopes and suggestions along those lines. Do NOT tell them what to do with assets relating to a case, do NOT offer interpretations about the law, unless directed to do so by your supervising attorney. And if directed to do so, make absotively, posilutely sure that you remain within the strict guidelines given for that exact, particular situation by the attorney and do not stray from them.
The other areas that are well-defined about UPL are fairly clear: do not sign documents with your name, do not take depositions (your attorney will handle this and know (s)he has to anyway), and do not represent a client in court. Now, for those of you with friends representing themselves in a proceeding pro-se, they may turn to you for assistance because of your specific knowledge of the legal mysteries. This is a dangerous area to wade through. If you decide to assist them QUIETLY, you are taking too much risk, in my not-so-humble opinion. Because, if you slip, they can always blame it on you and get you for UPL. Do not let friendships stand in the way of your own professional safety.
Some states have a special certification as a Certified Legal Document Preparer. You might want to look into this. It allows for a certain amount quasi-legal work. Basically, someone comes to you and says they want to change their name or file for divorce or something. What you do is hand them the appropriate documents to fill out. Then they bring the completed docs back to you, and you file them with the court and publish any appropriate public announcement. It might be a viable supplement to look into. However, always remain on the alert to what you say. Again, NEVER GIVE ADVICE. (also, and duh, do not ever represent yourself as an attorney. Rather, always make it explicit that you are NOT one.)
Confidentiality: when you are interviewing a client, it is always wise to clearly state to them that any information they share with you will be kept secret between you and the office. This will break down at least a few barriers for the client and allow them to be more honest with you. Do not trust their Hollywood/Law & Order knowledge which they will bring with them. Make things clear from the beginning that what they say is confidential and will not be shared outside the office. Even if they admit that they did in fact murder someone, you still cannot broadcast that information. None at all, no matter how serious. This is known as the Attorney-Client privilege. Note it in your outline. Also, there is a Work Product privilege. This allows for all the attorney's documents to be protected against opposing counsel. Again, the rule holds: Keep Your Mouth Shut. When the client knows that you willnot AND cannot share the information they tender to you, you are ensured against obtaining inaccurate information. BUT, always hold to another premise: Whatever you are told is a lie. Always look for contradictions in clients' statements, and always attempt to verify facts independently. This will ensure that the attorney is fully informed as the facts so he doesn't look like an idiot later on. Pay attention to the chart given on page 6 of the syllabus.
People are stupid, and whatever you are told is a lie. These are the two most powerful weapons you can have in your arsenal when approaching any new situation. And your backup safety is the general consideration of Confidentiality. Keep this moral standard in your mind 24/7. Now, those of you that drink have to pay special attention to this rule. I have seen it personally more than once- a paralegal gets drunk, loses his inhibitions and doesn't know what he is doing/saying, and inadvertantly starts talking about the case weighing on his mind most at the time. You have a very special position as a paralegal with access to very special information; and this information should be very closely guarded. Decide for yourself if you can handle this risk.
On to a more practical area: Conflicts of Interest. This is a difficult one to discuss. Basically, any situation that will tear an attorney between two clients is a conflict. For instance, he cannot represent two opposing parties in the same proceeding; he cannot use knowledge obtained confidentially from his representation of a client against that client in the future; an attorney cannot be bribed (duh); cannot front funds for the client (except when working on contingency); etc. Again, without the aid of the text, this is a difficult topic to discuss. However, the text does cover this very succinctly. Take your notebook and create an outline of the nine specific conflicts brought up in the text and syllabus, and this time make a summary about them.
Solicitation and Advertising: two fairly separate and clear methods. In advertising, the attorney is allowed to put up posters, billboards, phone ads, ect. as long as he makes no specific representations to his clients. This is why all the advertising you see fluffs up the prior experience of the attorney- to give the public knowledge of who and what he is. However, he is refrained from saying things like "I win all divorce cases" and stupid things like that, and from making false statements (duh). Advertisements just must be extremely general.
Solicitations, on the other hand, are much more highly regulated. A solicitation occurs when the attorney or his agent initiate personal contact with a potential client, unilaterally. This is pretty much never allowed, it's really a form of victimization. The client must come to you, unless the person being solicited is family or a former client. These special relationships allow for direct approach of the attorney to the client. The rules governing solicitation, however, only apply to cases where the attorney will make money. If the attorney wants a case pro-bono because he has to get his hours in, he is allowed to go out and make that direct contact.
It's 2:30 am over here, so I am going to cut this off with lesson 5. Hopefully, this will allow at least a little clarification about the material. It is mostly common sense all conditioned and explained. I have attempted to give an overview, and supplement the syllabus, as opposed to breaking each lesson's individual components down. Please e-mail me your input as to this, any feedback will be appreciated as I have never done this before.
Steven
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Quick Introduction (Posted by Steven)
Hello everyone! I thought that before I begin blogging (which I have never utilized this program before, so this will be a learning experience for me, so please be patient) that I would just post a short introduction about myself and background; just so you can rest assured that I'm not some wacko-nut that blows out any random orifice.
First off, I am a graduate of Oak Brook's paralegal program myself. I was actually in the same class as both Jenny and Alex. That was a privilege, let me tell you. We really learned a lot from each other and it would have been much more difficult to complete it without them.
After the paralegal program, I thought it prudent to follow through with the JD program; however, I was forced to withdraw in the middle of the second year due to other committments.
Currently, I am studying for my undergraduate degree online, as well as pursuing several professional certifications. The past three and a half years have seen me working as a personal lines insurance agent in my hometown. However, two months ago I moved on, packed my bags, and took a job right near Sacramento, CA. Presently, I am working for another independent agency primarily as a business coverage analyst while processing personal lines applications.
So that's my history. I must honestly say that without the skills I had learned at Oak Brook, I doubt that I would have this job. It entails reading contracts and forms up the wazoo, and interpreting them to ensure that our business clients have the appropriate coverages. It's not as simple as it sounds. And I'm only 22. So I feel very positive that, whatever career you may currently be in or potentially be placed, you will find at least some skills in this course are invaluable.
That to say, a little about my discussion method. I like it short and to the point, without all this froo-froo. I am also very pragmatic; this will probably come out at some point in the future, so do not let it take you by surprise. As you approach finals, I will also point out areas in the course where you should pay particular attention. Also, never, ever, EVER let this blogring be a substitute for the syllabus. Yes, the syllabus has lots of impractical information, but it also tells you pretty much what will be on the test.
So, that's pretty much me and it. Feel free to send any questions you may have at any time to my personal e-mail at lawhopes@gmail.com. I access it several times throughout the day, so I will get it. One request, if you remember, when you send an e-mail, please mark "OBCL" in the subject line so it will go straight to my inbox and flag my attention. I *can* get over 50 e-mails in one day, so doing so will make them stand out a little more. When I see that, it will go to the top of my priority list.
Have a great night!
First off, I am a graduate of Oak Brook's paralegal program myself. I was actually in the same class as both Jenny and Alex. That was a privilege, let me tell you. We really learned a lot from each other and it would have been much more difficult to complete it without them.
After the paralegal program, I thought it prudent to follow through with the JD program; however, I was forced to withdraw in the middle of the second year due to other committments.
Currently, I am studying for my undergraduate degree online, as well as pursuing several professional certifications. The past three and a half years have seen me working as a personal lines insurance agent in my hometown. However, two months ago I moved on, packed my bags, and took a job right near Sacramento, CA. Presently, I am working for another independent agency primarily as a business coverage analyst while processing personal lines applications.
So that's my history. I must honestly say that without the skills I had learned at Oak Brook, I doubt that I would have this job. It entails reading contracts and forms up the wazoo, and interpreting them to ensure that our business clients have the appropriate coverages. It's not as simple as it sounds. And I'm only 22. So I feel very positive that, whatever career you may currently be in or potentially be placed, you will find at least some skills in this course are invaluable.
That to say, a little about my discussion method. I like it short and to the point, without all this froo-froo. I am also very pragmatic; this will probably come out at some point in the future, so do not let it take you by surprise. As you approach finals, I will also point out areas in the course where you should pay particular attention. Also, never, ever, EVER let this blogring be a substitute for the syllabus. Yes, the syllabus has lots of impractical information, but it also tells you pretty much what will be on the test.
So, that's pretty much me and it. Feel free to send any questions you may have at any time to my personal e-mail at lawhopes@gmail.com. I access it several times throughout the day, so I will get it. One request, if you remember, when you send an e-mail, please mark "OBCL" in the subject line so it will go straight to my inbox and flag my attention. I *can* get over 50 e-mails in one day, so doing so will make them stand out a little more. When I see that, it will go to the top of my priority list.
Have a great night!
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Another Perspective (Posted by Jenny)
Hello everyone!
Can you believe you are so close to graduating?! As you finish out the last few weeks of your courses, I have a special bonus for you. In addition to Gabe & Alex, another great alumnus has made himself available to you.
A wonderful fellow paralegal alumnus (and former classmate of mine) has offered to give you the benefit of his input during the last few weeks of your quarter. I am so grateful for Steven Sanderson’s offer as during our paralegal class, he always gave me excellent advice!! I know you will be benefited by his involvement.
Steven can be reached by e-mail at lawhopes@gmail.com and would welcome your questions! Be watching for his posts on here as well!
Happy studying!:)
Can you believe you are so close to graduating?! As you finish out the last few weeks of your courses, I have a special bonus for you. In addition to Gabe & Alex, another great alumnus has made himself available to you.
A wonderful fellow paralegal alumnus (and former classmate of mine) has offered to give you the benefit of his input during the last few weeks of your quarter. I am so grateful for Steven Sanderson’s offer as during our paralegal class, he always gave me excellent advice!! I know you will be benefited by his involvement.
Steven can be reached by e-mail at lawhopes@gmail.com and would welcome your questions! Be watching for his posts on here as well!
Happy studying!:)
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Legal Writing as Communication. (Posted by Gabe)
I've done a lot of study on communication, partly because it is necessary for what I do, and partly because I love it. I love it because communication is all about connection--connecting the communicator with the audience. What works in some cases will utterly fail with others! It doesn't matter how fluent you are, or how much work you have put into your communication, or even how skillful you are; if you don't connect, you have failed to communicate. That is why knowing your audience is such a critical part of communication.
Being a student of communication, I am often fascinated by the forms that communication can take. Communication has changed a lot in a short period of time. For instance, have any of you ever read the Federalist Papers? If you have you were probably--as I was--overwhelmed by the complex arguments and language. But those were written for New York farmers as the newspaper editorials of the day! If someone tried to write papers like that today, they would ultimately have a complete failure to communicate (sorry, Cool Hand Luke).
But I am often appalled to see the swing that we have made in the other direction. People today often don't, or can't, use even the simplest rules of grammar and punctuation. For instance, this blog tries to help students learn legal writing, but routinely violates basic rules of capitalization. That may be just fine if you are sending an Instant Message to a friend, but when engaging in any "real" form of writing it just makes you look uneducated or like you don't care about what you are doing.
