Taking Stock

The fall semester is over. As expected, the Property final was the hardest. It's the only one that I think there's a realistic chance that I failed. About half the points on the test came from multiple choice questions, which are a bane because they allow for no possibility of partial credit.

There will be no grades until well into the spring semester. I'm trying not to let the uncertainty ruin my vacation. My gut feeling coming out of the tests is more or less as follows. Civil Procedure and Torts: thumbs up. Property and Contracts: thumbs down. Legal Research is a wild card because that test was 100% multiple choice. There was no test in legal writing, but I'll be disappointed if my final paper doesn't earn me an A. We'll see how my predictions hold up.

Four Down, One To Go

So far, exams have not lived up to their intimidating reputation. The staple of law school exams is what are called "issue spotting" essay questions: the question will rattle off a half-page description of some fictional events, then say "discuss any legal issues raised," or "advise Mr. Smith as to his legal rights." The facts are laid out in such a way that every few sentences invokes some very specific point of law covered in class. None of the tests has flummoxed me yet, so I'm sure I've passed. My grades will depend on whether I spotted as many issues and discussed them as thoroughly as my classmates.

One day left to prepare for the Property exam, and then it will all be over. Property is going to be murder. We covered more material in that class than in any other. It's also the only exam in which we're permitted to use notes: we can bring one page of typewritten notes to the test, subject to limits on font and margin size. I take that to mean that we're going to be asked some very specific questions.

Cheaters

I went to the restroom during the Contracts final and saw a contracts textbook poorly concealed behind the toilet, so I guess there's some truth to the idea that lawyers are drawn from the ranks of society's most dishonest and self-serving. The smart thing would have been to tell the professor at once, but I let the sleeping dog lie. Now when the cheating comes to light (and it will - at least half the guys who went to the bathroom during the test must have seen the book there), I'll be a suspect. My name is on the bathroom break sign-out sheet not once but twice. I'll just have to hope that whoever was lazy enough to cheat was also dumb enough to write his name in his book.

On the plus side, the test went fine. I have no illusions that I aced it, but I did not feel underprepared.

Underprepared For Exams

Exams start tomorrow. The stereotype would have me sweating over books and notes well into the night, but I just can't bring myself to do that. I went to class and kept up with the reading all semester long. If I didn't learn the material then, I don't see how cramming would help me now. I haven't given up my evenings and I haven't spent any money on study aids (every first-year law student in the country takes the same courses, so study aids for those courses are big business). I've typed up my notes and put in several hours reviewing them. That will have to do.

Some of my classmates, on the other hand, seem to be cramming like crazy. I've sneered at their seeming slacker attitudes for months. Now we'll see if they can show me up on the tests. Of course, I'm sure some students worked hard all semester and are still cramming for the tests. I can live with being beaten by those lunatics.

Pep Talk

Every professor delivered some version of the same pep talk about finals: study hard, don't panic, it's not life or death, etc. The Civil Procedure professor's speech included words to the effect of, "Some of you may find that you just weren't born with the sort of analytical mind required for the study of law. Don't feel bad. I'm sure you'll be very successful at something else." Ouch!

The End

Classes are over. It was a race to the finish, with most professors cramming as much material as they could into the last session. Now there are eight days until the first exam. Hopefully I can maintain a disciplined study schedule until then.

The Contracts exam comes first, thank goodness. It was my least favorite class, so I'll be glad to get that exam out of the way. Property, which I expect to be the hardest test, will cap off the semester in two weeks and two days.