Final Exams - It's In The Game!

Last night was my first final exam of the summer - Payment Systems. As with all final exams, I try to be as prepared as possible with the short amount of study time that I have. This exam was going to be particularly difficult because it was a "code" exam. That is, it was based on Articles 3 and 4 of the Uniform Commercial Code.

In my other "code" classes (Wills & Trusts, Tax, Corporations, Agency & Partnerships), we were allowed to bring the code into the exam because of the amount of information. Having the code is marginally beneficial - it lets us glance at the requirements of a given section and then discuss those elements as they relate to the fact pattern. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to bring the code to this exam.

So I wasn't surprised to show up to the exam and have people freaking out. I wasn't freaking out because I was tired of thinking about it (not a good place to be before the exam). I had read ALL of Article 3, ALL of Article 4, the official UCC comments, and the commentary that my professor wrote for each section. I did what I could do to prepare.

There was one person (other than me) that wasn't freaking out. He was...less than prepared. He wasn't concerned about the grade he was going to get. He hadn't read any of the chapters in our book (which basically just cite the UCC). He hadn't read any of the UCC sections. His study time consisted of spending 30 minutes before the exam reading an outline someone prepared 4 years ago.

So what was he doing the past few days since class ended?

NCAA Football 2010. Yep, he was playing video games. And he gave the new game a glowing review. He was especially excited that the University of Houston was good in the game. He played the game enough the night before to get UH to the national championship game. He explained to me that his first game was against the Aggies and that he whooped up on them.

I found this very amusing. He was super excited about the game. And he did a great job of comforting everyone else. Not only did people forget that they were about to take an exam, but they came to realize 2 things about the exam itself. First, the curve was going to be good (thanks to this guy). Second, there was at least one person that they were going to do better than.

Thanks EA Sports!

Policy Exception

If you've been following the blog, you know that I have a policy of not disclosing my semester grades. I'm not going back into the whole reasoning; you'll just have to re-read the previous blog post. When people ask me my grade in a given class, I simply tell them I passed. However, I'm going to make an exception for one class: Professional Responsibility.

There were two exams whose grade I was fearing from the fall semester. One was Property II (which will be the lowest I have ever received and which is STILL not in - talk about torture) and the other was Professional Responsibility.

There are a couple of reasons I didn't do well on the exam. First, going to class was pretty well pointless. The professor sat at the front of the class and read out of the textbook. Trust me, I am at the point in my life where I can read all by myself. Every now and again, he would pause and mention one of the Model Rules of Professional Responsibility...and then promptly say that the rule did not help us in our scenario. When it came time to the exam, he said the Model Rules were very important in answering the questions. What happened to "this rule doesn't help us here" or "this is a silly rule because no one would ever be confronted with this situation in real life"?

Second, it's an ethics class. There is more than one right answer to the question. And in some of the questions (as admitted by the professor himself), no one would ever be confronted with the situation. It's tough answering questions that have no answer. Funnily enough, I've been doing it for a year and a half now.

Third, I was generally just not motivated to study and take exams. Yeah, I read the entire book, and yeah, I read and learned all of the rules. But I was tired. It was a rough semester. I "learned" what I needed to know, but didn't really learn it.

Fourth, I had computer issues. I showed up to the final with the intention of typing all of my answers on the computer. (It was a 40 question short answer exam. The professor warned us ahead of time to be patient with him because he had 40 questions times 100 students to grade, not to mention his other classes. He basically told us he wasn't going to closely grade the exam because of the time it would take. That could have worked out to my advantage or it could have worked to my detriment. I still say it was BS. He chose to give us that kind of exam. He could have given us a multiple choice exam, given it to someone else to run through the scanner, and then forced the results into a curve. But what do I know?) However, I learned at the very start of the exam that my computer was not going to work. The test software (which I was forced to update by the test software people) was conflicting with my firewall and would not start up. I spent the first 10 minutes trying to fix it before deciding that writing my answers was the only course of action remaining. Not good for me because I can't write big; not good for my professor because I can't write big.

With all that said, here is the grade I got in the class: Pass.