Legal writing is a very specific form of communication, with a very particular audience. It is very different even than other types of legal communication--for instance, trial advocacy. Trial advocacy, talking to a jury, is all about telling stories, keeping the attention of laypeople who may be otherwise totally bored. Use to many big words, and you'll lose them. But if you try to tell stories to the judge in your legal brief, you'll be laughed out of court!
The other day, a member of my volleyball team found out that I was in law school, and proceeded to launch into a rant against the big words used by lawyers, and how everything should be more simple. I considered informing him that obtaining a Juris Doctor entitled me to use obtuse vocabulary to obfuscate the salient itemization of my exorbitant pecuniary demands, but thought better of it. But what is the appropriate use of complexity in legal writing?
To answer that question, I think we need to define the goals of legal writing. Depending on the type of document you are writing, the goal is either to persuade or to inform. Either way, legal writing must first be clear. Cases come down to very specific facts, and misstating those facts, or misleading the reader (either intentionally OR accidentally!) will cause the writer to lose credibility, and maybe even the case. Clarity also requires logical flow and organization.
Second, legal writing must be accurate. Clarity would be pointless if you clearly communicated a falsehood. There are certainly ways to artfully phrase negative facts, and effective advocacy requires the lawyer to use such art from time to time, but in the final analysis, the writing must be accurate. Accuracy also requires a certain element of completeness.
Finally, legal writing should be discerning. What I mean by this is that you should choose each word carefully. Using words that are offensive or can be misinterpreted has no place in good legal writing. If you offend someone, or if you give someone the wrong impression, you have detracted from the argument that you are making, and lost the link with your reader.
I told my friend about a modern movement called "Plain English for Lawyers." The basic premise behind the "Plain English" movement is that legal writing should not look any different than any other well-written document. Legal writing has a reputation for being full of meaningless repetition ("aid and abet," for instance), terms of art, and archaic grammar. These are certainly faults, and good legal writing has no place for terms like "heretofore" or "wherewithal."
But I would caution you against taking these considerations too far! Do not forget your goals in your quest to be simple. Always keep your audience and your goals in the back of your mind, and write with the persuasive power that comes when you communicate with clarity, accuracy, and discernment.
For More Information--
What is Really Wrong with the English Language?
Wikipedia on Legal Writing
Being a student of communication, I am often fascinated by the forms that communication can take. Communication has changed a lot in a short period of time. For instance, have any of you ever read the Federalist Papers? If you have you were probably--as I was--overwhelmed by the complex arguments and language. But those were written for New York farmers as the newspaper editorials of the day! If someone tried to write papers like that today, they would ultimately have a complete failure to communicate (sorry, Cool Hand Luke).
But I am often appalled to see the swing that we have made in the other direction. People today often don't, or can't, use even the simplest rules of grammar and punctuation. For instance, this blog tries to help students learn legal writing, but routinely violates basic rules of capitalization. That may be just fine if you are sending an Instant Message to a friend, but when engaging in any "real" form of writing it just makes you look uneducated or like you don't care about what you are doing.
Legal writing is a very specific form of communication, with a very particular audience. It is very different even than other types of legal communication--for instance, trial advocacy. Trial advocacy, talking to a jury, is all about telling stories, keeping the attention of laypeople who may be otherwise totally bored. Use to many big words, and you'll lose them. But if you try to tell stories to the judge in your legal brief, you'll be laughed out of court!
The other day, a member of my volleyball team found out that I was in law school, and proceeded to launch into a rant against the big words used by lawyers, and how everything should be more simple. I considered informing him that obtaining a Juris Doctor entitled me to use obtuse vocabulary to obfuscate the salient itemization of my exorbitant pecuniary demands, but thought better of it. But what is the appropriate use of complexity in legal writing?
To answer that question, I think we need to define the goals of legal writing. Depending on the type of document you are writing, the goal is either to persuade or to inform. Either way, legal writing must first be clear. Cases come down to very specific facts, and misstating those facts, or misleading the reader (either intentionally OR accidentally!) will cause the writer to lose credibility, and maybe even the case. Clarity also requires logical flow and organization.
Second, legal writing must be accurate. Clarity would be pointless if you clearly communicated a falsehood. There are certainly ways to artfully phrase negative facts, and effective advocacy requires the lawyer to use such art from time to time, but in the final analysis, the writing must be accurate. Accuracy also requires a certain element of completeness.
Finally, legal writing should be discerning. What I mean by this is that you should choose each word carefully. Using words that are offensive or can be misinterpreted has no place in good legal writing. If you offend someone, or if you give someone the wrong impression, you have detracted from the argument that you are making, and lost the link with your reader.
I told my friend about a modern movement called "Plain English for Lawyers." The basic premise behind the "Plain English" movement is that legal writing should not look any different than any other well-written document. Legal writing has a reputation for being full of meaningless repetition ("aid and abet," for instance), terms of art, and archaic grammar. These are certainly faults, and good legal writing has no place for terms like "heretofore" or "wherewithal."
But I would caution you against taking these considerations too far! Do not forget your goals in your quest to be simple. Always keep your audience and your goals in the back of your mind, and write with the persuasive power that comes when you communicate with clarity, accuracy, and discernment.
For More Information--
What is Really Wrong with the English Language?
Wikipedia on Legal Writing
Sunday, July 08, 2007
CLA Exam Tips (Posted by Jenny)
Hello everyone!
For those of you with the CLA exam looming large on your horizon this month, I thought you might appreciate some advice from one who has sat for the boards and been there before you. For those of you who will not take the exam until December, read on and tuck this away for future reference!
I consider the CLA credential to be valuable and worth getting and maintaining. Obviously, the most important thing to an attorney is what you know and what you can do / learn, but I have found in my area (it may be different elsewhere) that the CLA credential is known and does lend some credence to your paralegal certificate. The law firms here will pay for the CLE needed to maintain certification.
Paralegals have different views on the CLA credential. Many successful paralegals do not have it and many do. But I believe it is valuable because it is nationally recognized, (and portable:) it lends credence to your paralegal studies, and since you have worked so hard to graduate with your paralegal certificate, why not take the final step and sit for the CLA exam?
1. Do not let the practice tests or mock exam scare you!
I don't know what the latest editions of the CLA study manuals are like, but the 2nd edition (the one I used to study for my 2005 exam) was very very difficult. I was almost in despair when I took the mock exam after completing all the reviews and practice tests and still got scores which I felt would not enable me to pass the actual test. However, when I asked another paralegal (who I consider much more brilliant than I will ever be) he told me that the practice exams were much harder than the actual exam and the scores I was getting were better than he had gotten pre-test. I found this to be very true - the practice tests were much harder than the actual exam.
As I said, I have not seen the 3rd edition of the review materials, but I am guessing that the same will still hold true. I have never found any test prep books that were easier than the actual exam.
So if this has been upsetting you, be encouraged!
2. The last few days before the exam
What you do the week of the exam studying - wise is very important. I know everyone's situation is different and you may have to cram because of unavoidable situations, but if it is at all possible I would advise against it.
Each of us will prep for an exam differently. I am sure you know yourself and what would be beneficial / not beneficial for you to do the last few days before a big exam. One person I know took the portions of the mock exam that she would be taking the next day the night before. Another person I know laid aside the books after taking the mock exam at the beginning of the week of the exam. What you do is up to you. Just remember: do not make yourself more stressed than you already are. Avoid cramming / over studying - they will most likely make you miserable.
I personally took the mock exam the week of the CLA exam and did not study for the rest of the week. I had not planned on doing that. I had wanted to take all the practice tests over again, but wasn't able to because of work (plus the fact that I was battling major exhaustion / mono). This turned out to be the best thing I could have done. It enabled me to relax and come in to the exam rested.
So decide what you need to do and what would be most beneficial for you. Just like an athlete, the last few days before the "big race" are very vital to success or failure.
3. Get plenty of sleep the night before the exam!!
I cannot emphasize this enough. The CLA exam has been likened to the Bar exam in regards to difficulty and stress. It is a very long and draining 2 days. You will need to be at your best. Adequate sleep plays a big role in that.
4.The first day of the exam
One of the things that I will always be grateful for is that I went out for breakfast with a friend that made me laugh and eat a good breakfast. This helped calm my nerves and fortify me for the long day ahead. Also, make sure you arrive at the testing center early so you have plenty of time to get a seat, sign in, etc.
5. During the exam
You will have adequate time during the exam. You will not have ample time, but you will have adequate time. It is very important that you budget your time well in order to complete all sections in the time allowed.
Work through the questions steadily. Don't stop and stare at one too long. If the answer doesn't immediately come to mind, either pick the most likely choice or leave it blank and go on. You can come back to it later. This is especially important in the General Law section where you will have an hour and a half to work through 5 exams. All I remember about that hour and a half of the exam was filling in answer bubbles frantically.:)
Remain focused!!
In the section where you have to write a memorandum, it is especially important to not panic or get distracted. I remember vividly laying my pencil on the table and asking the Lord to help me write the next line. I finished my memo right before the time was up. I couldn't believe I had actually written a complete memo and finished in an hour!! God is good.
6. After the exam
When you have laid your pencil down for the last time and left the testing center, do your best to leave the exam behind you. You did your best, and that is all you can do. For better or worse, it is done and in the Lord's hands. If you get the results and find out you have to take a section over, take it over. The exam admin told all of us that the only thing to be ashamed of was not coming back and re-taking sections. Even the author of the review materials had to re-take parts of the exam!
I hope all of the above is helpful. Feel free to e-mail or call me and ask any CLA questions you want. Many blessings on your exam, we'll be praying for you, and please let us know how it goes!!
For those of you with the CLA exam looming large on your horizon this month, I thought you might appreciate some advice from one who has sat for the boards and been there before you. For those of you who will not take the exam until December, read on and tuck this away for future reference!
I consider the CLA credential to be valuable and worth getting and maintaining. Obviously, the most important thing to an attorney is what you know and what you can do / learn, but I have found in my area (it may be different elsewhere) that the CLA credential is known and does lend some credence to your paralegal certificate. The law firms here will pay for the CLE needed to maintain certification.
Paralegals have different views on the CLA credential. Many successful paralegals do not have it and many do. But I believe it is valuable because it is nationally recognized, (and portable:) it lends credence to your paralegal studies, and since you have worked so hard to graduate with your paralegal certificate, why not take the final step and sit for the CLA exam?
1. Do not let the practice tests or mock exam scare you!
I don't know what the latest editions of the CLA study manuals are like, but the 2nd edition (the one I used to study for my 2005 exam) was very very difficult. I was almost in despair when I took the mock exam after completing all the reviews and practice tests and still got scores which I felt would not enable me to pass the actual test. However, when I asked another paralegal (who I consider much more brilliant than I will ever be) he told me that the practice exams were much harder than the actual exam and the scores I was getting were better than he had gotten pre-test. I found this to be very true - the practice tests were much harder than the actual exam.
As I said, I have not seen the 3rd edition of the review materials, but I am guessing that the same will still hold true. I have never found any test prep books that were easier than the actual exam.
