advice

The Real Reason to Become a Prosecutor

/ BC Law Impact Guest Posts / Leave a comment

This guest post was written by 3L Alyssa Hatfield.

“Alyssa Hatfield on behalf of the Commonwealth.” 

As introductions go, this one might be the most terrifying. What does it mean to represent the Commonwealth? To represent an entire group of people, the defendant included? It’s a heavy weight to bear, but it’s not meant to be borne alone. 

This semester, I joined the Prosecution Clinic. As a part of the clinic, you learn a few things really fast. One: court moves really quickly. Like, really quickly. Two: how to swap stories like old-timers, because people commit some pretty odd crimes in some pretty odd ways that are ripe for class discussion. And three: to “do justice” might be the hardest and most unattainable mission to live by.

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What the Heck is Futtitinni? An Approach to Law School

/ Joe Monti / Leave a comment

Sicilians have an approach to life they call “futtitinni.” The term translates to “don’t care,” “don’t worry about it,” or “let it go.” As a 1L trying to juggle academics and career decisions at the same time, this seems like an impossible mindset to maintain. However, futtitinni is not simply about an indifference to life; it refers to focusing on what truly matters. Obviously, grades take significant precedence at this point in the year. I also do not intend to say that we should all take a lot of time for ourselves or relax for the rest of the semester. We are all in the trenches, and that is precisely where futtitinni can play a beneficial role. The term arose out of hardship and daily struggle, not out of periods of prosperity. Nobody expects finals season to be easy, but joy can still exist within this final push.

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Escaping the 2L Doldrums (A Tortured Sailing Metaphor)

/ Ian Hurley / Leave a comment

“Day after day, day after day,
We stuck, nor breath nor motion:
As idle as a painted ship
Upon a painted ocean.”
‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ – Samuel Taylor Coleridge, (1834)

Growing up in southeastern Pennsylvania, I remember learning about the so-called ‘age of exploration’, probably an aged moniker today, but hey, this was *gasp* the late-90s. One thing that stuck with me from all those lessons about Christopher Columbus’s supposed ‘discovery’ of the new world, Ferdinand Magellan’s unceremonious demise in Southeast Asia, and Henry Hudson’s ill-fated attempt(s) to uncover a waterway that linked the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and so on, is a rather minor aspect of wind-based sea travel: getting stuck in the doldrums. 

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The Hardest Part of 1L (It’s Not the Readings)

/ Dave Sainte-Luce / 1 Comment

Arriving at BC Law this past August brought a rush of excitement. I’d known I wanted to be a lawyer all of my life, and had been building toward this step for just as long. After growing up on crime- and law-themed TV shows like Law & Order, I completed two legal internships in college, wrote my senior honors thesis on a legal topic, and worked at a personal injury law firm for two years after graduation. So when I was admitted to the so-called “Disneyland of Law Schools,” it was an answered prayer—like a dream come true.

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The ‘C’ in BC Law stands for Catering: My Favorite Club Event Food

/ Samantha Torre / Leave a comment

Due to SNAP benefits being suspended, millions of people across the nation are at increased risk for food insecurity. If you or someone you know is affected, resources include: The Massachusetts SNAP Resource Hub, Project Bread, Newton Food Pantry, and Brookline Food Pantry. 

The BC Law Weekly Headlines Nov. 3 email lists out more resources.

As we approach the end of the semester, we also approach a time for decision-making and looking ahead. No, I’m not talking about choosing spring classes or a finals study spot. I’m talking about something much more important: what to eat for lunch.  

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Is Life Forcing a Change of Plans? Don’t Panic

/ Sydney Byun / Leave a comment

Nothing anyone says can really prepare you for the purgatory that is your first year out of college. To borrow a phrase from one of my close friends, there were days during my post-graduation period where looking for positives felt like “fishing for king salmon in a street puddle.” I had moved back to my hometown in Oregon, something I had vowed I would never do. All I’d ever wanted was to leave, and there I was, right back where I had started.

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