No, really. That's what I got. I tell everyone I passed all of my classes (so far), but I don't tell them the letter grade I got. But in this class, I passed and can honestly say I got a Pass as a grade. Let me elaborate further.

Here's the thing. Our professor was really old. If I had to guess (and I do), I would say he was pushing 80 or 85. He missed about a quarter of the semester with health issues. When he came back, he was in a wheelchair and on oxygen.

Last weekend, I was checking the class schedule to make sure they hadn't moved any of my classes to a different day and to see which rooms my classes were in. I noticed that all of this professor's classes for the spring had been cancelled (which I told Hayley was not a good sign).

Then on Tuesday, I got an email from someone in the registrars office saying that the grades would be posted that day. The email said that due to unforeseen circumstances, the exams couldn't be graded. As such, we would receive a grade of "Pass" for the class, get credit for taking the class, and would not have our GPAs affected. I'll take that Pass and run with it.

This is good news for me, especially since I was really worried about this grade. I got credit for a class that doesn't affect my GPA. At the same time, I can't help but feel bad. I don't know what the deal is with the professor, but I hope he's alright. Hopefully I get to see him getting pushed around in his wheelchair today (the first day of class...ugh).

If I Only Had A Brain

As I sit here at 3:17 AM, I have decided that law school finals would be much, much easier if I only had a brain. I took my third final last night and it, like the others, was no cake walk. Unfortunately, things have not quite gone the way I had hoped this round. I would venture to say that it has been more taxing this semester than it was last year when Hayley was pregnant!

I took my first final last week. I was as prepared as I was going to be. The final was Ethics. The test was 40 short answer giving hypothetical situations that we "discussed" in class (i.e. the professor read a situation from the book, said the rules didn't help us much, and then stated that the situation wouldn't arise half the time in real life). I started the computer program that is used to type the exam. Unfortunately, it decided it didn't want to work. It gave me an error message and sent my computer into a loop where it restarted, showed the error message, shut down, and restarted. Time to grab the pencil and get writing! The problem is, I don't write fast.

I was pretty happy that my second final wasn't taken on the computer. After the debacle in the first final, I didn't want to be worrying about computer problems. Unfortunately, I had other problems to worry about. In my mind, the professor messed up the fact pattern to the biggest problem on the exam. He gave this long scenario about a guy name Jackson Michaels that created a will. The exam said that the will was drafted and signed by Jackson and witnessed by two others. He then said "after Howard signed the will, it was taken to two other individuals to sign as witnesses to validate the will". I hit panic mode. Who the hell is Howard? And what happened to the first two witnesses? Didn't they sign? This made quite the different in the problem. If they did sign, everything passed under the will. If they didn't, it passed by state law. Since you can't ask the professor for clarification during the exam (they are not in the room; they aren't even supposed to be in the building), I took a guess on just what the heck the professor meant. Cross your fingers!

And then there's last night. Here's where I had my scarecrow moment. Before I went downtown to take the exam, I tested the computer software to make sure it worked. At first it didn't. But then I fiddled with it and got it to work. We're good to go.

I mentioned to Hayley on the way downtown that I wasn't completely with it. I'm tired. No, I'm exhausted. Physically and mentally exhausted. Here's some context. A song came on the radio (it was the 4 o'clock flashback). I said, "man, this sounds like Soul Asylum". After the song was over, the DJ said it was Soul Asylum and I got pissed. I was like, "man, I thought I nailed that one. I was sure I had it right". After 10 seconds I realized that I was right. I had said Soul Asylum.

Unfortunately, this spaciness carried over to the final (it was Corporations). I had everything set up and ready to go. I started the software, selected the Agency and Partnerships file, and entered the password that was given by the proctor.

Invalid password.

What? You've got to be kidding me. Are you serious? Maybe I typed it wrong. Let's try again.

Invalid password.

At this point, the blood is boiling. I'm hating ExamSoft and their stupid program that works for everyone but me. I asked the proctor if the password was correct and she said it was. Everyone else in the classroom said it was correct and was working for them.

Time to bust out the pen!

