Lisa Hutch - The TRIALS

Marda Loop Justice Film Festival

2011-11-07T17:00:00.002-07:00

What a great event, right here in Calgary:

Marda Loop Justice Film Festival

View the schedule here:

http://www.justicefilmfestival.ca/festival.php/loc|mardaloop

So many great films ... how many will I go to see? Hmmmm ....

Steve Jobs

2011-10-06T11:58:00.003-06:00

I was shocked to learn of the death of Steve Jobs this morning. While many reflect upon his impact on the world, here's a link to the SLAW article which reflects on Steve Jobs and his impact on the law:

Steve Jobs (1955 - 2011)
by Simon Chester

Another Awesome Read

2011-07-12T17:31:00.002-06:00

Found this through a friend's Facebook posting:

Do children really need to be gender-free
Globe and Mail

Think about this the next time you walk through Toys'R'Us with the creepy gender-division down the middle.

I Love This Idea

2011-06-29T08:39:00.003-06:00

No 'him' or 'hers' allowed: Is a gender-free preschool going too far?
Globe and Mail

I love the idea of laying a foundation for challenging the norms that we encounter. I don't think anyone would say that it is realistic to pretend that there aren't genders, but taking a different approach to how gender differences are treated and thought about should be applauded. A different approach to perceiving any of our social norms should be applauded ... does it not only promote mindful decision making and blasting away ignorance and prejudice?

Very interesting. We decided against one preschool for our daughter when the director of that school said to us "Well, girls will be girls ... " and then went on to describe what she thought "girly" behaviour to be. Seemed like my kid wouldn't get a chance to just be herself, her role was already defined. Didn't make me very happy.

PS - the commenters on the Globe & Mail website, not surprisingly, do not agree with me. I wonder if people re-read their comments before they hit publish? Each comment I read solidified the way I think, as outlined above. I don't understand what is so threatening about challenging the gender norms. Why do people react so strongly? I've never understood this.

Lawyering - Lisa Styles

2011-06-21T12:16:00.004-06:00

So, now that I'm a full-fledged lady of law, I find that I just don't have the time or inclination to keep writing this blog. Perhaps it is that so much of what I do during the day, I CAN'T tell you about (heh). Perhaps it is that I am a mother to a toddler ("I'm not a baby, I'm a toddlyiar", she tells me when I ask how my baby is doing), and any spare time that I do have belongs to her (and the spa, let's be honest). Perhaps it is that life has finally slowed down and I've been busy enjoying camping with my family, going to work and continuing to learn every single day and continuing to love what I'm doing, watching movies, reading books, and being thankful that I don't have to go through CPLED again - mwooo ha ha ha ha.

BUT ... I think this law student blog needs to live on, mmmmm ... how to accomplish such a feat?

Here's a teaser: I may have found a recruit to whom I can pass the torch (did I get it "write"? ... ahahahahah ... my brother is the pun-master, and it isn't often that I think of one). When I know for sure, I'll post a reveal.

In the meantime, just to keep this blog a little bit fresh and tasty, I'll try to visit a little more often and post some of the interesting tid-bits that I come across throughout my day.

For instance, this one isn't hot off the presses - it is about a month old, but I found it pretty interesting even though I don't practice criminal law:
R v. J.A. 2011 SCC 28

This one is hot off the presses:
New home builder facing several charges - Government of Alberta News Release

Worried about privacy? The Office of the Privacy Commissioner (Federal, with AB and BC) developed an online tool to help assess privacy policies:
Securing Personal Information: A Self-Assessment Tool for Organizations

Also - an interesting piece by Sanjoy Mahajan, Associate Director at the Teaching and Learning Laboratory and Lecturer in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT, over at the Freakonomics Blog, makes me think of litigation, thinking on your feet, and negotiation for settlement:
What Chess Tells Us About the Value of Perception

By the same author, on the same blog, a few articles that have me thinking, especially as my "toddlyiar" is entering playschool this fall:
Deliberate Practice: How Education Fails to Produce Expertise
How Richard Feynman Thought

And, now I want to buy his book. Sigh. sometimes I wonder if it would be better to request my salary be paid in Chapters gift cards ....

