Revised course schedules for Summer 2011, Fall 2011, and Spring 2012 are now available through the links below and on the Class Schedules page of the Law School website (in the Academics category).  In addition, there is a list of 19 changes from the 2/9/11 version of the course schedules to the 3/22/11 version of the course schedules, some of which may affect your curricular planning.  PLEASE LOOK AT THE LIST OF CHANGES.  It can be accessed through the link below or on the Class Schedules website page.  If you have any questions about the 2011-12 course schedules, please contact Dean Arnold, tony.arnold@louisville.edu.

 

The annual School of Law Awards and Leadership Recognition Program is scheduled at the University Club for April 1, 2011, beginning with a reception at 5:00 p.m.  All students are invited.  Students who are recipients of named and commonwealth scholarships; recipients of academic and leadership awards; recipients of the highest grades in law school courses in 2010; members of honor societies, professional skills teams, and law school publications; and leaders in student government organizations will be honored.  Recognized students will receive invitations by the end of the week.  Questions?  See Dean Bean.   

Congratulations to the Wagner Moot Court Team on an excellent performance.  In all three preliminary rounds, they received glowing feedback, although we did not advance to the next round.  In the first round, the judges stated of Kristen Staley and Ben Basil that they did a “really good job fielding questions, knowing the cases, and knowing the facts.”  The judges concluded: “It was nice to see they had put in the necessary work.”  In the second round, Heather Sidwell and Ben Basil argued on behalf of the employer.  The judges stated that Heather’s presentation was “very good.”  She “was poised and responsive and kept the judges boxed in” on her points.  The judges (ironically) stated that Ben “was very convincing and clearly believed in his argument.”  In the third round, the judges noted that they were “throwing tough questions,” and that Ben and Kristen handled them well and had good mastery of the law.

The Kent School of Social Work will be hosting a Career/Networking Fair on Thursday, March 24th from 11 am - 2 pm in the SAC Multipurpose Room.  This event is open to the University community.  Thirty-two non-profit agencies from the Louisville area will be represented.

The Christian Law Society will host Ms. Maryland Austin, a local lawyer who has been prominent in the Corydon, IN legal scene for a number of years. She will be sharing her experiences to CLS on Wednesday in 071 at 1210. Everyone is welcome, and lunch will be provided. Please contact CLS President Jeff Benedict at jwbene01@louisville.edu with questions, or for more information about the U of L Christian Law Society.

Some of you have been studying for exams all semester by staying on top of your course reading, adding to your outlines each week, and conscientiously learning new material while reviewing past material.  This ongoing process is the key to the highest grades because deeper understanding and long-term memory result.

As you study for exams, consider the four kinds of review that you should include in your study plans.  If you incorporate all four types, you are more likely to master your courses and garner better grades.

1. Intense Learning.  First, you need to learn intensely each topic.  This type of study has deep understanding as its goal.  It may take several study sessions to reach this level of learning for a long topic that was covered over multiple class sessions.  Intense learning may need to include additional reading in study aids or time asking the professor questions in order to clear up all confusion and master the material.  In addition to learning this one part of the course, the student should consider how it relates to the course as a whole. 
2. Fresh Review.  Second, you should strive to keep fresh everything in the course.  This type of study is focused on reading your outline cover to cover at least once a week.  It makes sure that the law student never gets so far away from a topic that it gets "foggy."  Students forget 80% of what they learn within two weeks if they do not review regularly.  After intensely learning a topic, it would be a shame to forget it.  Constant review reinforces long-term memory and provides for quicker recall when the material is needed.
3. Memory Drills.  Third, you should spend time on basic memory drills.  This type of study helps a student remember the precise rule, the definition of an element, or the steps of analysis.  For most students, these drills will be done with homemade flashcards.  Some students will write out rules multiple times.  Other students will develop mnemonics.  Still others may have visual reminders.  The grunt work of memory can be tedious.  However, if you do not know the law well, you will not do well on the exam.
4. Practice Questions.  Fourth, you must complete as many practice questions as possible.  This step has several advantages.  It monitors whether you really understand the law.  It tests whether you can apply the law to new fact scenarios.  It allows you to practice test-taking strategies.  And it monitors whether you need to repeat intense learning on a topic or sub-topic because errors on the questions indicate that it was obviously not learned to the level needed.

Ideally, you should set aside blocks of study time to accomplish each of these reviews every week for every course.  The proportion of time for each course will depend on the amount of material covered, the difficulty of the course, and the type of exam.

Welcome back, 1Ls!  Tomorrow is the Second Annual Spring Break Challenge - are you ready?  Not only is the Spring Break Challenge a great, great opportunity to test how well you know your Contracts material, but you can win terrific prizes, too - an iPod Touch 8G, 3,200 LexisNexis Reward Points, Visa gift cards, and gift cards to Heine Brothers and Starbucks.   Don't miss out.

Section 2 students:  You take the 30-minute Challenge on Tuesday, March 22, right after your Torts class, from 11:25 to 11:55, in Room 275.

Section 1 students:  You take the 30-minute Challenge on Tuesday, March 22, right after your Contracts class, from 11:45 to 12:15, in Room 175.

Questions?  Contact Ms. Ballard.

 

Professor Warren is proud to announce that Jennifer Monarch and Marlow Riedling will be leaving this Thursday, March 24, 2011, to compete in the Thirty-Sixth Annual Irving R. Kaufman Memorial Moot Court Competition at the Fordham University School of Law in New York City.

The Kaufman Competition is the national contest for securities law moot court teams from around the country. The Competition offers teams the opportunity to test appellate advocacy skills before leading jurists, securities regulators, academics, and practitioners.

The preliminary and quarterfinal rounds will be held on March 25-26, with the semifinal and final rounds held on March 27. The University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law wishes Jennifer and Marlow luck as they proudly represent our school and legal community.