Here were the thoughts running through my head the first 5 minutes of the exam (note this has been cleaned up...A LOT): "Oh man, someone at ExamSoft is going to have quite the bad day tomorrow. They're going to get a chewin'. Brian, get back to the exam. Seriously, what the hell kind of program is this?!?!?! It doesn't even work! I'm 0-2. Brian, get back to the exam. Wait until I tell Hayley, she's going to be pissed too! And on my daughter's birthday! Brian, get back to the exam. What if ExamSoft can't fix it? I can't be writing my exam for Moore's class tomorrow. Brian, get back to the exam. I'm tired of this crap. Brian, get back to the exam."

Here's the problem. I'm a slow reader, writer, talker, and story-teller (can you tell???). I figure I'm at a distinct disadvantage when taking an exam that everyone else can type because they can type much, much faster than I can write. This generally means they get more information down which yields the possibility for more points. Yeah, I wrote 11 double-spaced pages yesterday, but I could have written much, much more. And what pisses me off most is that the exam wasn't that bad. I was more prepared than I thought and I feel that I could have done really well. But alas.

So as I get out of the exam all pissed off, I get in the car and listen to how much fun my baby girl had at the Children's Museum yesterday. I don't have time to detail what all she did, but she supposedly had a great time. And it made me feel so much better. Who cares about the exam.

Then Hayley asked me how it went. And I got angry again. I was explaining to her what happened and I said, "The software messed up again. I went in, clicked on the drop-down box, selected the Agency & Partn...holy sh*t."

To anyone that has been reading this, they will have noticed that I said last night's exam was Corporations. I also said earlier that I selected the Agency & Partnerships exam file. No wonder the frickin' password didn't work. I'm a dufus and I picked the wrong file. If I only had a brain, I would have someone else to blame this on. But I must take the hit for being an idiot this time around.

Inherently Hopeless

I'm officially over a week in now. My first final is two days away. Tomorrow starts the hardcore studying (i.e. cramming and taking advantage of the short-term memory that I have, only to dump the material the next day to make room for my next final's information).

You'll be happy to hear that I have showered since my last post...once. I can't say that I've changed my clothes though. And I'm not sure the flea and tick stuff worked - my face itches like crazy.

But I'm plowing ahead. Today has focused on agency principles (mainly inherent agency power). I have determined it is inherently hopeless to try to understand it. I have read my notes (it didn't take long since I didn't understand what the hell the professor was talking about at the time) and re-read the relevant case. I remember this case well because it hit me like a ton of bricks.

Briefly, there was a lady that was trying to get damages for a breached contract. The contract was with a mortgage company (who sold the loan off to the federal government without telling the lady) who serviced the loan and then went bankrupt (like so many mortgage companies these days...only this took place in the '90s). The federal government was going after the lady's house (or the monetary equivalent, which she, like so many these days...only this took place in the '90s, didn't have the money to pay for). Ultimately, the court applied the concept of inherent agency power to declare that the woman won under agency principles.

The thing that makes me laugh about the case is that the court specifically said it did not understand inherent agency power. The thing that makes me cry about the case is that the lady didn't actually win. Let's say she won the battle but lose the war. The court turned around in the very next paragraph and said that the federal government is immune from an agent's unauthorized actions. As such, the lady loses.

Where was I going with this? (remember that short-term memory I was talking about? I may be in trouble...) Oh, yeah. I figure that if a judge can't understand the concept, I shouldn't have to understand it either. That's a pretty good theory in my book since I don't actually understand it. I've consulted my notes (which weren't helpful), consulted a free outline (which didn't help because they didn't understand it either), went so far as to consult the Restatement (which, as the court itself stated was "unhelpful"), and re-read the case.

I think I'll chalk this one up to the "hope it's not in an essay" category and move on. Oh look! It's 9:30. Guess it's time to go watch the rest of the game.

It's Been...

...four days. Only four frickin’ days?

