Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Spewing Champagne

My last final is about 14 hours away. I'm prepared. I mainly just want to get this crap over with so I can officially say, "I'm no longer a 1L." The last exam is in Property. Property is sort of boring. There aren't many great hypotheticals that I could construct to strike your funny bone. So I won't even attempt. When exams are through, I will provide some sort of summary or "look-back" of the past year including how law school has changed the way I think and view the world...even more pessimistic than previously (is that possible?). I must say, the journey through the first year has been exciting, fun, stressful, stressful, stressful x 4, and full of beer.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Bling bling

I'm coming down of my stress high like those meth heads do when they run out of goods. Just a couple more days and year one will officially be in the books. Once I make it through Contracts II and Property II, I'm home free. My Contracts final is Monday night. Not much time to be chit-chatty, so I'll leave you with my favorite Contracts hypothetical...

George and Phyllis get engaged to be married. George gives Phyllis an engagement ring. Phyllis becomes a hooker and decides its more fun to spread the love. George is obviously distraught. He becomes a trucker and does just the same as Phyllis. He spreads his love. In the meantime, George requests the ring back from Phyllis. She refuses to give it back. George brings suit to recover the ring. Will he be successful?

If I'm his attorney, of course he will. Without discussing the details, Phyllis has been unjustly enriched. George will be successful.

Friday, April 25, 2008

Tortsie

One exam down. Two to go...Next week that is. The stress reached its boiling point prior to the final. However, I felt that I did pretty well. I don't feel quite as comfortable as last semester's Tort exam, but this was a lot different. Let's just pray that everyone was in the same boat. After discussing the exam with others, I feel confident that I managed my game well. I guess I'll just have to wait and see. The weekend is mine. Back to studying.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Caffeine...a kids best friend

Well, it's go time. It's about 5 in the morning, so I guess I'll quit studying for the "night". This first exam is 13 hours away. I think I'm prepared, but you never really know. I'll try to rise around noonish to dust away any doubts in a few areas of Tort law that I may have. Due to the nature of having so many different rules for the various jurisdictions (unlike Torts I when most of the rules were bright-line), half the test is essay and then 35 multiple choice questions. It's not like most multiple choice exams though. He stated that nearly every possible choice will likely be correct. It is our duty to determine the best answer. What cock-weasel, eh?

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Brief quotes

Some good quotes I've come across in my Torts notes...Man, I'll miss having this dude as a professor.

"Going after multiple defendants in search of a deep pocket is like hunting a mouse with a missile launcher. You're bound to get something."

"A thousand angels dancing on the head of a pen. Too much is too much."

"Having a solvent defendant (due to bankruptcy, etc.) is like calling someone names that is never going to hear it."

"You're a cartoon. (discussing those annoying Law & Order attorneys)"

"Statutes of limitations are sometimes tolled to prevent the Defendant from saying 'Na na na na na, you can't sue."

"Under joint and several liability, when one of the Defendants cannot pay, the rest get screwed and have to make up the difference."

In response to a students question regarding the use of a calculator on the exam, "Do you really need a calculator to determine damages resulting from percentages of round figures such as $100?"

"Contrary to the real world, ferrets are considered wild animals in Tort law. Therefore, the owner of a pit-bull will less likely be held liable than the owner of a ferret...owners of wild animals are held to a higher standard of care."

Regarding products liability and the unreasonable misuse of the product, "You can't sue the maker of a law mower if you decide to trim the hedges with it."

"Regulating Tort law is like doing brain surgery with a broad sword. What good is Tort law in deterring when you have regulations that deter from the get-go?"

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Update

Yeah, yeah, yeah...I'm still busting my balls studying. I feel like a slave to the law, or at least to the practice of it. I don't have time to put much thought into this post since my energy is running on "E" at the moment and I think I'm about to crash for the night. Two more days remain until those treacherous law school exams are smacking me in the face again. Like I've mentioned before, I sort of feed off of this stress. Call me a tool, but I enjoy this crap. I'll leave with the mention of a funny case that I just reviewed, involving a supposed design defect.

Some dude dove off the roof of a neighbor's house into an above-ground pool with a water depth of 4 feet. Call me not-so-adventurous, but this sounds like a complete idiot. Anyway, he obviously suffered severe head injuries and sought to sue the manufacturer of the pool. He claimed that the pool's floor liner design was defective since it consisted of slippery vinyl. He claimed the vinyl caused his arms to spread at impact with the floor and therefore contributed significantly to his head injuries. The manufacturer claimed that the design was actually a safety measure by which it prevents a direct impact with the floor in allowing the body to slide to avoid serious head injuries. Basically, the court remanded the case for a new trial to determine the risk versus the utility of such pools...so-to-speak.

Friday, April 18, 2008

Ding ding

My first final is less than a week away. The stress level hasn't reached the level it did last semester, but it's definitely on the rise. Starting tomorrow you'll find me buried in a cubby hole in the far corner of the library. It's buckle down time, kids. I'm going to get my ears lowered tomorrow for good luck...and better aerodynamics for the trek back to the vehicle late at night.<--Gotta find some sort of advantage over these thugs roaming this city looking for some keys and wallets to jack. Wish me luck. Finals: Round 2.

Monday, April 14, 2008

Creamy

It's been awhile. I actually forgot that I had a blog. It completely escaped my mind...total brain fart. I guess that's because I've been preparing my outlines for finals. I pretty much only have one more outline to finish before shacking up in the library stacks and studying, studying, studying. My first final is next Thursday (the 24th). It is now that I enter a two week hibernation. It all boils down to pulling out that top ranking. Le creme de la creme. That's what I intend to be.

Monday, April 7, 2008

Lack of an update

I'm currently preparing my outlines in preparation for finals. There are a lot more rules covered this semester compared to last. Therefore, it's much more of pain. I'll provide some sort of random humorous update once I have my outlines complete. Until then, share my boredom and pain.

I would like to share my views on the Barrister's Ball with you though. Barrister's Ball is the law school version of prom. It's basically the same. However, everyone is legal to drink and the drinks are free. Combine that with food and live music; and that's what you get. The law school version is obviously more exciting. After all, law school trains you to party and live like a rock star. It goes back to that whole "Live like a lawyer" thing. Lots of stress, but never a dull moment.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Being called on

This semester has been more of pain in the butt when it comes to preparation for class. In addition to the lack of available time to prepare for each class due to Moot Court, we've been responsible for a larger load of material. Law school is a lot of reading. Some classes comb through nearly 1000 pages of material in one semester. Others have less. Each case that is read needs to analyzed and briefed for class. Believe me...after witnessing the brutal verbal attacks on students who come unprepared, I took an oath not to allow myself to fall into that trap. In Torts, I've been called on 4 times. Some people haven't been called on at all. The Torts professor uses a method of drawing names from a shuffled stack of cards. Last time that I got called on he said, "Your name comes up often." My quit-witted response was, "It must be the way you shuffle." Fortunately, he's failed to catch me off-guard. I guess it's a matter of being fully prepared. My grades are a clear indication of my dedication, but on the flip side my social life has taken a beating. I keep telling myself, "One day I'll be able to enjoy a beer without worrying about how much material I have to read before the next day of class." Maybe I'm a total dork, but I sort of enjoy the intense pressure of law school. It keeps me on my toes.