ETA: One more that I just came across:

http://www.canadianlawyermag.com/images/stories/pdfs/Surveys/2010/cl_june_salary%20survey.pdf

It's Good to be Home

2011-02-23T08:01:00.002-07:00

While there are so many reasons that it is good to be home, weekends like this past weekend really make it true.

It is my 6 month anniversary today, at my new job, and I'm starting to feel like we're finally getting into a groove of sorts. Things have been very hectic up until this point, and this past weekend we finally got to connect with friends, spend time with our families, and actually get some rest and relaxation.

On Saturday we met friends at the Pfanntastic Pannenkoek Haus for breakfast, and were not disappointed by the amazing pancakes that we have been meaning to try for quite some time now. After that, we were able to hit The Princess and the Pea at Storybook Theatre, which was a cute little show for the kidlets. The best part about Saturday was that we were never more than 5 km away from where we live - excellent.

Sunday, we hit Nakiska for some skiing with Jason's family. Also excellent. It hit me, while on the chairlift, that I haven't been skiing or snowboarding for 4-5 years now. Hmmm. Luckily, everyone was very patient with me, and I eventually got down the hill (may not have been pretty, but I was picking up speed by the end of the day).

Monday we got to spend time with my family, and on Tuesday (an extra day that I took off), after running a few errands, we went into hibernation mode and watched a few movies (including Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, which I had never seen before - my kid has a thing for musicals).

All in all, excellent relaxation.

I began to think, this week, that if I was still in school, I'd be on reading week right now. Also made me think that it was about this time that we had finished moots and were making the final preparations before exams hit in April. Sigh. I don't miss that kind of pressure, but I do miss having reading break off.

Anyhoo - here's a neat post over at Slaw which is both Star Trek and Law related (could it get any better): The Replciator

Happy New Year!

2010-12-31T09:05:00.002-07:00

Even though I am posting this one day early (well .... about 15 hours early in my time zone), I thought I'd put it out there.

2010 was a great year ... so many exciting things for moi. I finished articling, got a job in Calgary and moved home, got called to the bar. My kid learned to walk and talk, and we've basically been reintegrating into our non-school-mode lives. It has been glorious.

I can't believe that in (roughly) 15 hours we'll be into 2011. Crazy. I think it's true that as you get older, time appears to speed up. This makes sense from a relativity perspective ... think about it. In my 20's, 1 year was about 1/20th of my life, or about 5% of my life. That's a decent chunk. Now, in my 30's, 1 year is about 1/30th of my life, or about 3.33% of my life. That's a smaller chunk. Heh. The chunks get smaller every year that goes by, and it doesn't help that we're packing so much into each and every year.

In any event, happy new year to everyone out there. Hopefully 2011 brings health and happiness to you all, and a breath of fresh air in a good change kind of way.

I'm hoping that 2011 marks the beginning of some adventures in travel for me and my family, but it's still too early to tell for certain. It's so exciting to be able to entertain that notion, rather than the notion of WHERE WE ARE GOING TO BE LIVING/WORKING/GOING TO SCHOOL. Phew!

Summary

2010-11-03T12:45:00.002-06:00

- I am a lawyer.
- I am home.
- I am happy.

Heh. It has been a long journey, but on October 1st I was called to the bar and I am now a lawyer. I was able to secure a job back home, and we're back. I couldn't be happier.

Life as a lawyer, so far, has been busy. Neat little tid-bit: the most beautiful courtroom in Alberta is in Medicine Hat. I was there, and the rumors are true. Tried to google a pic of it, but came up empty. You'll just have to trust me - or see it yourself.

Hopefully I'll be writing a little bit on here, from time to time, but I make no guarantees! Especially with the weather as nice as it has been.

I Can't Even Tell You ...

2010-09-20T17:57:00.000-06:00

... how many posts I've begun, run out of time to finish, and therefore saved into my drafts folder.

One day ... one day...

In the meantime, here's a quickie.

Interesting tidbit over at Canadian Lawyer Magazine:
EU court denies privilege protection to in-house lawyers

I'm Famous

2010-09-02T13:14:00.001-06:00

A Law Actually Interview with Lisa Hutch - The Trials

Thanks for asking me to participate, Michael!

It's Official

2010-07-29T14:25:00.005-06:00

U of S is going JD.

So ... the big question now is ... do I or don't I?

Thoughts?

Answer my poll to the right.