So if this has been upsetting you, be encouraged!
2. The last few days before the exam
What you do the week of the exam studying - wise is very important. I know everyone's situation is different and you may have to cram because of unavoidable situations, but if it is at all possible I would advise against it.
Each of us will prep for an exam differently. I am sure you know yourself and what would be beneficial / not beneficial for you to do the last few days before a big exam. One person I know took the portions of the mock exam that she would be taking the next day the night before. Another person I know laid aside the books after taking the mock exam at the beginning of the week of the exam. What you do is up to you. Just remember: do not make yourself more stressed than you already are. Avoid cramming / over studying - they will most likely make you miserable.
I personally took the mock exam the week of the CLA exam and did not study for the rest of the week. I had not planned on doing that. I had wanted to take all the practice tests over again, but wasn't able to because of work (plus the fact that I was battling major exhaustion / mono). This turned out to be the best thing I could have done. It enabled me to relax and come in to the exam rested.
So decide what you need to do and what would be most beneficial for you. Just like an athlete, the last few days before the "big race" are very vital to success or failure.
3. Get plenty of sleep the night before the exam!!
I cannot emphasize this enough. The CLA exam has been likened to the Bar exam in regards to difficulty and stress. It is a very long and draining 2 days. You will need to be at your best. Adequate sleep plays a big role in that.
4.The first day of the exam
One of the things that I will always be grateful for is that I went out for breakfast with a friend that made me laugh and eat a good breakfast. This helped calm my nerves and fortify me for the long day ahead. Also, make sure you arrive at the testing center early so you have plenty of time to get a seat, sign in, etc.
5. During the exam
You will have adequate time during the exam. You will not have ample time, but you will have adequate time. It is very important that you budget your time well in order to complete all sections in the time allowed.
Work through the questions steadily. Don't stop and stare at one too long. If the answer doesn't immediately come to mind, either pick the most likely choice or leave it blank and go on. You can come back to it later. This is especially important in the General Law section where you will have an hour and a half to work through 5 exams. All I remember about that hour and a half of the exam was filling in answer bubbles frantically.:)
Remain focused!!
In the section where you have to write a memorandum, it is especially important to not panic or get distracted. I remember vividly laying my pencil on the table and asking the Lord to help me write the next line. I finished my memo right before the time was up. I couldn't believe I had actually written a complete memo and finished in an hour!! God is good.
6. After the exam
When you have laid your pencil down for the last time and left the testing center, do your best to leave the exam behind you. You did your best, and that is all you can do. For better or worse, it is done and in the Lord's hands. If you get the results and find out you have to take a section over, take it over. The exam admin told all of us that the only thing to be ashamed of was not coming back and re-taking sections. Even the author of the review materials had to re-take parts of the exam!
I hope all of the above is helpful. Feel free to e-mail or call me and ask any CLA questions you want. Many blessings on your exam, we'll be praying for you, and please let us know how it goes!!
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Prayer Request. (Posted by Gabe)
Hi friends--
I am heading out of the country early tomorrow morning for a missions trip as a part of my work with Remember. We'll be over there for 10 days, doing medical work for the children in the Freedom House Orphanage in the Mae La Refugee Camp.
Please pray for safety, strength, and the presence of God's Spirit to go with us!
If you'd like to stay "in touch" with the trip, please feel free to follow along at Remember Ambassadors.
I am heading out of the country early tomorrow morning for a missions trip as a part of my work with Remember. We'll be over there for 10 days, doing medical work for the children in the Freedom House Orphanage in the Mae La Refugee Camp.
Please pray for safety, strength, and the presence of God's Spirit to go with us!
If you'd like to stay "in touch" with the trip, please feel free to follow along at Remember Ambassadors.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Legal Research (Posted by Jenny)
I had a great conversation with one of you about the joys of legal research. I wanted to share some of my thoughts on the subject with you in hopes it will make your journey through the legal research course smoother:
1. Finding a law library
I started with my local courthouse (they happened to have a small law library) and I also researched what law schools / universities were in my area that might have a library large enough to have the nation-wide resources that I needed. Since I live an hour from Dallas, TX (which has a huge law school called SMU) this was fairly easy. Hopefully, none of you will have to travel too far to get to a law library.
2. Budget lots of law library time
Budget even more time in the law library than you think you will need. Your first trip you will want plenty of time to wander and familiarize yourself with the library setup. Subsequent trips for assignments will require varied amounts of time – and it is always better to have more time set aside than you actually need. Particularly for your memorandum assignment at the end of the course, you will want lots of time to find cases, read them, shepardize them, etc.
I am going to be honest and admit that I logged many of my 4th quarter hours in the law library. Whether that is the case for you or not, be prepared for your legal research to be time consuming. If it isn’t for you, great, but if it is, you’ll be ready!:) And besides, if your assignment is done, there are lots of fun things to read in a law library, if legal reading is something you like doing!:)
3. Bring a magnifying glass for footnotes
Many of the footnotes in legal dictionaries / encyclopedias / commentaries are microscopic. To avert eyestrain trying to see what the little numbers are in the citation of the case you want, be prepared to whip out your magnifying glass! Again, you may not need it, but if you do, you’ll be glad you had it!:)
4. The law librarian is your friend
While Professor Gundlach expects you to do your own research, the law librarian is still a wonderful source for general guidance. I wish I had asked more questions of the law librarians (like where is this or that reporter?) instead of wasting time trying to find everything on my own. I know this may seem like it goes without saying, but just on the chance you are like me…..
5. Keep your perspective and don’t get overwhelmed
There are many legal research resources available and especially when the time comes to write your memorandum, it might be easy to get overwhelmed. If this happens, take a moment to stop and rest. Staring out the library window or taking a quick walk always helped clear the cobwebs out of my head. The more you have planned out a “road map” of what you need to do, the less likely this is to happen. But if you find yourself staring blankly at a stack of reporters, take a break – you need it!
6. Have fun!
Legal research is like a treasure hunt / investigation. You are searching for the “gems or clues” you need to turn in an excellent assignment. There is nothing more exciting than turning that page and seeing the piece of information you have been searching for. I remember once being so happy (after 2 days of looking) to find the answer an attorney wanted at the DA’s office, that I ran up 4 flights of stairs to hand him the papers.:) I was definitely more excited than he was, but a job well done is always something to be excited about!
Those are my 2 cents! Blessings on your legal research course!
1. Finding a law library
I started with my local courthouse (they happened to have a small law library) and I also researched what law schools / universities were in my area that might have a library large enough to have the nation-wide resources that I needed. Since I live an hour from Dallas, TX (which has a huge law school called SMU) this was fairly easy. Hopefully, none of you will have to travel too far to get to a law library.
2. Budget lots of law library time
Budget even more time in the law library than you think you will need. Your first trip you will want plenty of time to wander and familiarize yourself with the library setup. Subsequent trips for assignments will require varied amounts of time – and it is always better to have more time set aside than you actually need. Particularly for your memorandum assignment at the end of the course, you will want lots of time to find cases, read them, shepardize them, etc.
I am going to be honest and admit that I logged many of my 4th quarter hours in the law library. Whether that is the case for you or not, be prepared for your legal research to be time consuming. If it isn’t for you, great, but if it is, you’ll be ready!:) And besides, if your assignment is done, there are lots of fun things to read in a law library, if legal reading is something you like doing!:)
3. Bring a magnifying glass for footnotes
Many of the footnotes in legal dictionaries / encyclopedias / commentaries are microscopic. To avert eyestrain trying to see what the little numbers are in the citation of the case you want, be prepared to whip out your magnifying glass! Again, you may not need it, but if you do, you’ll be glad you had it!:)
4. The law librarian is your friend
While Professor Gundlach expects you to do your own research, the law librarian is still a wonderful source for general guidance. I wish I had asked more questions of the law librarians (like where is this or that reporter?) instead of wasting time trying to find everything on my own. I know this may seem like it goes without saying, but just on the chance you are like me…..
5. Keep your perspective and don’t get overwhelmed
There are many legal research resources available and especially when the time comes to write your memorandum, it might be easy to get overwhelmed. If this happens, take a moment to stop and rest. Staring out the library window or taking a quick walk always helped clear the cobwebs out of my head. The more you have planned out a “road map” of what you need to do, the less likely this is to happen. But if you find yourself staring blankly at a stack of reporters, take a break – you need it!
6. Have fun!
Legal research is like a treasure hunt / investigation. You are searching for the “gems or clues” you need to turn in an excellent assignment. There is nothing more exciting than turning that page and seeing the piece of information you have been searching for. I remember once being so happy (after 2 days of looking) to find the answer an attorney wanted at the DA’s office, that I ran up 4 flights of stairs to hand him the papers.:) I was definitely more excited than he was, but a job well done is always something to be excited about!
Those are my 2 cents! Blessings on your legal research course!
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
A New Way to Stay Connected. (Posted by Gabe)
As a part of my constant search for knowledge in general, I regularly read a good amount of legal news. Now, technology has enabled me to share some of that with you. Check out the sidebar, when you get the chance, for the new "Legal News Clips" section. I'll be updating that section regularly with legal news that might interest you!
Thursday, May 31, 2007
International Law Comparison. (Posted by Gabe)
Just the other day, the news broke on a decision by the Malaysian equivalent of the Supreme Court. The decision was both atrocious and fascinating at the same time.
If you are familiar with international law in general, you are probably familiar with Shari'a Law, which can be very roughly analogized with the common law for the Arab world. Shari'a has been around for centuries, and has been reasoned out by Islamic philosophers and theologians in a fashion rather similar to the way that philosophers like Locke, Blackstone, and Rousseau reasoned the common law from Biblical principles.
Shari'a, of course, is reasoned from the Qur'an, and forms the basis of Islamic jurisprudence. It differs very strikingly from the common law, though, in that it mandates Islam as a religion, and certain religious practices. There is no way for one to be a Christian and follow the Shari'a law, while every religion could follow the common law.
There are many countries that are more recent "converts" to Islam, and nations that want to be secular, that have a dual system of law--a secular Constitution and body of laws that apply to all, and Shari'a, which only applies to Muslims.
Lina Joy was a Muslim, but converted to Christianity. In order to do that, in Malaysia, you have to apply for a "Certificate of Apostasy" to be designated a non-Muslim. The recent decision said, in effect, that you can only get such a certificate from the Shari'a courts that are tasked with enforcing Muslim beliefs!
That raises fascinating questions about how the law is supposed to work. It wasn't too long ago (past couple hundred years) that Christian nations had canon law courts, to enforce certain church laws. Now, of course, we argue about things like prayer in schools and government "endorsement" of religion.
What do you think is the appropriate measure for the authority of the church and the authority of the government? Do they mix, or are they separate?
More over at Right Reason, and at Time.
If you are familiar with international law in general, you are probably familiar with Shari'a Law, which can be very roughly analogized with the common law for the Arab world. Shari'a has been around for centuries, and has been reasoned out by Islamic philosophers and theologians in a fashion rather similar to the way that philosophers like Locke, Blackstone, and Rousseau reasoned the common law from Biblical principles.
