This morning as I reflected on the rescue of the miners in Chile, I thought about the miners in the musical, Billy Elliot, so I played the CD. Below are some excerpts. As I was drafting this message, I thought about two issues that have puzzled me for years, Why…
Articles Posted in Teaching Fundamental Skills
Will college students continue to remain ill-informed about law schools?
Law schools have failed their students and the public but college graduates continue to apply and attend without having the facts or information needed to make an informed decision. I request that you read this post and, if appropriate, forward it to any college students considering going to law school…
Encouraging Congress to Really Examine the Dramatic Unjustified Increase in the Cost of Law School
When I read a the United States Government Accountability Office Report to Congressional Committees on HIGHER EDUCATION Issues Related to Law School Cost and Access October 2009, I was not impressed. Those drafting the report seemed to simply accept the statements of law school officials that ABA accreditation has no…
WHY WE DO NOT NEED A PUBLIC LAW SCHOOL
A proposal for a new public law school for Massachusetts, one of only 7 states in the country not to have a public law school, has generated an enormous amount of controversy with many saying that there is a need for a school with a reasonable tuition and others saying…
August 9, 1989 – Harvard Law School
AUGUST 9 1989 – HARVARD LAW SCHOOL After graduating from Harvard Law School in 1963, I worked for a large law firm, served in the US Army JAG and worked in an insurance company. After two years as an associate for a sole practitioner, I founded two small law firms…
NOW ACCESSIBLE ONLINE – Think Small! Learning about and Locating Positions in Small Firms – New York State Bar Association Committee on Lawyers in Transition Webinar
I had the opportunity and the privilege yesterday to make a presentation entitled “Think Small: Learning About and Locating Positions in Small Law Firms” for the New York State Bar Association. About 30 who registered were “live” in the “studio” at the law office of Lauren Wachtler, the chair of…
Prospects Dim for Law Students OR The Light at the End of the Funnel
A week ago today, I submitted the following to the New York Times with a request that it be considered for an op-ed stating, as required, that it had not been previously published. The paper’s guidelines state that if you receive no telephone call or e-mail within three business days,…
Debra and Ron Post 2 – HOW DO LAW STUDENTS MAKE CAREER DECISIONS?
For information on the genesis of these posts and on who “Debra” is, click here and read the intro to “Debra and Ron Post 1.” Ron: As I have mentioned often, 95% of the women (and the men) who have graduated from “selective” law schools (not the best, just the…
A GUIDE TO A FUNDAMENTAL REFORM OF LEGAL EDUCATION – 25 RECOMMENDATIONS ON ENHANCING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT DURING LAW SCHOOL
As many of you may know, in July 1992 the ABA’s Task Force on Law Schools and the Profession: Narrowing the Gap issued what came to be called the “MacCrate Report”, a withering critique of traditional law schools. In substance, the task force compiled a list of the 10 fundamental…
A CHALLENGE TO LAW SCHOOLS TO ENSURE THAT THOSE WHO WANT CAREERS SERVING THE LEGAL NEEDS OF THE PUBLIC HAVE A REALISTIC OPPORTUNITY TO DO SO – PART 1
Since in so much I have written I have taken quotes from the ABA’s MacCrate Report and one issued by the Mass School of Law, both in 1992, I decided to publish (in three parts) a handout I distributed at a panel I moderated for the National Lawyers Guild in…