My Poor Blog

2010-06-30T17:20:00.000-06:00

It must feel neglected, especially with it's pretty new layout and all. Poor, poor blog.

I've been on the run, lately, which is my usual state of affairs in the summer. We've been travelling on the weekend, and trying to catch up with household affairs during the week. I love summer for this reason. Lots of fun, lots of activity, and lots of happy exhaustion!

Anyhoo - work has been busy as well. The real estate files are piling up with alarming speed, I guess the busy season for buying houses is upon us.

Not much time right now to write, as we're on our way to Calgary, but just wanted to check in. Soon ... I'll sit down and write. Just waiting for a rainy day.

NEW LOOK

2010-06-14T20:45:00.001-06:00

I've been wanting to change up the look of the 'ol blog for quite awhile, but didn't have the time to code it myself, and I wasn't really in love with any of the templates that had been available.

Yay for Blogger's new Template Designer. I love it.

May tweak some aspects of it in the days to come, but I'm feeling fresh (and frisky ... but don't tell anyone, hahahahahaha).

Format Changes

2010-06-14T08:35:00.000-06:00

I've just discovered Blogger's new Design editor ... watch for a new look for the Blog soon! EXCITING!

Stealth Post

2010-06-10T09:44:00.002-06:00

I usually try not to post at work, but I found this link, and thought it worthy of sharing:

Essential Law Library List
Put out by the Alberta Law Society Libraries

Awesome. Must now construct a wish list.

More Copyright Commentary

2010-06-10T08:57:00.004-06:00

Richard Stobbe of Brownlee's Intellectual Property Law in Canada Blog
Copyright Reform in Canada

Cameron Hutchison at the U of A Faculty of Law Blog
The Good, the Bad & the Ugly of Bill C-32 The Copyright Modernization Act

Grammar Girl Calls Me Out

2010-06-10T08:44:00.000-06:00

The recent post at Grammar Girl: How to Eliminate Adverbs

My frequent offence ... highlighted by the quote from this article below:

Now for a brief list of very, very useless adverbs: the ones often used carelessly as intensifiers. You really should cut these out: “extremely,” “definitely,” “truly,” “very,” and “really.” You can totally use them in dialogue though, especially if your characters are surfers. Otherwise, avoid them mightily.

Now ... to re-write my basic cover letter.

One More Thing to Think About ...

2010-06-10T08:27:00.000-06:00

... regardless of whether an office is paperless:

e-records should be treated same as paper
@ SLAW

SCC Rules on Bail Hearings

2010-06-10T08:17:00.000-06:00

Supreme Court confirms publication bans on bail hearings
@ the Edmonton Journal

Lawyers’ Ethical Responsibilities Relating to Metadata — Slaw

2010-06-03T08:51:00.000-06:00

Lawyers’ Ethical Responsibilities Relating to Metadata — Slaw

Very interesting point, something that we should all keep in mind!

The Long Awaited Copyright Changes

2010-06-03T08:33:00.000-06:00

This is the current version, first reading at Parliament was yesterday:
http://www2.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Docid=4580265&file=4

The Michael Geist Take

CBC News - Technology & Science - Copyright bill would ban breaking digital locks

Will write my take on it all when I get a chance to actually process all of the information.

"Learning the Robes" Poll @ the Precedent

2010-06-03T08:22:00.000-06:00

So, after monitoring the poll over at the Precedent, 63 responses later and it looks like most people buy their legal robes at:

DSR Harcourts Limited/Westminster Regalia
Products

I'm wondering, though, if this is mostly due to the Precedent's readership being in Ontario, and these specific Robe Makers being in Toronto?

In fact, all of the options are in Ontario, except for Gaspard, which is in Winnipeg, and which nobody has chosen as an option on the poll.

Hmmmm.

Also, 63 responses isn't that overwhelming.

Looks like I may need to keep looking for information to help me make my decision.

Ummm .....

2010-05-29T13:45:00.002-06:00

.... I'd like it to be noted that I'm writing this on my new I-Pad.

Yup, the Hubby bought me one yesterday in celebration of being done CPLED. It was waiting for me when I got home from work last night.

I'd write more, but I'm having too much fun playing with this new toy.

I'm the luckiest.

Makes Me Glad ...