Shari'a, of course, is reasoned from the Qur'an, and forms the basis of Islamic jurisprudence. It differs very strikingly from the common law, though, in that it mandates Islam as a religion, and certain religious practices. There is no way for one to be a Christian and follow the Shari'a law, while every religion could follow the common law.
There are many countries that are more recent "converts" to Islam, and nations that want to be secular, that have a dual system of law--a secular Constitution and body of laws that apply to all, and Shari'a, which only applies to Muslims.
Lina Joy was a Muslim, but converted to Christianity. In order to do that, in Malaysia, you have to apply for a "Certificate of Apostasy" to be designated a non-Muslim. The recent decision said, in effect, that you can only get such a certificate from the Shari'a courts that are tasked with enforcing Muslim beliefs!
That raises fascinating questions about how the law is supposed to work. It wasn't too long ago (past couple hundred years) that Christian nations had canon law courts, to enforce certain church laws. Now, of course, we argue about things like prayer in schools and government "endorsement" of religion.
What do you think is the appropriate measure for the authority of the church and the authority of the government? Do they mix, or are they separate?
More over at Right Reason, and at Time.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Law Prof Blogs. (Posted by Gabe)
My internet wanderings today took me to a site that I thought you all might be interested in, for your paralegal studies and personal knowledge. Happy reading!
http://www.lawprofessorblogs.com/
http://www.lawprofessorblogs.com/
Sunday, May 20, 2007
You’re Done with 3rd Quarter Finals! (Posted by Jenny)
Congratulations, guys! You have completed 3rd quarter finals which means…..YOU ARE 3 QUARTERS OF THE WAY THROUGH THE PARALEGAL PROGRAM!! Applause, whistles, cheers, etc.
Now is the time to take Gabe’s wonderful advice and forget about your finals. They are over (for better or worse – hopefully for better!) so leave them behind you. No worrying, fretting, wondering, obsessing, etc. will be tolerated from any of you!:) Just kidding. But in all seriousness, take it from one who spent many an hour wondering if they had answered this or that correctly: enjoy your break!! The 4th quarter will start before you know it so shut the law books and give yourself some well-deserved R & R!
A big thank you to Gabe for doing an outstanding job as 3rd quarter mentor!! Gabe, I know I speak for everyone when I say we are so grateful for you & the sacrificial investment of your time these last months!! I hope you will weigh in with your comments often during the 4th quarter!
Alex will be taking over as 4th quarter mentor when your courses begin again so keep checking the blog for his posts and e-mail your questions to him at govrel2005@yahoo.com. Also, since I am serving in a general support capacity, don’t hesitate to contact me as well (fairlady@truevine.net).
Have a delightful break and we’ll look forward to hearing from you in a couple of weeks!
Now is the time to take Gabe’s wonderful advice and forget about your finals. They are over (for better or worse – hopefully for better!) so leave them behind you. No worrying, fretting, wondering, obsessing, etc. will be tolerated from any of you!:) Just kidding. But in all seriousness, take it from one who spent many an hour wondering if they had answered this or that correctly: enjoy your break!! The 4th quarter will start before you know it so shut the law books and give yourself some well-deserved R & R!
A big thank you to Gabe for doing an outstanding job as 3rd quarter mentor!! Gabe, I know I speak for everyone when I say we are so grateful for you & the sacrificial investment of your time these last months!! I hope you will weigh in with your comments often during the 4th quarter!
Alex will be taking over as 4th quarter mentor when your courses begin again so keep checking the blog for his posts and e-mail your questions to him at govrel2005@yahoo.com. Also, since I am serving in a general support capacity, don’t hesitate to contact me as well (fairlady@truevine.net).
Have a delightful break and we’ll look forward to hearing from you in a couple of weeks!
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Study Breaks (Posted by Jenny)
Hello all!
As you countdown the last few days before finals, I would encourage you to keep the following in mind. When I took this advice it helped me tremendously. When I didn’t, I suffered unpleasant consequences.
It is a great temptation (with finals looming) to study flat out whenever you can for as long as you can. While my thoughts on “cramming for tests” are another sermon for another day, I cannot encourage you strongly enough to sprinkle breaks liberally throughout your study time.
I am not talking about long breaks. But no matter how hard it is, make yourself stop after you have studied for an hour to two hours and spend a few minutes eating a snack / reading a non law related book / taking a walk etc. YOUR BRAIN NEEDS A BIT OF TIME TO PROCESS WHAT YOU ARE MEMORIZING / LEARNING!! YOU WILL NOT BE EFFECTIVE IF YOU “BURN OUT” BY WORKING TOO LONG WITHOUT STEPPING AWAY FOR A LITTLE TIME. Btw, did you know your brain is always processing information, even when you are not studying?! How amazing is that?!
You will be surprised how concepts you were struggling to memorize / understand will become so much clearer when you come back to them after a break. You will also be refreshed and ready to “hit the books” with renewed energy.
If you are a workaholic (or studyaholic) like me, you will be tempted to work for hours without stopping. I found when I did that I only made it harder on myself. If I took breaks, my study time was more effective and enjoyable.
Of course, I was not working FT when I went through the paralegal course. If I had been juggling courses and FT work, this would not have been as much of an issue. And it goes without saying (but I’m going to say it) that those of you who struggle with taking too many breaks while studying (yes, that is possible) should not view this post as meant for you. You need to focus on doing the opposite and disciplining yourself to study for an hour or two before taking a break.
So study hard but remember: TAKE BREAKS!:)
As you countdown the last few days before finals, I would encourage you to keep the following in mind. When I took this advice it helped me tremendously. When I didn’t, I suffered unpleasant consequences.
It is a great temptation (with finals looming) to study flat out whenever you can for as long as you can. While my thoughts on “cramming for tests” are another sermon for another day, I cannot encourage you strongly enough to sprinkle breaks liberally throughout your study time.
I am not talking about long breaks. But no matter how hard it is, make yourself stop after you have studied for an hour to two hours and spend a few minutes eating a snack / reading a non law related book / taking a walk etc. YOUR BRAIN NEEDS A BIT OF TIME TO PROCESS WHAT YOU ARE MEMORIZING / LEARNING!! YOU WILL NOT BE EFFECTIVE IF YOU “BURN OUT” BY WORKING TOO LONG WITHOUT STEPPING AWAY FOR A LITTLE TIME. Btw, did you know your brain is always processing information, even when you are not studying?! How amazing is that?!
You will be surprised how concepts you were struggling to memorize / understand will become so much clearer when you come back to them after a break. You will also be refreshed and ready to “hit the books” with renewed energy.
If you are a workaholic (or studyaholic) like me, you will be tempted to work for hours without stopping. I found when I did that I only made it harder on myself. If I took breaks, my study time was more effective and enjoyable.
Of course, I was not working FT when I went through the paralegal course. If I had been juggling courses and FT work, this would not have been as much of an issue. And it goes without saying (but I’m going to say it) that those of you who struggle with taking too many breaks while studying (yes, that is possible) should not view this post as meant for you. You need to focus on doing the opposite and disciplining yourself to study for an hour or two before taking a break.
So study hard but remember: TAKE BREAKS!:)
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Finals Blessings (Posted by Jenny)
Hello guys,
I was reading through the Psalms a few days ago and the Lord brought you and your upcoming finals to mind as I read the following verses. I hope they will bless and encourage you as you study for your exams.
In particular, Psalms 18:39 will always have a special place in my heart. Several years ago, I was away from home cramming for one of my paralegal tests and found an index card in one of my textbooks with that verse written on it. I recognized the handwriting as my mother’s and knew she would be praying that verse for me as I studied. Isn’t it amazing how God uses mothers to give us exactly what we need even before we know we need anything?
You will all be in my thoughts & prayers over the next few weeks. May our Abba Father give you His perfect peace, wisdom, and gird you with strength “for the battle.”
Best of success,
Jenny
Psalm 18 (Amplified Version)
v. 28 For You cause my lamp to be lighted and to shine; the Lord my God illuminates my darkness.
v.29 For by You I can run through a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.
v.31 For who is God except the Lord? Or who is the Rock save our God?
v.32 The God who girds me with strength and makes my way perfect.
v.33 He makes my feet like hinds’ feet [able to stand firmly or make progress on the dangerous heights of testing and trouble] . He sets me securely upon my high places.
v.39 For You have girded me with strength for the battle…
I was reading through the Psalms a few days ago and the Lord brought you and your upcoming finals to mind as I read the following verses. I hope they will bless and encourage you as you study for your exams.
In particular, Psalms 18:39 will always have a special place in my heart. Several years ago, I was away from home cramming for one of my paralegal tests and found an index card in one of my textbooks with that verse written on it. I recognized the handwriting as my mother’s and knew she would be praying that verse for me as I studied. Isn’t it amazing how God uses mothers to give us exactly what we need even before we know we need anything?
You will all be in my thoughts & prayers over the next few weeks. May our Abba Father give you His perfect peace, wisdom, and gird you with strength “for the battle.”
Best of success,
Jenny
Psalm 18 (Amplified Version)
v. 28 For You cause my lamp to be lighted and to shine; the Lord my God illuminates my darkness.
v.29 For by You I can run through a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.
v.31 For who is God except the Lord? Or who is the Rock save our God?
v.32 The God who girds me with strength and makes my way perfect.
v.33 He makes my feet like hinds’ feet [able to stand firmly or make progress on the dangerous heights of testing and trouble] . He sets me securely upon my high places.
v.39 For You have girded me with strength for the battle…
Monday, April 30, 2007
Everyone's Favorite Time. (Posted by Gabe)
Through the paralegal course and 3 1/2 years of law school, I've taken a lot of finals. In fact, I just had another round about two weeks ago, so I'm fresh off the stress! As you all approach that time again, I thought I'd share with you some finals lessons I've learned over the years. I hope they are a blessing.
The most valuable lesson I have learned is devote my studies, and the accompanying tests, to the Lord. I don't just mean "pray about" your final exams--that is part of it, but I'm sure you're already doing that. I mean really truly, on a core level, remind yourself of why you are taking this paralegal course. I trust that you will come to the conclusion that you are taking this course to bring glory and honor to Jesus Christ. Coming to that realization can be very freeing! Prepare not for your final exam, but to bring glory to God through it.
Second, focus your study time. It is so easy to study scattershot, picking up bits and pieces, but that is not effective in legal courses. A couple weeks out from the exam, identify your trouble spots and really brush up on them, but just days before the course I would encourage you to do a broad review to remind yourselves how all of the rules fit together. It is amazing how many confusing portions of an exam can fall right together when you have the "big picture" of the subject.
Third, have key definitions locked in. It is possible to fudge definitions on an exam, but knowing your key definitions, and being able to repeat them at a moment's notice under the pressure of an exam, will be huge for you. Take the time to really get to know your definitions and elements--almost all of which will be found in your syllabus itself.