Yep, the law school study-a-thon is four days in the works and one thing is clear: I AM SICK OF STUDYING!!! The fact that four days has passed me by is alarming for three reasons. First, I’ve only concentrated on one subject – professional responsibility – and I’m still nowhere near where I need to be. Second, I’ve spent approximately four days trying to figure out how to not take the exams (now or in the future). I think I’ve determined it’s not possible to get a law degree without graduating from law school. And to graduate from law school, I need to take (and pass) the exams. Third, I cleaned the kitchen this morning. The fact that I would prefer to clean than to do something else shows something is wrong.




Above is a picture that shows my condition 4 days in. Take note of a couple of things:

1. I am growing my finals beard (which supposedly will help me get through this). I am slightly worried that it will not actually help. I am also worried it will not make it through finals (I think I may have to make a trip down to the office to wrap up some stuff that won’t get wrapped up otherwise).

2. Consistent with the beard growth, I have broken out the flea and tick treatment (located next to my computer. And yes, it is necessary. See the comment below regarding my outfit for the next few weeks). There is now the distinct scent, nay, stench of peppermint and cinnamon (which oddly enough smells like pine when combined) lingering throughout the house.

3. Yes, I am using Hayley’s boppy – generally reserved for breastfeeding mothers – as a book prop. It makes it easier to highlight passages that someone (other than me) finds important.

4. I am wearing my 1988 Tecmo Bowl championship t-shirt. For the next few weeks, I will be a champion. (I am also wearing my flannel pants...and will continue to do so for the next few weeks.)

5. I am smiling for the picture. At this moment in time, that is my happy face.

Four days down, 20 days to go.

Beard Me

:: sigh :: It's that time of year again. November has come, and along with it has come the feeling of despair from another bout of finals. And the arrival of finals means only one thing for me:

It's beard-thirty.

In hockey, there is a tradition amongst the players to grow a beard as long as their team is in the playoffs. For me, I have grown a "beard" while preparing for finals (generally I have shaved it off when I went to take my first final because it's uncomfortable - much like the feeling in a certain part of my body when I'm taking the final). It seems to have served me well considering I am still in school. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Of course the growth will not start for another few weeks. I can't show up to work looking like a complete bum. I still have a professional responsibility to make it look like I know what I'm doing. But as soon as I take off of work for the two weeks of hell, it's beard time. And I don't plan on shaving it until after finals. Even then, I'm only going to shave it into a goatee. Why? Because my lovely wife hates it. (In my defense, she knew what she was getting herself into when she married me.)

Consider this the official countdown to beard-ness. There will be pictures.

One Down...

Ok, let’s face it. It was an empty threat. Was I really going to stop posting? No. I just wanted to emphasize that I do take your suggestions into account and enjoy hearing from you. Nothing a little guilt couldn’t accomplish.

Anyway, final numero uno is complete. How do I feel? See the video below.



Everything was going fine until I flipped the page and read the first essay question.

“O conveys Whiteacre to A and his heirs, but if all of A’s children graduate from high school, to A’s firstborn child for life, then to A’s firstborn child’s children, but if A’s firstborn child’s children stop using the land as a farm, to O’s heirs. Assume A has no children.”

While I had studied the possessory estate and future interest stuff, I had never seen anything like this and was vastly unprepared. The only thing that kept going through my head was a quote from Mallrats: “What the hell was that? What is going on here?” In addition to that thought, I had to continuously hold back the urge to puke at the thought of trying to figure this crap out. (Any lawyers out there able to sort this out? Ultimately I came to the conclusion that A got fee simple because the other conveyances were void due to the rule against perpetuities.)

So while I’m glad that the final is over, I’m feeling pretty sore from the shot to the groin that I just took. But fortunately for me, this was a good trial run since I get to do it three more times next week. Woohoo!!!

Enlightenment

Was informed I was getting my Contracts mid-term back today. Oh boy. Couldn't wait.

One theme: lots of red pen. Chickenscratch. Scanning, scanning, scanning. Found something legible.

"It is clear that you have misconceived the problem as presented and that you do not have a basic understanding of the principle of constructive conditions."

Uh oh. Final in a month.

Two problems with what the professor wrote. First, the problem had nothing to do with constructive conditions. I was unable to figure out what was going on so I attempted to write about a legal principle and make it fit the fact pattern. Oops. Wrong approach.