2010-05-28T17:30:00.000-06:00

... that I've finally started to text. HA! I'm slowly but surely getting there.

Are Technophobes Negligent? — Slaw

Makes me think of that Rod Blagojevich on Celebrity Apprentice. I don't watch that show, but I caught an episode where he literally didn't know how to use a computer. Yikes.

A Poll That I Want to Monitor

2010-05-28T08:59:00.000-06:00

New poll: Learning the robes
@ the Precedent

With bar-calls fast approaching, one question that I have is what to do about robes. While I could borrow robes, I'll eventually need some.

A colleague, who was called to the bar last year, pointed me towards the Gaspard Robe Company which seems to have very reasonable priced gear:

Gaspard Robe Company Legal & Judicial Robes

Most interesting is the Legal Shirt Front, which seems like pure genius! I think I will for SURE have to pick up a couple of those, in the least.

Otherwise, I'll be watching the poll above, see if anything interesting comes up.

The Debate

2010-05-28T08:56:00.001-06:00

Weighing the Benefits and Costs of Going Paperless
@ Law Times

I love the idea of immediate access. I also love leafing through hard copies and making my own notations.

Quite the debate.

Now ... The Real Test of my Will Power

2010-05-28T08:26:00.000-06:00

It was easy not to buy an i-Pad when they weren't available in Canada, but now I'm in trouble.

iPad-denomium hits Edmonton
@ the Edmonton Journal

I-covet.

A Nice Way to Stay Informed

2010-05-21T10:39:00.000-06:00

For everyone that fits somewhere into the geek spectrum:

Taking science public puts trio in big leagues @ the Edmonton Journal

I'm So Excited

2010-05-21T08:53:00.000-06:00

(you have to read my title in a sing-song voice à la Amy Poehler)

Tonight we get to go see Henry Rollins for his spoken word tour. Last time I saw the Rollins was in March of 2008, in Saskatoon at a super cool venue.

Here's the re-cap from that show, which outlines all of my previous Rollins encounters:
http://lisahutch.blogspot.com/2008/03/last-night-rollins.html

So ... this will be my 4th time seeing him do Spoken Word, and I can't wait. I also can't wait to get another sweet t-shirt, just so I can be super hardcore! We bought great seats on presale, and this time we're at the Winspear centre in Edmonton (http://www.winspearcentre.com/all-events/2010-11-events/henry-rollins/).

Can't wait. Will let you know how this time compares. Will have to remember to caffeine-up just prior, though. 10:30 has been my bed-time lately - hee!

I Can't Believe I'm Older Than Pac-Man

2010-05-21T08:30:00.000-06:00

Not by much, mind you.

Celebrating Pac-Mans 30th B-Day with Google:
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/celebrating-pac-mans-30th-birthday.html

Very Interesting

2010-05-19T18:03:00.000-06:00

French cabinet approves burqa ban law

How Did I Not Know About This Before?

2010-05-19T17:43:00.000-06:00

http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/

Just spotted this linked on a friend's FB page. Must add to my toolbar when I get a chance. MUST READ THROUGH IT when I get another chance.

October 1st, here I come.

2010-05-19T10:25:00.003-06:00

Yes, my bar call has been booked. Now that I have officially conquered CPLED, I just have to finish my articles, submit the proper paperwork, and on October 1, 2010 I will officially become a lawyer when I'm called to the bar (although, I can still work between the end of my articles and my bar call, just requires that I submit some paperwork).

Also - for those who care - I did pick my bar call date based on the fact that it can be represented as binary as follows:

10 01 10

WHICH ... represents the number 38.

Interesting things about the number 38:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/38_%28number%29

My favourite bit:

"The number was said to represent unnatural bravery, characteristic of the legendary heroes of Norse sagas."

The relief, I can't describe it. The weight lifted from my shoulders, it's exquisite.

Just Had to Display This Screen-Shot

2010-05-19T10:16:00.003-06:00

("CD" stands for Competency Demonstrated)

That is all.

I've Been Psychotic ...

2010-05-17T17:29:00.000-06:00

... with checking on my grades for CPLED.

The last in-class portion of CPLED was last week, the negotiation session. It was great, but then, it was like reliving the ADR class that I took in law school, which I L.O.V.E.D. The marks for that are already up, so I now know that:

I have OFFICIALLY passed 8 of the 9 CPLED modules. Woot to the power of 8.