Finally, when the exam is done, forget about it. I don't mean forget the stuff you learned--just don't re-hash it to yourself. If you think you've done well, cross your fingers; if you think it has gone badly, dedicate it to God, but either way, move on. Don't waste time and emotional energy doing a "post mortem," especially if you have more exams coming up.
I won't give this next bit out as advice--lest I be accused of failing to follow my own advice--but getting enough sleep before an exam can really make the difference. If you run out of energy two-thirds of the way through the exam, all of your study won't help you, so sometimes it is better to sleep than cram!
May God bless your test-taking!
The most valuable lesson I have learned is devote my studies, and the accompanying tests, to the Lord. I don't just mean "pray about" your final exams--that is part of it, but I'm sure you're already doing that. I mean really truly, on a core level, remind yourself of why you are taking this paralegal course. I trust that you will come to the conclusion that you are taking this course to bring glory and honor to Jesus Christ. Coming to that realization can be very freeing! Prepare not for your final exam, but to bring glory to God through it.
Second, focus your study time. It is so easy to study scattershot, picking up bits and pieces, but that is not effective in legal courses. A couple weeks out from the exam, identify your trouble spots and really brush up on them, but just days before the course I would encourage you to do a broad review to remind yourselves how all of the rules fit together. It is amazing how many confusing portions of an exam can fall right together when you have the "big picture" of the subject.
Third, have key definitions locked in. It is possible to fudge definitions on an exam, but knowing your key definitions, and being able to repeat them at a moment's notice under the pressure of an exam, will be huge for you. Take the time to really get to know your definitions and elements--almost all of which will be found in your syllabus itself.
Finally, when the exam is done, forget about it. I don't mean forget the stuff you learned--just don't re-hash it to yourself. If you think you've done well, cross your fingers; if you think it has gone badly, dedicate it to God, but either way, move on. Don't waste time and emotional energy doing a "post mortem," especially if you have more exams coming up.
I won't give this next bit out as advice--lest I be accused of failing to follow my own advice--but getting enough sleep before an exam can really make the difference. If you run out of energy two-thirds of the way through the exam, all of your study won't help you, so sometimes it is better to sleep than cram!
May God bless your test-taking!
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Conlaw Final. (Posted by Gabe)
Well, it's that time again! Here's a question from among your ranks:
That being said, there are certainly some things that can really help you out.
1. You need to have a knowledge of all of the basic doctrines, and how they are applied. For instance, you need to know the due process analysis, the equal protection analysis, the basics of free speech, freedom of religion (both clauses!), etc. You will also need to be familiar with the governmental structure that the Constitution establishes--the three branches of government, the powers of the states, etc.
2. It is always very helpful to know where Constitutional rules are within the document itself. For instance, knowing that the powers of Congress are in Article 1, Section 8, and freedom to keep and bear arms is in the Second Amendment, and the separation of church and state isn't in there at all, will probably be useful.
3. There are some cases that you really should know. Marbury vs. Madison is the first on that comes to mind, and there are a few others that you should be able to cite by name if you are tested on the rules that they promulgated. Other than that, I would not recommend that you take a ton of time to learn case names. You would be better served learning the rules, tests, and Constitutional provisions.
I hope that helps out! I'm working on some general finals advice; check back soon for that.
I am currently studying for the constitutional law final exam and am a little overwhelmed with the amount of information in the course. Do you have any suggestions of what my main focus should be (is a broad knowledge sufficient, or do I need to know all of the cases and amendments?) or how I should study for the test?I would preface my answer by saying that I don't have any idea what is going to be on your final, or even what format your exam is (essays vs. short answer vs. multiple choice, etc). If any of you know, leave a comment and I'll try to restructure my answer accordingly.
That being said, there are certainly some things that can really help you out.
1. You need to have a knowledge of all of the basic doctrines, and how they are applied. For instance, you need to know the due process analysis, the equal protection analysis, the basics of free speech, freedom of religion (both clauses!), etc. You will also need to be familiar with the governmental structure that the Constitution establishes--the three branches of government, the powers of the states, etc.
2. It is always very helpful to know where Constitutional rules are within the document itself. For instance, knowing that the powers of Congress are in Article 1, Section 8, and freedom to keep and bear arms is in the Second Amendment, and the separation of church and state isn't in there at all, will probably be useful.
3. There are some cases that you really should know. Marbury vs. Madison is the first on that comes to mind, and there are a few others that you should be able to cite by name if you are tested on the rules that they promulgated. Other than that, I would not recommend that you take a ton of time to learn case names. You would be better served learning the rules, tests, and Constitutional provisions.
I hope that helps out! I'm working on some general finals advice; check back soon for that.
Friday, April 27, 2007
Site Update. (Posted by Gabe)
Hi Friends--
In this world of syndication, I finally discovered how to enable our blog Atom feed. If you use a feed reader, subscribe using the link now in the sidebar!
E-mail me if you have questions about subscribing. With finals approaching, now would be a good time to make sure you get the posts!
Also, e-mail me if you would like your blog added to the blogroll. I would love for this site to be a center for paralegal students and graduates--let's use the blogroll to do that! E-mail me your blog URL and we will start the cyber networking.
In this world of syndication, I finally discovered how to enable our blog Atom feed. If you use a feed reader, subscribe using the link now in the sidebar!
E-mail me if you have questions about subscribing. With finals approaching, now would be a good time to make sure you get the posts!
Also, e-mail me if you would like your blog added to the blogroll. I would love for this site to be a center for paralegal students and graduates--let's use the blogroll to do that! E-mail me your blog URL and we will start the cyber networking.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Thinking Like a Legal Professional. (Posted by Gabe)
Thanks to your recent Equal Protection Writing Assignment, each of you paralegal students has had the chance to think through a specific fact pattern and weigh all of the considerations that went in to answering it. Here's a question I received on that issue:
No legal fact scenario occurs in a vacuum. By this, I mean that the legal professional can almost never simply look at the law and come to a conclusion to do his or her job right. It is important to recognize that often you must start with extra-legal reasoning, which in the case of a Christian, starts with God's Word. There should be absolutely no shame in doing that, although obviously there is a balancing act--the client is paying for legal advice, not counseling, and as professionals we have the responsibility to provide legal representation.
Because it is a balancing act, there is no "right" answer. Every fact scenario is different, and every client has different personal needs and goals from the legal confrontation. If you reasoned through this fact pattern on a purely Constitutional basis, you were not wrong. But if you took the time to reason through the "worldview" behind the contentions, you have begun the process of thinking like a legal professional.
You may disagree with the contention that homosexuality should be protected by the Equal Protection Clause, but obviously the authors of the letter in this fact pattern disagree. Simply telling them that they were wrong won't change anyone's mind, and won't influence a court. Why, then, does the Constitution agree with your worldview? Why should a court follow your line of legal reasoning, instead of theirs? And what can you provide to persuade those with a different worldview than yours?
While I have no desire to give you an "answer" to the fact pattern--and would not be helping you if I did!--I hope that this helps as you prepare yourselves to be effective paralegals.
For this paper-- my initial thought is that any rdinance may not designate separate areas within the establishment for race (suspect class), but for homosexuals? Since that's not specifically in the chart, does that make them a non-suspect class applying rational basis test, or perhaps it's a fundamental right issue (to be able to attend business establishments without being segregated?). The person in the paper is claiming that their rights are on the level of a suspect class, which I don't think it is, so I guess that is where most of the discussion will take place....I'm just not sure about how we're supposed to think through these things--biblically vs. equal protection chart.That is a great question, and one that you should be learning to answer as you progress through this course. In law school they call it "thinking like a lawyer," but it is no less important as a paralegal. Paralegals often have the first chance to interact with a client and guide the thinking of the attorney, and the paralegal's ability to think through the fact situations and come to a conclusion is vital to success in the profession.
No legal fact scenario occurs in a vacuum. By this, I mean that the legal professional can almost never simply look at the law and come to a conclusion to do his or her job right. It is important to recognize that often you must start with extra-legal reasoning, which in the case of a Christian, starts with God's Word. There should be absolutely no shame in doing that, although obviously there is a balancing act--the client is paying for legal advice, not counseling, and as professionals we have the responsibility to provide legal representation.
Because it is a balancing act, there is no "right" answer. Every fact scenario is different, and every client has different personal needs and goals from the legal confrontation. If you reasoned through this fact pattern on a purely Constitutional basis, you were not wrong. But if you took the time to reason through the "worldview" behind the contentions, you have begun the process of thinking like a legal professional.
You may disagree with the contention that homosexuality should be protected by the Equal Protection Clause, but obviously the authors of the letter in this fact pattern disagree. Simply telling them that they were wrong won't change anyone's mind, and won't influence a court. Why, then, does the Constitution agree with your worldview? Why should a court follow your line of legal reasoning, instead of theirs? And what can you provide to persuade those with a different worldview than yours?
While I have no desire to give you an "answer" to the fact pattern--and would not be helping you if I did!--I hope that this helps as you prepare yourselves to be effective paralegals.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Prosecutors Beware! (Posted by Gabe)
If you follow national or sports news, you probably saw that today all charges were dropped against three Duke lacrosse players. But it was more than that! The attorney general of North Carolina almost literally shredded the district attorney for his actions in pursuing the case without evidence.
If you want to see what the AG had to say--and what you never, ever want to hear if you work for a prosecutor!--you can do so here.
This story, though, leads to a lot of different questions. Leave some comments with your thoughts!
1. Do you think that the district attorney should be disbarred for what he did?
2. Do you think it is right that the accuser who changed her story will probably get away scot free?
3. What do you think of the Attorney General's proposal? "Therefore, I propose a law that the North Carolina Supreme Court have the authority to remove a case from a prosecutor in limited circumstances. This would give the courts a new tool to deal with a prosecutor who needs to step away from a case where justice demands."
If you want to see what the AG had to say--and what you never, ever want to hear if you work for a prosecutor!--you can do so here.
This story, though, leads to a lot of different questions. Leave some comments with your thoughts!
1. Do you think that the district attorney should be disbarred for what he did?
2. Do you think it is right that the accuser who changed her story will probably get away scot free?
3. What do you think of the Attorney General's proposal? "Therefore, I propose a law that the North Carolina Supreme Court have the authority to remove a case from a prosecutor in limited circumstances. This would give the courts a new tool to deal with a prosecutor who needs to step away from a case where justice demands."
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Thai Justice (?) (Posted by Gabe)
As an avid sports fan, I subscribe to the ESPN RSS feed, and this came through just now. Since you are studying Criminal Law and Procedure, I thought it was appropos to send on.
Siriporn beats Miyano, boosts parole chances
Maybe it is a stupid question, but should winning a boxing match have anything to do with whether or not parole is granted? Your thoughts welcome.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
What is Equal Protection? (Posted by Gabe)
Here is the latest question, about Equal Protection:
"The syllabus gives a VERY brief overview and the nutshell book goes into too much detail. I am supposed to be writing a paper on this subject and feel totally unprepared. I am supposed to know the four part analysis of equal protection in relation to homosexuality. Is it correct to assert that homosexuals are not in a suspect class, a quasi-suspect class, a non-suspect class, and that their rights are not fundamental? Any help you could give would be enormously appreciated."
