Your Law School or Your Grades: Which Matters More for Success?

It may not have received the media attention that a new Supreme Court justice attracts, but a study was released last week that may be more personally relevant to current law students. According to a post in the Wall Street Journal Law Blog, a new paper, authored by two law professors, challenges the conventional wisdom that to make it big in the legal profession, your grades don't matter as much as the prestige of the law school you attend. Take a look at "The Secret of My Success: How Status, Prestige and School Performance Shape Legal Careers" and judge the authors' conclusions for yourself.
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Week in Review

It has been a great week-long nap.

Now that I have stretched, I see I have missed a few big events. First, Elena Kagan has been confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court and will be the fourth women to serve on the nation's highest bench. Get details and follow developments on SCOTUS Blog under Kagan Resources .

Of course the other big event I slept through this week is the California District Court decision on same sex marriage. You can read and download the opinion here .

Finally, closer to home, check the Reference Librarians' Hours calendar for next week's hours. We will be extending hours as Orientation for new students approaches.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Martian Sundial

Following our post last week about the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, here is a link to information about the first-ever* interplanetary sundial, which will also be on Mars. Among its other tasks, this Martian sundial will calibrate Pancam, the panoramic camera on the Mars Exploration Rovers.

*so far as we know! ;-)

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

FederalRegister.gov

A new way to use and search the Federal Register is now available for free at FederalRegister.gov. It has the appearance of a news source. The current issue (previous day's activities) is the front page and there is a browse by date. Content may be browsed by notices, proposed rules, final rules, presidential documents, subject, agency or "What's Hot". You do have to scroll a little to see all the features but not too much. It is a clean accessible site that is easy to use.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Practical Law Company

Practical Law Company is currently offering free accounts to law students. PLC offers useful practice commentaries, checklists, and forms for attorneys. PLC is well-known in the UK, but they have just started to offer content for U.S. attorneys. Their U.S. content is strictly for transactional attorneys and it is mostly in corporate and securities law. Current summer associates and students who plan to go into transactional work should consider opening PLC accounts and exploring this content.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

New York Bar Exam Stories

It's cool and comfortable here in the library, but even a virtual feline can't help noticing that the stress-filled final days before the New York Bar Exam are here. Bar exam stories (great for a quick study break) are all over the web, but there's a particularly interesting blog post about some "legendary screw-ups" made in past years--not by those taking the New York exam, but by the system examining them. "Bar Exam Horror Stories (A Round-Up From Years Gone By)" was put together by attorney Eric Turkewitz, author of the New York Personal Injury Law Blog, who was personally involved in one of these snafus. As he notes, there is a lesson here for all future attorneys.
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

From Unearthly Landscapes On Earth, To The Truly Unearthly

Escaping from the Earth is the ultimate Summer vacation. Do so vicariously by having a look at some of the superb images taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Privacy or the Lack thereof on the Internet

You may or may not be concerned about your privacy or lack of privacy on the web. Social networking such as Facebook, twitter and LinkedIn have their issues; and the way your use of the web is tracked raises other issues. Should you be concerned about privacy? Check out:
Social Networking Privacy: Something to Tweet About; and,
E-Monitoring and the First Amendment: What Can Tech Do?


Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

People's Court Testimony Not Good Enough for Brooklyn Supreme Court

It turns out that The People's Court isn't quite the same as a real state court. Last week, a judge in Brooklyn found that testimony from the show could not be relied on in NY Supreme Court. However, the city might appeal the decision, which probably also affects testimony given before Judge Judy and Judge Joe Brown.


Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

West Reference Attorneys Blog

It's midsummer, and many law students are under pressure at summer associate and internship positions to quickly produce documents and research. This year help is available from one more source--the West Reference Attorneys Summer Associate Blog. Twenty West reference attorneys (those folks who answer phone and Live Help questions for Westlaw users) contribute and edit the frequent posts with great tips and "where to find it" citations. Need to find financial reform bill or Goldman Sachs/SEC settlement documents, for example? This blog provides citations that link directly to the Westlaw sign on page. Other posts address research strategy and other questions frequently asked by summer associates, such as how to restrict a search by court or use the "Limit Key Cite Display" feature. It is not known whether the blog will continue after the summer, but it has a searchable archive (back to the first posts in May) and you can sign up for RSS feeds.

A hat tip to Legal Blog Watch.
Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat