This guest post is by BC Law’s Teaching and Research Librarians.
You know to go to CSO with your career planning questions. Student Services to iron out your schedule. And of course Legal Grounds when you need that afternoon energy boost. But where do you go when you have a question about research at BC Law?
We are the Teaching and Research Librarians of BC Law, and we are here to save you so much time.
Continue readingThere are numerous roads to law school, and no one-size fits all path to a successful legal career. Follow along with our series highlighting BC Law students and how they got here!
Our first six entries were with Sara Womble, from Winston Salem, NC, Elias Massion, who comes from Nashville, TN and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Samina Gagné from London and Columbia University, Alvin Synarong from Murfreesboro, Tennessee and Princeton, Ruchita Jain from Edina, Minnesota and Boston University, and Nicole Bauer from Michigan and Stanford University.
Name: Carlos Robles-Cruz
Hometown: Puerto Rico
Educational Background: B.S., Finance and Accounting, Boston College, Carroll School of Management; M.S., Accounting, Boston College, Carroll School of Management
The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and while I’m not pulling my hair out over the prospect of finals, I’m thinking wistfully about summer plans. Not a vacation, no – I’m thinking of the 48 hours I will have every week, free of assigned readings and impeding cold calls.
The perfect amount of time to visit one of the city’s many bookstores. For those of you who will be in Boston this summer, here’s a small guide.
Continue readingThis guest post by BC Law Professor and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Daniel Lyons first appeared in the AEIdeas Blog.
Earlier this month, I previewed the arguments in Federal Communications Commission v Consumers’ Research. The case asks the Supreme Court whether the FCC’s Universal Service Fund (USF) violates the nondelegation doctrine, which prohibits Congress from delegating the legislative power to executive branch agencies. As my previous post explains, nondelegation is a largely toothless doctrine, mostly dormant since 1935. But in recent years, five of the nine Supreme Court justices have expressed an interest in revitalizing the doctrine, given the right case in which to do so.
Continue readingThis past week, like many of my 2L peers, I took the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam or the MPRE. This exam is a vital prerequisite or co-requisite to the bar exam for admission in most U.S. jurisdictions. So why have many people never heard of it before?
What is the MPRE?
The MPRE is a 2-hr, 60-question, multiple-choice exam, administered three times a year (March, August, and November), designed to test knowledge of the rules related to a lawyer’s professional conduct. There are two important things to note. There is no negative scoring so it doesn’t hurt to guess. And while you answer 60 questions, only 50 questions are graded. The remaining 10 are used for testing purposes and are indistinguishable from the graded questions on the test. In other words, answer every question. As for the material tested, while each state has its own set of ethical standards, the MPRE tests on the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct so only worry about that.
Continue readingThere are numerous roads to law school, and no one-size fits all path to a successful legal career. Follow along with our series highlighting BC Law students and how they got here!
Our first five entries were with Sara Womble, from Winston Salem, NC, Elias Massion, who comes from Nashville, TN and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Samina Gagné from London and Columbia University, Alvin Synarong from Murfreesboro, Tennessee and Princeton, and Ruchita Jain from Edina, Minnesota and Boston University.
Name: Nicole Bauer
Hometown: Sebewaing, Michigan
Educational Background: B.A. Political Science, Minors in History and in Human Rights, Stanford University
This guest post by BC Law Professor and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Daniel Lyons first appeared in the AEIdeas Blog.
The idea behind the nondelegation doctrine is sound: Congress should not delegate legislative power to executive branch agencies. But its implementation leaves much to be desired. Nearly every nondelegation case acknowledges there’s a theoretical boundary but then finds that Congress hasn’t crossed it here. Only twice has the Supreme Court found a law violated the nondelegation doctrine, in 1935, both involving a statute that literally allowed President Roosevelt to cartelize the entire economy and make rules at whim. The modern rule allows Congress to give agencies significant authority as long as it includes an “intelligible principle” to guide exercise of that authority. Perhaps more than any other doctrine, this toothless standard has permitted the modern atrophy of our legislative branch, concentrated power in unelected bureaucrats, and enabled the imperial presidencies of the 21st century.
Continue readingSo much time has passed since my first blog post I made back in the early fall. While it is difficult to see it in the busyness of my school day, when I take a step back, I realize that those roughly 6 months have completely transformed me as a student and person. Downtime isn’t easy to find during 1L, but I decided to take the time here to discuss some of the things I found to be different between my fall and spring semesters. Disclaimer: this is my experience only; however, I am hoping it’s more relatable than not.
Maybe it’s because Constitutional Law and Criminal Law speak more to me than Torts and Contracts, but the classwork this semester is just easier to understand and engage with. Having experienced a semester of sitting in class not knowing how to take notes, being afraid to start an outline then completing three, and taking my first law school exams, I now have an understanding of what is expected of me and how to actually do it (awesome!). The fall experience made me more confident in reading my assignments and going into class knowing what I should be taking away from the readings, but also not stressing if I don’t know because guess what: that’s the point of class! My comfort level in taking and organizing notes have also improved, especially with my late-fall discovery that I cannot focus on typing my notes using OneNote’s default Calibri font. Typing my notes in Times New Roman has been a huge game changer (whether this is scientifically backed or not is none of my business). To summarize, having 1L Fall under my belt has informed me on how I should properly and efficiently be gearing my focus this spring semester.
Continue readingThis guest post was written by Tom Books, Class of 2026.
For those who do not know, externships allow students to work a part-time job off campus for class credit. Possible placements include judges, government agencies, nonprofits, and in-house departments for companies. When planning my schedule for Spring Semester 2L, I decided to apply for a few in-house counsel externships. I had already done a government internship and will be doing transactional work at a firm this summer, so I figured an in-house role would provide a new perspective to legal practice while also preparing me for corporate work at my firm.
Continue readingIf you move for law school, you inevitably leave things behind. Often this is a favorite restaurant. You cannot exactly fit it in the car, and trying to recreate dishes at home is never the same. As much as I love my new home in Boston, there are places I miss from my life as a paralegal in Washington D.C.
Imagine my surprise when I’m scrolling through Instagram and Boston Uncovered posts about one of my favorite D.C. restaurants: Medium Rare has opened a location in Arsenal Yards over in Watertown! To say I was giddy does not do my feelings justice. I loved that place–in fact, it was the location of my last meal in D.C. with my parents and older brother right before I drove out of town for the last time.
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BC Law: Impact 