I would state at the outset that I do not feel comfortable answering the question on what it is, or is not, "correct to assert." That is up to you and your studies. I will, though, try to give you some help in the analysis--which can certainly be complex--so that you can figure out what would be the best argument to make.
While the syllabus overview is indeed very brief, it does lay out the four things you need to know to analyze. Those four things are numbered in the syllabus--actions that affect a person, different benefits or burdens, impermissible criteria or fundamental right, and the difference between purposeful and incidental discrimination.
Starting with the basics, constitutional law is about the tests designed to determine whether the government action is permissible or not. There are three, primarily:
--Strict Scrutiny. If the governmental action falls under this test, the burden is on the government to prove that their actions are the least restrictive means to accomplish a compelling state interest. If this test is used, the government action is almost always struck down, because if the private party can show that there is a better way for the government to accomplish its goal, the government loses.
--Intermediate Scrutiny. This one can be a bit fuzzy, but at its core, it means that the government must prove that their actions are substantially related to an important state interest.
--Rational Basis. Under this test, the burden of proof is really on the challenging party, and they must show that the government action is not rationally related to a legitimate state interest. Under this test, the governmental action is almost always upheld--unless it is completely ludicrous.
The key to Equal Protection is knowing which test to use, and the four step approach is designed to help you find exactly that. Take some time to think about it from a logical standpoint, and I think these four criteria will fall into place. Let's run through them in order:
1. Whether the government has taken any action that affects the person. It stands to reason that if the governmental action does not affect people, there can be no Equal Protection violation, because only people need to be equally protected, so to speak. If people are not affected by the law, none of the tests apply--the government action is not a violation of the EP clause.
2. Whether the government action classifies individuals for different legal benefits or
burdens. If the government action classifies everyone exactly the same, everyone is equally protected. Does that make sense? Equal protection is designed to give everyone the same treatment, so if the law does that it does not violate this clause. If the law gives everyone the same treatment, it could potentially be challenged under some other Constitutional provision, but no test is needed for Equal Protection--the action is valid.
3. Whether the government action discriminates on the basis of impermissible criteria or in
violation of a fundamental right. This is where it gets tough, and we'll come back to this one in a minute.
4. Whether the government has discriminated purposefully or incidentally. An example would be helpful here. Say XYZ City has a law that says, "Anyone making less than $20,000 a year must live in ABC Neighborhood." Now, I'm sure you can see that this purposefully discriminates on the basis of poverty--a non-suspect class, as we will discuss. Non-suspect classes give rise to the rational basis test, so a challenger would want to find a better argument. Say that they bring forward statistics that show that 85% of the families affected by this ordinance are African American. Now they are arguing that the ordinance discriminates on the basis of race--and they are right. But the discrimination is incidental; it's a by-product of the ordinance, not a purpose of it. Therefore, despite the incidental discrimination, the rational basis test would still apply.
OK, stop and take a deep breath. If something hasn't made sense so far, go back and re-read it, compare it to your syllabus, and ask questions if you can't figure out what I mean. Once your brain stops doing somersaults, let's move on.
The real "meat" of Equal Protection jurisprudence comes from the delineations of what sort of discrimination is OK in what circumstances. Starting at the foundation level, I'm sure you can already see how the fact that a law discriminates on some basis does not make it an automatic violation of EP. As your syllabus notes, every criminal law is a discrimination against something--if you are convicted of murder, the law is discriminating against you for killing someone. It doesn't take much reasoning to decide that there is no problem with that; without it law would be meaningless.
So when is a discrimination a violation of the Equal Protection Clause? When you are asking that question, in step 3 of the four-part test, I would encourage you to start with a two part question. Your syllabus mentions it, but doesn't clearly explain it, so I'm going to try.
The two part question is simply this: 1) Does the discrimination interfere with the exercise of a fundamental right? and 2) Does the discrimination use impermissible criteria? Let's take each of these in turn.
First, fundamental rights. You will be happy to know that you have already learned about this to a large degree in the last lesson--substantive due process also uses this fundamental rights approach. The only difference is that due process regards violations against an individual while equal protection regards violations against a class of people. With that one distinction in mind, if you understand substantive due process, you understand the fundamental rights prong of equal protection.
Second, impermissible criteria. The Supreme Court has laid out three different types of criteria, which as you know, are suspect, quasi-suspect, and non-suspect. The suspect category is the highest, and gives rise to the strict scrutiny test. Race is really the only time that the court will use this analysis.
While they recognized that race is the "worst" form of discrimination, the Court has also said that there are other categories of discrimination that are "bad." In these quasi-suspect categories, the government has to satisfy the higher burden of the intermediat scrutiny test.
Finally, there are those categories that are benign. The government can't be arbitrary or ludicrous, so it must still meet the rational basis test, but that is rather easy.
So where is all this law in the Constitution? It is certainly not written in there, and the courts have had to struggle with where to draw the line. It has been a hard task for them, and the result is the confusing system that I have attempted to lay out for you here. I hope that this overview gives you a structure that you can use to understand your Nutshell text better.
Good grief, I have written a thesis. Questions are more than welcome, via comment or e-mail.
"The syllabus gives a VERY brief overview and the nutshell book goes into too much detail. I am supposed to be writing a paper on this subject and feel totally unprepared. I am supposed to know the four part analysis of equal protection in relation to homosexuality. Is it correct to assert that homosexuals are not in a suspect class, a quasi-suspect class, a non-suspect class, and that their rights are not fundamental? Any help you could give would be enormously appreciated."
I would state at the outset that I do not feel comfortable answering the question on what it is, or is not, "correct to assert." That is up to you and your studies. I will, though, try to give you some help in the analysis--which can certainly be complex--so that you can figure out what would be the best argument to make.
While the syllabus overview is indeed very brief, it does lay out the four things you need to know to analyze. Those four things are numbered in the syllabus--actions that affect a person, different benefits or burdens, impermissible criteria or fundamental right, and the difference between purposeful and incidental discrimination.
Starting with the basics, constitutional law is about the tests designed to determine whether the government action is permissible or not. There are three, primarily:
--Strict Scrutiny. If the governmental action falls under this test, the burden is on the government to prove that their actions are the least restrictive means to accomplish a compelling state interest. If this test is used, the government action is almost always struck down, because if the private party can show that there is a better way for the government to accomplish its goal, the government loses.
--Intermediate Scrutiny. This one can be a bit fuzzy, but at its core, it means that the government must prove that their actions are substantially related to an important state interest.
--Rational Basis. Under this test, the burden of proof is really on the challenging party, and they must show that the government action is not rationally related to a legitimate state interest. Under this test, the governmental action is almost always upheld--unless it is completely ludicrous.
The key to Equal Protection is knowing which test to use, and the four step approach is designed to help you find exactly that. Take some time to think about it from a logical standpoint, and I think these four criteria will fall into place. Let's run through them in order:
1. Whether the government has taken any action that affects the person. It stands to reason that if the governmental action does not affect people, there can be no Equal Protection violation, because only people need to be equally protected, so to speak. If people are not affected by the law, none of the tests apply--the government action is not a violation of the EP clause.
2. Whether the government action classifies individuals for different legal benefits or
burdens. If the government action classifies everyone exactly the same, everyone is equally protected. Does that make sense? Equal protection is designed to give everyone the same treatment, so if the law does that it does not violate this clause. If the law gives everyone the same treatment, it could potentially be challenged under some other Constitutional provision, but no test is needed for Equal Protection--the action is valid.
3. Whether the government action discriminates on the basis of impermissible criteria or in
violation of a fundamental right. This is where it gets tough, and we'll come back to this one in a minute.
4. Whether the government has discriminated purposefully or incidentally. An example would be helpful here. Say XYZ City has a law that says, "Anyone making less than $20,000 a year must live in ABC Neighborhood." Now, I'm sure you can see that this purposefully discriminates on the basis of poverty--a non-suspect class, as we will discuss. Non-suspect classes give rise to the rational basis test, so a challenger would want to find a better argument. Say that they bring forward statistics that show that 85% of the families affected by this ordinance are African American. Now they are arguing that the ordinance discriminates on the basis of race--and they are right. But the discrimination is incidental; it's a by-product of the ordinance, not a purpose of it. Therefore, despite the incidental discrimination, the rational basis test would still apply.
OK, stop and take a deep breath. If something hasn't made sense so far, go back and re-read it, compare it to your syllabus, and ask questions if you can't figure out what I mean. Once your brain stops doing somersaults, let's move on.
The real "meat" of Equal Protection jurisprudence comes from the delineations of what sort of discrimination is OK in what circumstances. Starting at the foundation level, I'm sure you can already see how the fact that a law discriminates on some basis does not make it an automatic violation of EP. As your syllabus notes, every criminal law is a discrimination against something--if you are convicted of murder, the law is discriminating against you for killing someone. It doesn't take much reasoning to decide that there is no problem with that; without it law would be meaningless.
So when is a discrimination a violation of the Equal Protection Clause? When you are asking that question, in step 3 of the four-part test, I would encourage you to start with a two part question. Your syllabus mentions it, but doesn't clearly explain it, so I'm going to try.
The two part question is simply this: 1) Does the discrimination interfere with the exercise of a fundamental right? and 2) Does the discrimination use impermissible criteria? Let's take each of these in turn.
First, fundamental rights. You will be happy to know that you have already learned about this to a large degree in the last lesson--substantive due process also uses this fundamental rights approach. The only difference is that due process regards violations against an individual while equal protection regards violations against a class of people. With that one distinction in mind, if you understand substantive due process, you understand the fundamental rights prong of equal protection.
Second, impermissible criteria. The Supreme Court has laid out three different types of criteria, which as you know, are suspect, quasi-suspect, and non-suspect. The suspect category is the highest, and gives rise to the strict scrutiny test. Race is really the only time that the court will use this analysis.
While they recognized that race is the "worst" form of discrimination, the Court has also said that there are other categories of discrimination that are "bad." In these quasi-suspect categories, the government has to satisfy the higher burden of the intermediat scrutiny test.
Finally, there are those categories that are benign. The government can't be arbitrary or ludicrous, so it must still meet the rational basis test, but that is rather easy.
So where is all this law in the Constitution? It is certainly not written in there, and the courts have had to struggle with where to draw the line. It has been a hard task for them, and the result is the confusing system that I have attempted to lay out for you here. I hope that this overview gives you a structure that you can use to understand your Nutshell text better.
Good grief, I have written a thesis. Questions are more than welcome, via comment or e-mail.
A Conciliation Resource. (Posted by Gabe)
Hi Guys--
When we were talking about secular books for Christian Conciliation, I recommended "Beyond Reason," an excellent book about using emotions as you negotiate.
I just discovered that they have a website with further resources, that I would recommend you check out if you have the time.
www.beyond-reason.net
Enjoy!
