Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Yodelay-hee-hoo
Ohmigod... I'm sitting in CivPro II right now and Prof. Bundy just whipped out a guitar.
We're discussing subject matter jurisdiction today, and the case is Louisville & Nashville Railroad v. Mottley, about plaintiffs injured in an accident on a train and their subsequent inability to have their state claim heard before the Supreme Court because they did not raise a federal question in their "well-pleaded complaint."
Back to the song -- I forgot the name and artist of the song he's playing right now, but it's about trains. It actually has like, nothing to do with jurisdiction, subject matter or otherwise. I suspect he just needed an excuse to show off his mad James Taylor-like skills.
Anyways, Mottley is an interesting case, and the topic today is pretty interesting too. I for one, have been wondering what subject matter jurisdiction (or "SMJ" as those in the know call it) was, ever since I first heard about it in CivPro last semester.
Yikes... now he's yodeling. But at least he can hold a tune. He's actually not half bad...
*applause*
We're discussing subject matter jurisdiction today, and the case is Louisville & Nashville Railroad v. Mottley, about plaintiffs injured in an accident on a train and their subsequent inability to have their state claim heard before the Supreme Court because they did not raise a federal question in their "well-pleaded complaint."
Back to the song -- I forgot the name and artist of the song he's playing right now, but it's about trains. It actually has like, nothing to do with jurisdiction, subject matter or otherwise. I suspect he just needed an excuse to show off his mad James Taylor-like skills.
Anyways, Mottley is an interesting case, and the topic today is pretty interesting too. I for one, have been wondering what subject matter jurisdiction (or "SMJ" as those in the know call it) was, ever since I first heard about it in CivPro last semester.
Yikes... now he's yodeling. But at least he can hold a tune. He's actually not half bad...
*applause*
Monday, March 06, 2006
Awkward
Have you even been in the situation where someone is pursuing you, and you know that they really really want you, but you don't return their feelings, you don't want them, and thus are stuck in the uncomfortable situation of having to tell them the truth, knowing full well that you're going to break their heart? You know that feeling? I'm facing just such a situation -- with Northwestern Law.
Northwestern accepted me last year, but deferred me until Fall 2006, citing my need for "work experience." I would have said no and been done with them if it wasn't for the full ride they were also offering, should I accept. Wow. It's nice to be wanted.
I paid the nominal deposit and kept Northwestern on the backburner. After I came to Berkeley, I forgot I even had them on hold (I think it happened somewhere between the promissory estoppel in Contracts and the res judicata in CivPro).
Anyway, I was reminded suddenly one February morning when I received an email from the Northwestern Law APALSA welcoming me. Soon thereafter, a steady stream of emails about Admit Day, upcoming events, and even housing filled my inbox. Yikes, I thought... I should probably tell them what's up.
My guilt over forgetting about them was finally sealed when I received a FedEx package at home. When I opened it, I found this:
Holy Crap! The Northwestern Law admissions packet!
"It's so nice!" I thought. And for a split second (emphasis on the split), I considered going to Northwestern. Alas, my bonds of friendship and loyalty, not to mention my housing, financial aid, and faculty connections already had roots that ran deep to the heart of Boalt Hall.
So today, I mailed out the rejection form to Northwestern. I know that somewhere soon in Chicago, an admissions officer will be crying. But it's for the best. And maybe -- just maybe, we can still be friends.
Northwestern accepted me last year, but deferred me until Fall 2006, citing my need for "work experience." I would have said no and been done with them if it wasn't for the full ride they were also offering, should I accept. Wow. It's nice to be wanted.
I paid the nominal deposit and kept Northwestern on the backburner. After I came to Berkeley, I forgot I even had them on hold (I think it happened somewhere between the promissory estoppel in Contracts and the res judicata in CivPro).
Anyway, I was reminded suddenly one February morning when I received an email from the Northwestern Law APALSA welcoming me. Soon thereafter, a steady stream of emails about Admit Day, upcoming events, and even housing filled my inbox. Yikes, I thought... I should probably tell them what's up.
My guilt over forgetting about them was finally sealed when I received a FedEx package at home. When I opened it, I found this:
Holy Crap! The Northwestern Law admissions packet!
"It's so nice!" I thought. And for a split second (emphasis on the split), I considered going to Northwestern. Alas, my bonds of friendship and loyalty, not to mention my housing, financial aid, and faculty connections already had roots that ran deep to the heart of Boalt Hall.
