Law Students

Oops. Accidental Posting of Exam a ‘Teachable Moment,’ Law Prof Says

Updated: An accidental posting of a law school exam on a University of Oregon School of Law e-mail discussion list last week offered students an opportunity to apply legal ethics rules in real life, their professor says. The advance distribution of Professor John Bonine’s administrative law exam tested the moral…

Dec 15, 2009 12:51 AM CST

Unable to Find Legal Job, Blogger Posts Bah Humbug Tale on YouTube

Unable to find a legal job, a disgruntled 2009 law graduate has turned his talents to a computer-animated video that is now posted on YouTube. In a new twist on Charles Dickens’ classic tale of how a seemingly dreaming Ebenezer Scrooge is taught by a series of ghosts that life…

Dec 14, 2009 7:43 PM CST

Hiring Lawyer Getting Resumés from Ivy League Law Grads for First Time

A hiring partner at a Kansas City, Mo., law firm who has been recruiting lawyers for 17 years is seeing a change in applicants this year. For the first time, says William Beil, he is seeing resumés from Ivy League law graduates and lawyers from prestigious New York law firms,…

Dec 9, 2009 2:24 PM CST

As Law Firms Respond to Crisis, 21% of Law Students Regret Choice

It’s not surprising that law students are a discontented lot. A new survey by LexisNexis found that, based on the changing legal marketplace, 21 percent of law students regret attending law school. Thirty-five percent said they don’t feel adequately prepared to succeed in the new marketplace, and 65 percent said…

Dec 9, 2009 1:54 PM CST

Supreme Court to Decide if Law School Can Ban Christian Legal Society

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether the University of California’s Hastings College of Law violated the Constitution when it refused to recognize the Christian Legal Society as a sanctioned student group. The law school refused funding and other benefits to the group because it does not admit…

Dec 7, 2009 3:44 PM CST

Hiring Lawyer Rejects Federalist Society Members—and Columnist’s Advice

A hiring lawyer from Greenwich, Conn., wrote to The Ethicist of the New York Times with this question: Is it ethical to recommend rejection of members of the Federalist Society simply because you disagree with their conservative politics? The Ethicist, Randy Cohen, said politics should not be a factor. “If…

Dec 7, 2009 2:43 PM CST

Reports of Law School Cheating Increase Along with Focus on Grades

There is a reason why campus psychological counseling programs treat more law students than medical or business students, according to a law school career official. The economic downturn has increased employers’ focus on law school grades, leading to more competition and higher levels of stress among law students, according to…

Dec 4, 2009 2:06 PM CST

Missing Michigan Law Student Committed Suicide

Police have found the body of a first-year University of Michigan law student reported missing last month. Casey Neil McGinnis, 35, had hanged himself in a wooded area near a recreation center, according to AnnArbor.com. He had a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota and had battled alcohol and depression…

Dec 4, 2009 12:28 PM CST

Law Schools Link Up with Foreign Counterparts for Double Qualification

A growing number of law schools are linking up with foreign counterparts to offer students the chance to learn about the law in home and overseas jurisdictions. In the United States, Columbia and Cornell university law schools are partnering with various schools in Europe to offer double qualifications in law…

Dec 2, 2009 5:08 PM CST

A ‘Somewhat Tense Moment’ as Justices Consider Discharge of Student Loans

Justice Sonia Sotomayor was so eager to question a lawyer in a case involving the discharge of student loan debt that she ended up apologizing for interrupting his response to another justice. The case argued yesterday could affect graduates nationwide who can’t repay their student loans, USA Today reports. Federal…

Dec 2, 2009 1:42 PM CST

Some Law Firms Add Mini Round of 2L Recruiting

Some law firms that made a limited number of offers during on-campus recruiting are returning for a new round of interviews with second-year law students. The reason, according to the American Lawyer: Students got multiple job offers and turned down some law firms, leaving some unfilled 2010 summer associate positions.…

Dec 2, 2009 12:32 PM CST

Harvard Law Students Clamor for Aid and Public Interest Jobs, Forcing Changes

Updated: Harvard Law School has reinstated free coffee and announced stipends of $35,000 to 12 graduates working in public interest law. But in a year of tight budgets, something had to give. Now on the chopping block: a pilot program announced last year that waived third-year tuition for students who…

Dec 1, 2009 1:11 PM CST

Beautician Wins Major Property Case for Mom, Gets Law School Scholarship

A 23-year-old beautician with no legal training who made headlines by defeating a big British property developer in a High Court case earlier this month is now headed to law school, with the help of a scholarship. Young, blond and apparently underestimated, Georgina Blackwell saved her mother’s home and business…

Nov 30, 2009 10:40 PM CST

Georgetown Antes Up $1M to Offer ‘Free’ Tuition to Public Interest Grads

At least one well-known institution has reportedly found a way to cut the cost of law school for graduates who pursue public interest careers, and another is going to follow suit. In a plan that dovetails with a new federal program that allows public interest lawyers to pay only 10…

Nov 30, 2009 5:57 PM CST

Law Schools Reporting Drops of Up to 45% in On-Campus Interviews

A news report on the bleak job market for law grads is filled with numbers illustrating the problems. The law school at the University of Texas at Austin reported a 45 percent drop in on-campus interviews, ABC News reports. At Harvard, the percentage of employers participating in law student recruitment…

Nov 30, 2009 2:29 PM CST