When we were talking about secular books for Christian Conciliation, I recommended "Beyond Reason," an excellent book about using emotions as you negotiate.
I just discovered that they have a website with further resources, that I would recommend you check out if you have the time.
www.beyond-reason.net
Enjoy!
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
A Different ConLaw Perspective. (Posted by Gabe)
Hi Friends--
As a part of my work with Remember, I have to monitor news on the persecuted church worldwide. Today I saw this article, and thought you might be interested in seeing a Constitutional perspective from an entirely different cultural view--the country of Egypt.
It is certainly a very different constitution than ours! Click here to read the story.
As a part of my work with Remember, I have to monitor news on the persecuted church worldwide. Today I saw this article, and thought you might be interested in seeing a Constitutional perspective from an entirely different cultural view--the country of Egypt.
It is certainly a very different constitution than ours! Click here to read the story.
Friday, March 16, 2007
ConLaw: What's to Know? (Posted by Gabe)
Hi Friends--
Got a question from one of you last night; here it is, with my thoughts. "I am trying to get through the reading for constitutional law and am having a really hard time with the nutshell book. Will I really need to know what's in that book? Is there anything I should be focusing on while reading to help me comprehend and enjoy the book more?"
Great question.
The nutshell book just like its name would imply--hard to chew and harder to digest. (If you have ever tried to eat even a peanut shell, you know what I mean. And I would compare this book to more of a walnut, to be honest.)
ConLaw in general is a tough subject to learn in a course like this, because it is a constant war between three sparring factions. Broad legal theories, minute points, and personal opinions are constantly duking it out. Your task is to separate the three and talk knowledgeably on each of them at the right time.
Your nutshell book is going to help you learn some of those minute points; that is what it is designed for. Keeping that in mind as you read it should help you--it is important information, but only important in that context. You will learn the broad rules as you read the Constitution and your other study materials, and you will learn personal opinion as you read the justice's opinions, but when it comes to those minute points, the Nutshell is the way to go.
I certainly hope that this helps you put it all in perspective.
Oh, I think the time is about right to go ahead and answer my own question. I asked you to tell me what the Constitutional provision for Roe v. Wade was, and you came up with some good answers. The real answer, in the final analysis, though, is that no one knows. Some have argued the due process clause of the 14th Amendment, some have argued the 9th Amendment, but even Justice Blackmun, who wrote the opinion, couldn't say what his rationale was. (I'll try to get you the exact quote sometime soon.)
The Court concluded that there were enough "emanations" from the "penumbra" of these constitutional provisions to justify their ruling. To translate the gobbledygook, they claimed to feel the vibes from the shadows of the Constitution, even though they couldn't point to where those vibes came from.
So, take a minute and think about this. Where did the justices go wrong? Was it in broad legal principle, minute detail, or their personal opinions?
Leave a comment and tell me what you think.
Got a question from one of you last night; here it is, with my thoughts. "I am trying to get through the reading for constitutional law and am having a really hard time with the nutshell book. Will I really need to know what's in that book? Is there anything I should be focusing on while reading to help me comprehend and enjoy the book more?"
Great question.
The nutshell book just like its name would imply--hard to chew and harder to digest. (If you have ever tried to eat even a peanut shell, you know what I mean. And I would compare this book to more of a walnut, to be honest.)
ConLaw in general is a tough subject to learn in a course like this, because it is a constant war between three sparring factions. Broad legal theories, minute points, and personal opinions are constantly duking it out. Your task is to separate the three and talk knowledgeably on each of them at the right time.
Your nutshell book is going to help you learn some of those minute points; that is what it is designed for. Keeping that in mind as you read it should help you--it is important information, but only important in that context. You will learn the broad rules as you read the Constitution and your other study materials, and you will learn personal opinion as you read the justice's opinions, but when it comes to those minute points, the Nutshell is the way to go.
I certainly hope that this helps you put it all in perspective.
Oh, I think the time is about right to go ahead and answer my own question. I asked you to tell me what the Constitutional provision for Roe v. Wade was, and you came up with some good answers. The real answer, in the final analysis, though, is that no one knows. Some have argued the due process clause of the 14th Amendment, some have argued the 9th Amendment, but even Justice Blackmun, who wrote the opinion, couldn't say what his rationale was. (I'll try to get you the exact quote sometime soon.)
The Court concluded that there were enough "emanations" from the "penumbra" of these constitutional provisions to justify their ruling. To translate the gobbledygook, they claimed to feel the vibes from the shadows of the Constitution, even though they couldn't point to where those vibes came from.
So, take a minute and think about this. Where did the justices go wrong? Was it in broad legal principle, minute detail, or their personal opinions?
Leave a comment and tell me what you think.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Secular Book Recommendation for Christian Conciliation Course (Posted by Jenny)
Hi y'all-
The book I used for my Book Review / Comparison paper was The Eight Essential Steps to Conflict Resolution by Dudley Weeks, MD. I found this book to be both sufficiently secular and a fascinating read. I would definitely recommend it to you for consideration - if you have yet to select a secular book.
An important note on secular conciliation books: You will want to exercise caution and discernment as you make your selection. I distinctly remember being shocked at what was on the secular conciliation shelf at Barnes & Noble. Some books are only fit for kindling or the recycle bin. And as I am sure you know, in your quest to write an excellent book review paper, Professor Gundlach would not want you reading anything defiling.
All that said, happy reading! God used the Christian Conciliation course to teach me many things. So grab your favorite beverage and get ready to be challenged!
Many Blessings,
Jenny
The book I used for my Book Review / Comparison paper was The Eight Essential Steps to Conflict Resolution by Dudley Weeks, MD. I found this book to be both sufficiently secular and a fascinating read. I would definitely recommend it to you for consideration - if you have yet to select a secular book.
An important note on secular conciliation books: You will want to exercise caution and discernment as you make your selection. I distinctly remember being shocked at what was on the secular conciliation shelf at Barnes & Noble. Some books are only fit for kindling or the recycle bin. And as I am sure you know, in your quest to write an excellent book review paper, Professor Gundlach would not want you reading anything defiling.
All that said, happy reading! God used the Christian Conciliation course to teach me many things. So grab your favorite beverage and get ready to be challenged!
Many Blessings,
Jenny
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Course Intro: Constitutional Law. (Posted by Gabe)
I saved the best for last, friends. While there might be more valuable courses, and while there might be less frustrating courses (for those of us that are more ideological!), there is no course in paralegal--or in JD, for that matter--more fun than Constitutional law, in my not-so-humble opinion.
The first thing to remember when it comes to this course is that you are not trying to argue what you believe; you are trying to learn the overarching principles of law as they have been articulated by the Supreme Court. I would hasten to say that learning these principles, in some cases, will be for the purpose of enabling you to argue with them effectively! So learn with a mind on figuring out what they are saying; once you understand that you will be ready to seek the truth.
This course is designed to give you a very broad overview of the subject, starting with the overarching principles that led to the constitution in the first place. Those of you that really want to delve into the Supreme Court precedent, you have been given a great starting point in the Nutshell textbook, but the cases that form the Intro to ConLaw outline should be all of the actual precedent that you need to do well in this course.
I hope you enjoy this course as much as I did. Before you dig into the meat, though, I'd like to test your knowledge. We all know about the case of Roe v. Wade, but who can tell me what Constitutional provision it is based on?
Please e-mail any questions you may have on any of your Third Quarter Courses.
The first thing to remember when it comes to this course is that you are not trying to argue what you believe; you are trying to learn the overarching principles of law as they have been articulated by the Supreme Court. I would hasten to say that learning these principles, in some cases, will be for the purpose of enabling you to argue with them effectively! So learn with a mind on figuring out what they are saying; once you understand that you will be ready to seek the truth.
This course is designed to give you a very broad overview of the subject, starting with the overarching principles that led to the constitution in the first place. Those of you that really want to delve into the Supreme Court precedent, you have been given a great starting point in the Nutshell textbook, but the cases that form the Intro to ConLaw outline should be all of the actual precedent that you need to do well in this course.
I hope you enjoy this course as much as I did. Before you dig into the meat, though, I'd like to test your knowledge. We all know about the case of Roe v. Wade, but who can tell me what Constitutional provision it is based on?
Please e-mail any questions you may have on any of your Third Quarter Courses.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
What's in a Lesson Reflection Paper? (Posted by Gabe)
Hi guys--
I'm writing in response to a question from one of you. Here it is: "I had a question about the lesson reflection papers that I am required to write every week. The syllabus gives barely any guidelines on how these are supposed to be written. Should I be summarizing the chapter or should I be only giving my opinion on the reading? Any insights you could share would be much appreciated."
Part of any real learning process is application. Learning--especially for a practical course like this one-- is not just in reading a book, even a great book like "The Peacemaker." The purpose of the lesson reflection paper is really to help you go through that application process. You should use these papers to independently think through the lesson's topics in terms of your own life or your own Biblical analysis.
You can approach these papers from a multitude of angles. You can write them as a testimonies, how you did--or should have--applied this truth in your own life. You can write them as an analysis of situations you saw. You can write about Biblical situations, or Biblical analysis using your own Scripture study.
I would encourage you to take these papers and focus on taking the theory and personalizing it for real life.
Feel free to leave comments and questions if you have further thoughts!
I'm writing in response to a question from one of you. Here it is: "I had a question about the lesson reflection papers that I am required to write every week. The syllabus gives barely any guidelines on how these are supposed to be written. Should I be summarizing the chapter or should I be only giving my opinion on the reading? Any insights you could share would be much appreciated."
Part of any real learning process is application. Learning--especially for a practical course like this one-- is not just in reading a book, even a great book like "The Peacemaker." The purpose of the lesson reflection paper is really to help you go through that application process. You should use these papers to independently think through the lesson's topics in terms of your own life or your own Biblical analysis.
You can approach these papers from a multitude of angles. You can write them as a testimonies, how you did--or should have--applied this truth in your own life. You can write them as an analysis of situations you saw. You can write about Biblical situations, or Biblical analysis using your own Scripture study.
I would encourage you to take these papers and focus on taking the theory and personalizing it for real life.
Feel free to leave comments and questions if you have further thoughts!
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
Course Intro: Christian Conciliation. (Posted by Gabe)
I can't think of a more important course for any paralegal student--or any Christian--than that of Christian Conciliation. You won't learn substantive law in this course, but substantive law is worthless if you cannot use it to solve disputes. Sometimes those disputes are litigation--but Christian conciliation allows believers to solve disputes while both maintaining their witness and encouraging their brothers and sisters in Christ.
This course is designed to give you a Biblical basis for your thinking on dispute resolution, and then to allow you to think critically through secular theories and practical situations. I would encourage you to think through the theory you are given in terms of your own life. I would imagine that each of you is going through situations that could be classified as "disputes," be they large or small. If you can apply these Biblical principles in your own life, you will truly be equipped to help others in your paralegal careers and in your personal lives.
If you have not read Ken Sande's book, you are in for a treat in this course. If you have--the second time is even better. Mr. Sande and his Peacemaker Ministries have blessed thousands of Christians both directly and indirectly, and his teaching is both practical and Biblical. Use your course notebook as a chance to learn this truth...and get credit for it!
Part of the course, though, as you know, is reading a secular book on these topics and comparing it to the Biblical principles that form the core of the course. One of you has asked me what I would recommend, and a couple books came immediately to mind. These are only suggestions; you are welcome to come up with your own! The alternative dispute resolution course for the OBCL JD course had two excellent textbooks from the secular standpoint:
--"Getting to Yes" by Roger Fisher and William Ury. This is a small book, easy read, with some rather groundbreaking negotiation principles.
--"Effective Legal Negotiation and Settlement" by Charles Craver. This book in an exhaustive negotiation and ADR text--not an easy read, but chock full of insight into all facets of negotiations.
Another secular negotiation book that I can recommend is called "Beyond Reason," by Roger Fisher and Daniel Shapiro. It approaches the entire process from the aspect of emotions; a very interesting read.
But I don't want to do all of the recommending, as I am sure there are dozens of excellent books that would fit the bill that I have not read. I would rather open the floor for you to discuss books you are thinking about using. That's what the comment section is for!
God bless.
This course is designed to give you a Biblical basis for your thinking on dispute resolution, and then to allow you to think critically through secular theories and practical situations. I would encourage you to think through the theory you are given in terms of your own life. I would imagine that each of you is going through situations that could be classified as "disputes," be they large or small. If you can apply these Biblical principles in your own life, you will truly be equipped to help others in your paralegal careers and in your personal lives.
If you have not read Ken Sande's book, you are in for a treat in this course. If you have--the second time is even better. Mr. Sande and his Peacemaker Ministries have blessed thousands of Christians both directly and indirectly, and his teaching is both practical and Biblical. Use your course notebook as a chance to learn this truth...and get credit for it!
Part of the course, though, as you know, is reading a secular book on these topics and comparing it to the Biblical principles that form the core of the course. One of you has asked me what I would recommend, and a couple books came immediately to mind. These are only suggestions; you are welcome to come up with your own! The alternative dispute resolution course for the OBCL JD course had two excellent textbooks from the secular standpoint:
--"Getting to Yes" by Roger Fisher and William Ury. This is a small book, easy read, with some rather groundbreaking negotiation principles.
--"Effective Legal Negotiation and Settlement" by Charles Craver. This book in an exhaustive negotiation and ADR text--not an easy read, but chock full of insight into all facets of negotiations.
Another secular negotiation book that I can recommend is called "Beyond Reason," by Roger Fisher and Daniel Shapiro. It approaches the entire process from the aspect of emotions; a very interesting read.
But I don't want to do all of the recommending, as I am sure there are dozens of excellent books that would fit the bill that I have not read. I would rather open the floor for you to discuss books you are thinking about using. That's what the comment section is for!
God bless.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Course Intro: Criminal Law and Procedure. (Posted by Gabe)
Hi Friends--
Next along the lines of course intros for your third quarter is a personal favorite of mine. I'm the Teaching Assistant for the criminal law portion of the JD program, and the criminal procedure is just fun in and of itself. Combining both of these courses is a TON of information, though, so gear yourselves up for some hardcore learning!
If there is one key to criminal law (Lessons 1-7), it is remembering that criminal law is elemental. By "elemental," I mean that every criminal law definition has certain elements, and to commit a crime, the perpetrator must commit every one of those elements. If the perpetrator commits four out of five elements, there is still no crime!
Every crime has at least two of these elements, at its most basic--an actus reus and a mens rea, meaning a guilty act and a guilty mind. Many times the guilty act will have multiple elements to it. Make sure, though, that when it comes to studying the mens rea or guilty mind, that you memorize what type of mental state is required for each crime.
Keep those basics in mind, memorize hard, and always remember exceptions--and you will be well on your way for criminal law. Criminal procedure is a horse of a different color. Based almost entirely on the Constitution, you will be learning precedents from the Supreme Court on the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th amendments primarily.
Reading the actual cases is a good idea, but don't take that overboard. Distill the cases down to the rules that they have become famous for. A good example of this is a case you probably already recognize--Miranda v. Arizona. You've heard the warnings before: "You have the right to remain silent" and so on. You will be learning the broader theories of law that led to this specific decision.
I hope that gets you started on this subject. Happy studying!
Next along the lines of course intros for your third quarter is a personal favorite of mine. I'm the Teaching Assistant for the criminal law portion of the JD program, and the criminal procedure is just fun in and of itself. Combining both of these courses is a TON of information, though, so gear yourselves up for some hardcore learning!
If there is one key to criminal law (Lessons 1-7), it is remembering that criminal law is elemental. By "elemental," I mean that every criminal law definition has certain elements, and to commit a crime, the perpetrator must commit every one of those elements. If the perpetrator commits four out of five elements, there is still no crime!
Every crime has at least two of these elements, at its most basic--an actus reus and a mens rea, meaning a guilty act and a guilty mind. Many times the guilty act will have multiple elements to it. Make sure, though, that when it comes to studying the mens rea or guilty mind, that you memorize what type of mental state is required for each crime.
Keep those basics in mind, memorize hard, and always remember exceptions--and you will be well on your way for criminal law. Criminal procedure is a horse of a different color. Based almost entirely on the Constitution, you will be learning precedents from the Supreme Court on the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 8th amendments primarily.
Reading the actual cases is a good idea, but don't take that overboard. Distill the cases down to the rules that they have become famous for. A good example of this is a case you probably already recognize--Miranda v. Arizona. You've heard the warnings before: "You have the right to remain silent" and so on. You will be learning the broader theories of law that led to this specific decision.
I hope that gets you started on this subject. Happy studying!
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Course Intro: Business Organizations. (Posted by Gabe)
Dear Students--
From what I hear, you should be near the beginning of your third quarter of studies. I have been designated your third quarter mentor, and will do my best to assist you along the way. I must admit, when I saw the courses that I get to help you with, I got excited--these are wonderful courses, and I think you are going to have a great semester.
I'm going to start with the course that I would imagine has you the most worried. Now, I could be wrong on that front--I hope that you are looking forward to Business Orgs--but this was certainly the course in this semester that worried me when I went through the paralegal program. I was very surprised to find that I actually loved the course. Not only was it easy to follow and understand, but it's practical. I recently, and rather unexpectedly, became the CEO of a non-profit corporation, and this paralegal course got me started with the knowledge I need.
The key to Business Organizations is in remembering the different criteria for each organization. No matter how complex the organization--as simple as a sole proprietorship or as complex as a corporation--you can identify the structure by identifying the responses to these criteria.
These critera are found in your syllabus, and I would encourage you to start by memorizing them. Don't stop there, though! Take the information in your textbook that fills out these criteria, and create a "mind map" that outlines all of the issues that can arise from that type of organizational structure. I did just that, and it not only helped me through the paralegal, but got me through law school business orgs class, too!
The knowledge in this class is highly practical, but at times it can seem rather theoretical and obtuse. The best way that you can reduce the theoretical aspect is to think in terms of real-life situations. If you follow the stock market, for instance, you will be able to apply your knowledge of those corporations to the theory you are learning in this course.
A large part of the purpose of this blog is to facilitate class interaction and knowledge sharing, so now it is your turn. Take some time to think about what real-life situations you are going to use to help you learn the theory in this course.
And then tell us about it!
From what I hear, you should be near the beginning of your third quarter of studies. I have been designated your third quarter mentor, and will do my best to assist you along the way. I must admit, when I saw the courses that I get to help you with, I got excited--these are wonderful courses, and I think you are going to have a great semester.
I'm going to start with the course that I would imagine has you the most worried. Now, I could be wrong on that front--I hope that you are looking forward to Business Orgs--but this was certainly the course in this semester that worried me when I went through the paralegal program. I was very surprised to find that I actually loved the course. Not only was it easy to follow and understand, but it's practical. I recently, and rather unexpectedly, became the CEO of a non-profit corporation, and this paralegal course got me started with the knowledge I need.
The key to Business Organizations is in remembering the different criteria for each organization. No matter how complex the organization--as simple as a sole proprietorship or as complex as a corporation--you can identify the structure by identifying the responses to these criteria.
These critera are found in your syllabus, and I would encourage you to start by memorizing them. Don't stop there, though! Take the information in your textbook that fills out these criteria, and create a "mind map" that outlines all of the issues that can arise from that type of organizational structure. I did just that, and it not only helped me through the paralegal, but got me through law school business orgs class, too!
The knowledge in this class is highly practical, but at times it can seem rather theoretical and obtuse. The best way that you can reduce the theoretical aspect is to think in terms of real-life situations. If you follow the stock market, for instance, you will be able to apply your knowledge of those corporations to the theory you are learning in this course.
A large part of the purpose of this blog is to facilitate class interaction and knowledge sharing, so now it is your turn. Take some time to think about what real-life situations you are going to use to help you learn the theory in this course.
And then tell us about it!
Congratulations! (posted by Jenny)
Hello!
A huge congratulations to all of you for completing your 2nd quarter of the paralegal program! I hope you are enjoying your break from studies and giving yourself a well deserved pat on the back for all your hard work. Just think, you are halfway done with your law studies!! Now if that isn't cause for celebration, I don't know what is - no matter how much you may love studying law.:)
Enjoy the rest of your break & please visit my blog: http://www.xanga.com/jenfairlady
I have a special message there for you!
A huge congratulations to all of you for completing your 2nd quarter of the paralegal program! I hope you are enjoying your break from studies and giving yourself a well deserved pat on the back for all your hard work. Just think, you are halfway done with your law studies!! Now if that isn't cause for celebration, I don't know what is - no matter how much you may love studying law.:)
Enjoy the rest of your break & please visit my blog: http://www.xanga.com/jenfairlady
I have a special message there for you!
Friday, February 16, 2007
Quick Update. (Posted by Gabe)
Hi Friends--
I hope that many of you have found your way here based on the e-mail from Professor Gundlach. I also hope that this blog will be an excellent tool to allow you to ask questions and obtain feedback from those of us that are here to help you out.
If you are an OBCL Paralegal student, please feel free to leave questions as comments to this blog--and feel free to share thoughts with each other based on those questions! Another way to ask a question is to e-mail one of the mentors, using the e-mail addresses provided by Professor Gundlach. We'll post the answer to your question on the blog so that all the students can benefit from it.
Happy studying. I look forward to hearing from you soon.
I hope that many of you have found your way here based on the e-mail from Professor Gundlach. I also hope that this blog will be an excellent tool to allow you to ask questions and obtain feedback from those of us that are here to help you out.
If you are an OBCL Paralegal student, please feel free to leave questions as comments to this blog--and feel free to share thoughts with each other based on those questions! Another way to ask a question is to e-mail one of the mentors, using the e-mail addresses provided by Professor Gundlach. We'll post the answer to your question on the blog so that all the students can benefit from it.
Happy studying. I look forward to hearing from you soon.
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