So today, I mailed out the rejection form to Northwestern. I know that somewhere soon in Chicago, an admissions officer will be crying. But it's for the best. And maybe -- just maybe, we can still be friends.
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Bruins > Bears
A lot of my friends have asked me whether, now that I'm up here at Cal, my loyalties lie with Berkeley. My answer is pretty much an unequivocal "HELL NO." My loyalty lies with my undergrad institution, my first love, UCLA. How deep are those loyalties, you ask? Well, enough to wear a UCLA sweatshirt deep into "Bear Territory" at tonight's Cal vs. UCLA game.
I went with a couple of other UCLA alumni/Boalties, as well as a handful of Cal alumni/Boalties. I never went to any basketball games while I was an undergrad, so it was my first UCLA basketball game. Yeah, I know -- it's kinda sad. It was billed as a pretty big game though, as both teams were tied for first at the top of the Pac-10. Thus, the winner of this game would be the undisputed conference leader. Needless to say, the Haas Pavilion was packed:
As the picture indicates, UCLA people were put in the nosebleeds. At the half, Deana (a Cal Boaltie) and I decided to just stand at the entrance to one of the lower sections. The result was a much, much better view:
Here's UCLA showing Cal what's what:
It was such a good game... it even went into overtime. Luckily, UCLA didn't disappoint as they eked out a win at the last minute.
The final score (it's fuzzy because my hand was shaking from the excitement):
All in all, a very good game. Not bad for my very first time.
I went with a couple of other UCLA alumni/Boalties, as well as a handful of Cal alumni/Boalties. I never went to any basketball games while I was an undergrad, so it was my first UCLA basketball game. Yeah, I know -- it's kinda sad. It was billed as a pretty big game though, as both teams were tied for first at the top of the Pac-10. Thus, the winner of this game would be the undisputed conference leader. Needless to say, the Haas Pavilion was packed:
As the picture indicates, UCLA people were put in the nosebleeds. At the half, Deana (a Cal Boaltie) and I decided to just stand at the entrance to one of the lower sections. The result was a much, much better view:
Here's UCLA showing Cal what's what:
It was such a good game... it even went into overtime. Luckily, UCLA didn't disappoint as they eked out a win at the last minute.
The final score (it's fuzzy because my hand was shaking from the excitement):
All in all, a very good game. Not bad for my very first time.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Nossa-men
While I was sitting in Torts ASP yesterday, I got a phone call from "unavailable." I checked my voice mail afterward, and lo and behold, it was a partner from Nossaman extending me an offer to work in the L.A. office for the summer. "Nice," I said calmly.
No just kidding. I think I screamed a little.
You see, I only applied to one summer job. While friends of mine were mass mailing and sending out emails left and right to judges, nonprofits, and firms, I and my friend Thomas took the path of least resistance: sign up for OCIP, have one single on-campus interview, have one single callback interview, then pray and knock on wood. I guess that approach (combined with the 12 thank you notes) worked, but I think the advice I'll be giving to 1L's next year is to definitely NOT do what I did.
Today, my buddy Thomas also got an offer from the Nossaman office in Sacramento. We're both pretty darn excited. Apparently, the entire firm has some sort of field trip to Sacramento in the middle of the summer where they gather up all the summer associates from all the offices and show us how real lawyers lobby it up over there. I'll probably see Thomas there. It should be fun.
Hallelujah! This summer I'm comin' home to L.A.!
No just kidding. I think I screamed a little.
You see, I only applied to one summer job. While friends of mine were mass mailing and sending out emails left and right to judges, nonprofits, and firms, I and my friend Thomas took the path of least resistance: sign up for OCIP, have one single on-campus interview, have one single callback interview, then pray and knock on wood. I guess that approach (combined with the 12 thank you notes) worked, but I think the advice I'll be giving to 1L's next year is to definitely NOT do what I did.
Today, my buddy Thomas also got an offer from the Nossaman office in Sacramento. We're both pretty darn excited. Apparently, the entire firm has some sort of field trip to Sacramento in the middle of the summer where they gather up all the summer associates from all the offices and show us how real lawyers lobby it up over there. I'll probably see Thomas there. It should be fun.
Hallelujah! This summer I'm comin' home to L.A.!
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