Second, I wasn't even able to correctly write about the legal principle that I thought I knew. Not a good sign.

A wise lawyer once told me "if you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullsh*t". I tried. I failed.

Not much time.

A Future Law Student?

Could we have a future law student on our hands? Seeing as she falls asleep when studying with Daddy, I'm thinking no. :)

What can I say? I guess Contracts and Property Law just aren't very interesting.

**I do not clean Brian's office. It is a lost cause.**

Graded

Well, this was the big week. After more than a month of wondering just exactly how I did in my first semester of law school, I found out my grades. Am I happy with the grades I got? Well, no. I didn't make all A's so this was not a great semester. I'm not being greedy or anything, but I'm a perfectionist (a major character flaw). I strive to be perfect and to be the best. And I wasn't perfect. As I have told Hayley (and anyone else that has asked), some grades I've seen before in my college/high school/middle school career; others I haven't. But all things considered, the grades will just have to do. They aren't going to kick me out (yet...) so I should just "keep the wagons moving".

Now, my professors got the opportunity to assess my performance during the last semester. I cannot say that I had the same opportunity. (Let's face it, those evaluations that you fill out mean absolutely nothing. In fact, in one of my classes, crim law ::shudder shudder::, the professor stood there and watched us fill them out. He gave us 2 minutes to do them. He's old: really old. He's been there so long that nothing that those evaluations say will have any bearing on him. It's called tenure folks.)

I realize that everything that I say here regarding my classes will have the same effect as those stupid evaluations. But I need vindication, damn it! So I am going to take this opportunity to turn the tables and grade my professors and classes. Each class will be graded along 4 lines: course potential, usefulness of class time, usefulness of textbook and an overall grade.

Here we go in alphabetical order.

Civil Procedure

Course potential: B+

I didn't really know what this course was all about going into it. I saw civil and I figured it had something to do with non-criminal matters. I was right. Essentially, the course sought to inform one the general federal rules as they apply to civil litigation. Litigation is not my bag, but it also went through and described the things you must consider when choosing a court, the type of law to apply, etc.

Usefulness of class time: A

Going to class was important. The professor did an outstanding job explaining concepts and how they applied to hypotheticals. He took added time to answer questions (including student hypotheticals) and did his utmost to get us to understand what was going on. The professor told relevant life experiences which were often amusing, which is a big plus.

Usefulness of textbook: A-
This did not seem like a typical law school textbook. Of course I'm only basing this off of 5 textbooks (given this was my first semester and only had 5 classes...). But it didn't simply rely on cases to transmit the concepts we were supposed to learn. Instead, it had additional commentary which explained what the case was trying to say and how it applied to other cases. It was pretty darn beneficial. In fact, I would say this was the most beneficial book that I bought last semester. It was actually worth the $130 I paid (and the $13 I received back for it...).

Overall grade: A

Like I said, I didn't know what to expect and I am not interested in litigation. However, the course was very rule-based which is good for a tax accountant. I like that kind of structure. Additionally, it provided insight into how one goes about choosing a court, what law will apply, and how to use the established rules as a weapon.

Contracts I

Course potential: B

This course is related to instruments that everyday people use everyday. It's practical significance to the normal person is the source of its potential.

Usefulness of class time: B+

This was not the standard "recitation" class. Sure the professor expected you to do the daily reading and sure, he called on people randomly, but he did not grill you or treat you like a moron. He took some time to explain some of the concepts and how to apply them to hypothetical situations. It did help that he was witty and made many of the classes entertaining. Plus the class was only an hour long.

Usefulness of textbook: C-
You are going to see a pattern develop in this area. The textbook was simply a book with many contracts cases in it. The idea is that you learn the concepts the established case law. This is a bad idea. No two cases are the same; similarly, no concept is applied to two cases in the same manner. It is completely dependent on how the judge wants to rule. It would have been more useful to learn rulings by judge.

Overall grade: B+

This area of the law was one of the more interesting (at least I found). I feel as though I actually learned something in this class and didn't simply have to make stuff up in an effort to successfully pass the final. I must reiterate that the practical nature of the course boosted the grade that it received.