What I have been psychotically checking on is the grade for module 7, which I completed on May 6th. Grrrr.

One grade away from peace-of-mind.

I've been CPLEDing since November, and you can read all about the trials and tribulations of these last few months, but these last few days that I'm waiting for this grade are the MOST EXCRUCIATING OF ALL. So. Close.

Excruciating.

Woot!

2010-05-02T21:15:00.002-06:00

Officially, I have passed 7 of the 9 CPLED modules.

What a relief.

I have one written CE left (due this week), and then my last in-class CE that starts a week from tomorrow.

So close to the end. I can't believe it.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with all my extra time once this is all over. It's going to seem like a whole new world. I can't wait. I have a feeling that there is a long list of fiction that will appear in my immediate future. Sigh. Can't wait.

It's True

2010-04-20T08:09:00.003-06:00

GameStation's Immortal Soul Clause

Clever, clever GameStation.

We definitely need to do a better job with conveying terms and conditions for online transactions.

His Brain Her Brain - Scientific American

2010-04-19T08:13:00.002-06:00

Was sauntering through Coles this weekend, and this caught my attention:

http://www.scientificamerican.com/sciammind/

HAD to buy it. Not only is it so interesting from a law perspective, but as a parent, I truly believe that most of the genderized behaviour of children is learned. I've only been able to take a quick scan through it so far, and it looks somewhat promising.

Another Benefit ...

2010-04-13T08:06:00.002-06:00

... to having done CPSC as an undergraduate degree before law school ....

sure makes drafting agreements easier. My LE last week asked me to draft a shot-gun clause and a non-competition clause for a unanimous shareholder agreement. We were given precedents, but they were written in an archaic and wordy format, so had to be changed a great deal.

Writing out the draft clauses for that assignment was seriously like programming. Keeping track of the variables, writing the logic to ensure that all contingencies were provided for, and doing it all in a succint and elegant manner. I REALLY ENJOYED this assignment. I like keeping track of the details, and I like the logic. I'm trying to decide if this is the law equivalent of being a computer nerd.

I received fairly good feedback from a fairly tough LGF, as well, so I know that I'm onto something with this.

Exciting. When everything feels so new all the time, it's so nice to find something that seems to be a natural strength.

EGADS!

2010-04-09T10:38:00.000-06:00

Alberta unemployment rate climbs

Not good news for a poor soul like me who is looking for a job! At least Alberta is still lower than the national average.

Is It Wrong To Cope Through Chocolate?

2010-04-07T20:25:00.002-06:00

Is it wrong that my title is only partly a joke?

Ah CPLED. It would be so easy to whine, moan, wheeze, and otherwise lament about how gruelling you are, but that's just not my style. I'd rather problem solve (of course), and try and think about exactly what it is that is wearing me down, and what could be done to change the process. So ... here goes.

I like the fact that we do modules, rather than a big bar admission test. I like that I have access to lawyers who give me feedback about my writing. I enjoy the opportunity to have discussions with my LGFs ... but.

But.

I am almost CPLED-ed out.

The pace prior to Christmas was a slow and steady pace in comparison to the pace now, which I suppose is a good thing as we are eased into the whole CPLED thing, but I almost wish that CPLED was organized in the opposite way, so that the last month of the process was a more relaxed pace, and I could ease my way out. My WORK work load is a bit more complex now, and I'm not quite as eager about the whole CPLED process. Easing my way out would be a lot easier than easing my way in.

ALSO - at this point, I've had so much feedback from so many various LGFs that all the information is spinning around in my head, and I'm working far too hard to put it all together into coherent assignments, especially when some of the feedback is directly contradictory. Again, it would be easier if the pace were a little more relaxed at this point, so that I could truly synthesize all of this information to try and bring my writing to a higher level, rather than just slap together assignments to get them done and get a CD (competency demonstrated).

So ... my big suggestion ... flip the script. Ease us out, rather than easing us in. We can handle it.

And ... problem solved. NEXT ... solving the problem of finishing my LE that is due tomorrow.

Ah CPLED, how I look forward to the time that we part our merry ways.

iSaw, iWanted, iPaid, iGot iPad

2010-04-07T08:35:00.000-06:00

Wish I was one of them .... sigh. One day, toys will be a priority (although, I shouldn't complain, I'm still loving my little blue ASUS EEE netbook).

iSaw, iWanted, iPaid, iGot iPad

Tidbits of Interest for the Day

2010-03-26T17:15:00.000-06:00

Making computers think outside the box
at U of C News & Events

Is it bad that this makes me think of some kind of awesome dining room table on which I can eat, search the internet, watch my kid do virtual colouring, help my kid do homework, display virtual tablecloths?

Ah ... the fantasy.

Lawyers can't dump deadbeat clients, court rules
at the National Post
Supreme Court of Canada actual decision can be viewed here.

Top IP Boutiques

2010-03-25T15:14:00.003-06:00

As per Canadian Lawyer Magazine:

The pick of the crop - part 1

Maybe one day on that list ... Hutchinson LLP? Mwoo ha ha ha ha.

In the interest of trying to read more about copyright law ...

2010-03-25T15:09:00.001-06:00

... here's an article on SLAW:

Copyright reform bill this spring

SAHD Reports

2010-03-23T19:54:00.002-06:00

Our evening routine consists of my Husband giving me the SAHD Report (or, the Stay-at-Home-Dad Report), outlining the various adventures and hijinks that he and the kidlet get up to throughout the day.

Today's report was heeeeelarious. I won't go into too many details, just to protect the privacy of our wee one, but there was a poop, a bath, and some screaming, all in the middle of dinner prep.

I wish I could have been a fly on the wall for that one.

OH - and another gem from today's SAHD Report - Jason and the little Spud were at the library this morning, making their rounds as they normally do. The library was packed with all sorts of little ones. OUR little one set her sights on another little girl, probably a year or two her senior, went up to her and started tickling her tummy. The older girl was not impressed.

Mwoooo ha ha ha ha.

Our kid has no fear, and is definitely NOT shy. I love it.

I guess we'll have to start teaching her to SAY HELLO before you try and tickle someone - it's the polite thing to do.

On a CPLED note - I officially have passed 5/9 of the CEs. Woot woot! The 6th one is due on Thursday, and so I'm in serious crack-down mode. I'm so happy that I'm officially more than halfway done. After this CE is handed in on Thursday, I only have two more written CEs, one more in class CE, and then I'm FREE AS A BIRD (assuming I pass everything, of course).

I can't wait for the FREE AS A BIRD status. CPLED + WORK = very overwhelming, especially where there are no breaks from the week-to-week assignments. Perhaps it would be less so if I skipped some of the LEs, but I just don't have it in me. I can't imagine doing all of the work from scratch for a CE, too much stress for one week. Also - I usually do learn something from each assignment, so I guess that's a bonus too.

AND ... back to the CE writing.

Also -

2010-03-15T21:44:00.003-06:00

- as I've been trying to meet my desk organization goal, I NOW am coveting a few of these items, mainly the Grassy Organizer, Desk Dots, and the Kikkerland Wood LED Clock.

How To: Enhance Your Desk
The Precedent

The LLB/JD Debate

2010-03-15T21:00:00.002-06:00

So, my alma mater, the U of S, is considering changing the degree that they confer from an LLB to a JD. A survey has been sent to alumni, which you can view here:
http://www.usask.ca/law/documents/JDLLBLETTER-MailedFinal.pdf

I've canvassed those that I know in the legal community here, and it would seem that not many are too concerned with the difference between the two.

I can see, though, that it is the wave of the future, as it would seem that more Canadian law schools are making the switch.

I can also see the benefits that would follow with being able to travel and work abroad.

Interesting. If they do make the switch, will I opt to have my degree retroactively changed to a JD? Must consider.

Sometimes ...

2010-03-14T20:17:00.003-06:00

... I just reach my wipe-out point. I'm pretty sure that this point typically gets reached at the end of each CE that I hand in, but I haven't really looked back to verify.

On Wednesday night last week, I fell asleep while putting my kid to bed at 7:30 ... got up at 11:00 to brush my teeth, then went back to bed.

This weekend I've been spending in recovery mode, which to me, consists of chick-flicks on the TV, PJs on my body, and a special kind of hibernation that involves recharging my batteries, chocolate, and cleaning my apartment.

