advice

Overcoming the Comparison Trap of 1L

/ Ian Hurley / Leave a comment

“Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom.
Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.” – Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching

It was the night before my first final as a 1L, and I was starting to feel overwhelmed. I knew, in a sort of intangible way, that an entire semester’s worth of work would come down to one test. And I could not help but be aware of the fact that this would prove stressful; everyone I knew who went to law school told me as much, as did most of my current peers. I suppose it’s also self-evident when you see the syllabus and read the words “your entire course grade will rest on the final examination” that you will have to perform on the day or pay the price.

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My Summer at Legal Aid: Issue Spotting and Research

/ Samantha Torre / Leave a comment

This summer, I’m interning at the Legal Aid Society of San Diego, a nonprofit organization that seeks to assist San Diego County residents and provide free legal representation, advice, and information. As the right to an attorney does not exist in legal cases, many litigants have to navigate complicated processes and forms, which can make it much more difficult for them to achieve their desired result in a case than parties with an attorney. The LASSD seeks to bridge that gap. The goal of the self-help clinics is not to provide representation, but to make the civil legal system more accessible for litigants.

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How does a New Yorker become a Bostonian? A Five-Step Process Breakdown

/ Catherine Beveridge / Leave a comment

With all the changes I have been through this past year, I did not think Boston becoming my favorite city would happen this year. While I grew up in New York through my childhood, NYC did not resonate as much with me as it does for some natives. Philadelphia was fun during my undergraduate years, but my city exploration was minimized due to the pandemic. Washington D.C. was a nice experiment, but the humidity pushed my northern soul well past my limits. I am happy to say Boston lived up to my hopes and exceeded them.

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The Struggling Majority

/ BC Law Impact Guest Posts / Leave a comment

This post has been republished from Professor Patricia McCoy’s Substack. Her new book, “Sharing Risk: The Path to Economic Well-Being for All,” is available from The University of California Press.

A few years ago, I was doing research as a law professor at Boston College, and I stumbled across this disturbing fact: more than half of American households do not have enough income every month to pay their basic expenses. We’re not talking about small luxuries like dining out, going to the movies, or streaming services either. Instead, these families do not even have enough money to pay for their bare-bones essentials every month, including food, housing, and clothing. They are constantly juggling bills and robbing Peter to pay Paul. They cannot get ahead.

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A Message to My Students: ‘Fight for Our Democracy’

/ BC Law Impact Guest Posts / Leave a comment

This post is an edited version of Professor Kent Greenfield’s final lecture to this spring’s first-year constitutional law class. It was originally published in WBUR’s Cognoscenti.

Today completes my 30th year teaching law. You’ve been wonderful this semester. Thank you.

But It has been a difficult time to teach constitutional law, and it must have been a difficult time to learn it. We are in a dangerous moment.

How do we make sense of the law right now? Of our profession?

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The Vital Lessons I’ve Learned in BC Law’s Clinics

/ BC Law Impact Guest Posts / Leave a comment

Last month, as part of BC Law’s Immigration Clinic, my clinic partner and I advocated for our client’s release from detention during a bond hearing in front of an immigration judge, and were denied. Given his circumstances of indefinite long-term incarceration and mental illness, this denial was heartbreaking and unjust in more ways than one. I dreaded making the call to my client to discuss the outcome of the hearing and our next steps. I expected to hear intense sadness and frustration, and I certainly would not have blamed him if he took part of that out on me. But instead – though he was undeniably sad – he told me that my argument was perfect and exactly what he would have wanted to say if he were able to speak during the hearing. He expressed his gratitude for all our hard work and representation, despite the outcome. Of all the responses I imagined, this perhaps shocked me the most.

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How (Bad) Movies Helped Me Survive Finals

/ Ian Hurley / Leave a comment

“Whoever a werewolf imprints on can’t be harmed. It’s their most absolute law.” ―  Edward Cullen in Twilight Breaking Dawn Part 1

The stress of law school finals can humble even the most confident students. It distills months of study, outlining, and class participation into one exam to determine your mastery of the material. It all comes down to a few hours in a classroom. It’s daunting, overwhelming, and, even at times, exhilarating. 

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What I Learned About Endurance by Running the BC Law 5k

/ Catherine Beveridge / Leave a comment

If you read my athletic resume, my various positions would tell you I do not like distance running. Playing forward on the high school field hockey team? Sprinting. Downhill skiing? If you’re an east coast skier like me, it is sprinting. Softball catcher? I sprint to first base when I am at bat. Speed was always my better strength, not endurance. 

So, what convinced me to sign up for the BC Law 5k? It was something fun to work towards at the end of the year aside from my finals and the law review write on. But mostly, I wanted to conquer and build my endurance rather than run from it. 

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Seeing What Sticks: Trial and Error in Law School

/ Alex Mostaghimi / Leave a comment

For many law students, a consistent record of success follows them. A high undergraduate GPA, strong LSAT scores, and glowing recommendations make it seem like aptitude is a given and success is inevitable. Nevertheless, the heavier and harsh realities of law school quickly tear apart fanciful notions of an easy-breezy life. But if there was ever a place to fail, law school would be the place. 

Let me explain.

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The Five Best Bookstores You Have to Visit 

/ Samantha Torre / Leave a comment

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. 

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