Criminal Law

Course potential: A

Think about it. Blood, guts, murder and mayhem. This is the class that we read about every day. So and so murdered another. So and so broke into a car. So and so killed a federally protected bird. I'm not all about the gory stuff, but this is what you hear about every day in the news. This class had the potential of providing a comprehensive understanding of just what the newspapers are talking about when you read of someone committing a crime. It had the potential to provide an understanding of just where that line is in the realm of criminal law. It had so much potential, except...

Usefulness of class time: F
There was no point going to class. The professor didn't teach anyone anything. It really was a waste of time and a complete shame. Yeah there was recitation, but it was not random. You knew when you were going to be called on. You didn't have to do the reading otherwise (not that it would have done you any good. See below for more). The professor clearly knew what he was talking about, but he didn't let any of us in on what was going on. Instead, he encouraged us to read supplemental information. You did not need to be in class at all. I would have been better served catching up on my sleep (which I may have done a few times...) than sitting there in class.

Usefulness of textbook: F/B+
I know what you're thinking: how can you give an F AND a B+ for a class's textbook? Well, here's the answer. The professor required us to get two books. One was a standard law school case book. It was full of cases that taught you nothing. It was the book I opened for the first two days of class before I learned that it was pointless. It was also the book that he expected us to read 50+ pages out of for each class. Not possible. This book got an F.

Then there was the supplemental book that he required us to read. This book was probably my saving grace. Without this book, I do not pass. It was not a case book. It was a "black and white" description of the law. It explained concepts and described how they applied to scenarios. It was the book that I could have read in lieu of going to class and still passed the course. Come to think of it, I basically did read it in lieu of going to class. Yes, I was physically present in class. But mentally I was merely honing my "Maj Jong Tiles" abilities.

Overall grade: D------------

As I said, it was a miracle that I passed this class. If it weren't for the supplemental book, I don't know what I would have done. The shame in this class is that I spent my time and money attending a class where I was supposed to be taught something. Instead, I had to spend my time and money to attend a class AND THEN teach myself everything I needed to know on my own time when I had other things to do. The only suggestion I got to put down on my course evaluation for this course was that they do away with class time. Instead, they should have the students read the supplement and show up to take the final.

Legal Research & Writing I

Course potential: C

You're learning how to "write". A whole semester on that. All you're reallying "learning" is the format that you're supposed to write in for law school classes. There just wasn't much interest or potential for this class.

Usefulness of class time: A

It was here that we learned what we needed to learn. The professor was awesome. He knew that this was not the most exciting class, but he did a great job of dressing it up.

Usefulness of textbook: F
What? There were textbooks for this class? I had no idea!

Overall grade: B-

I'm giving it a B- over a C+ solely on the fact that the professor entertained us while we were there. The humor and wit that was infused into the class lessons enabled us to learn while allowing the class time to pass quickly.

Torts I

Course potential: D

I've already said it a couple of times so I won't beat a dead horse. Civil litigation is not my thing and does not strike my fancy. I don't care about suing another person because they said you smell. I don't care about suing another person for jumping out and saying "Boo!". I don't agree with these frivolous lawsuits that have the effect of ruining the lives of others because they have a judgment against them that they cannot pay. The fact that I have to go through two semesters of learning how to sue someone else is just plain boring. Fortunately, I made it through the first half.

Usefulness of class time: B-

Here's the thing: my torts professor was smart. Very smart. She knew what she was talking about. The problem was that she asked questions that no one understood. If we didn't understand the question, we could not understand the answer. It was a vicious circle. That said, the professor did a great job of taking extra time to explain the concept or idea several different ways in order for us to understand it. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't. She also took time of her own to meet with us outside of class in review sessions to enhance our understanding.

Usefulness of textbook: C-
Just a standard law school textbook. Too many cases explaining too few concepts.

Overall grade: C-

You probably gathered from the "Course potential" grade above that this course was one of my least favorites. Again, it was the fact that you're learning all the little ways to go about suing someone else. Just not my thing.