As for my weekly goals, I did clean-up my blog side-bar, have not yet read up on fair use issues, I did finish my CE, have NOT yet made a dentist appointment, and have somewhat organized my desk.

NEW weekly goals:

finish my LE for Thursday
make a dentist appointment
read up on fair use issues with copyright
go running at least once (yup, am feeling the urge to run again, now that spring is almost upon us, and since I'm not pregnant/the mother of an infant)

I haven't added very many new ones, as far too many of the above are carry-overs. I want to wrap these ones up before I get too crazy ahead of myself.

AND NOW ... to get back to work on my LE. I've already got a good start on it, but I know that it will take a few hours of good solid work to get to where I feel like I've got a solid skeleton of an assignment.

OH - and happy pi day!

π

New Record

2010-03-12T21:05:00.001-07:00

Ex-wife's award a Canadian record
Toronto woman to get $110,000 a month in spousal support
The Toronto Star

Internet and Jurisdiction

2010-03-10T08:28:00.001-07:00

I have read a little bit about this in the past, but it never ceases to amaze me how truly global our world is.

Something that many internet users definitely do not understand, the long arm of the law is VEEEERRRRRRY long these days:

US Jurisdiction over Canadian Sites
Richard P.W. Stobbe from Brownlee's IPblog

Makes me think of this case too:
Dow Jones & Co. Inc. v. Gutnick

Just Checking In ...

2010-03-08T13:03:00.001-07:00

... haven't had very much time to update like I want to, but had to drop in to share:

Court goes digital for first time
Edmonton Journal

So cool, and hopefully the beginning of a new era.

CE Dominates My Week

2010-03-04T08:19:00.004-07:00

Today another CE is due. I'm almost finished it, just need a few details refined, and then I can submit my Wills CE. This is module 5 of 9. After this one, assuming I demonstrate competency (knock on wood), I'm more than halfway. Sigh. Sounds better than the 1/9 modules I reported back in November. Much, much better.

Exciting news for me - my kid STTN AGAIN last night. The first occurrence on Sunday night/Monday morning was glorious, but wasn't repeated again until LAST NIGHT! I think we're slowly developing a new pattern that may just make my life a little more rested. I'm so excited.

Last night really was the night for her to STTN, too, as I was up past midnight working on this CE (for the 2nd night in a row). Grrr ... when will we get more hours in the day? I just need a couple more, then I'd be able to crank through these CEs AND get my required sleep. Ah well. A couple of puffy-eyed days never hurt anybody ... I try and tell myself that people PAY to make their faces look as puffy as mine today, and I got mine for FREE ... mwoo ha ha ha ha.

Also doesn't hurt that it's ROLL UP THE RIM TIME! Woot woot! Makes me miss the good ol' days when I worked in Admitting. I remember drinking coffee with Jen (because you have to finish the beverage before rolling the rim, or it's unlucky), and then going through our routine of saying "Rrrrrrroll up the Rrrrrrim to win!", rolling our "r"s of course, and then rolling our rims. Feels like I used to win so many prizes back in the good ol' days.

Makes me miss the Timmy's at U of S, too. So many Timmy runs, so many roll-up the rim wins and losses. Sigh.

I have to say, though, that so far Roll up the Rim has been OK for me. I've rolled two coffees myself, with no wins, but I bought a co-worker a coffee, and she gave me the free coffee that she won on it. YAY! SO ... so far, so good. Maybe it's time to re-engage the Roll up the Rim to Win routine, maybe it will bring me more luck!

As for goals of the week, I'm happy to report that I am so far still on track.

I DID clean up my blog side-bar. The links that are now displayed should all be active. I haven't added any new ones yet, as there are a few more sites that I now frequent regularly, but that will have to be another week's goal.

I'm ALMOST done my CE for this week, so that goal will be taken care of.

My desk is about halfway organized ... I'm getting there.

Have not yet called the dentist or read up on fair use issues. These things will have to wait until my CE is over (today at 4 PM).

SO ... not doing too badly, all in all.

By the way, is anybody else still stuck in January? February went by so fast, I'm in shock that it is already March. Seriously, light speed. I can't believe that we're fast approaching the 1 year mark from when I finished law school. Seems like only yesterday (cue the reminiscing appropriate background music) ...

... anyhoo - back to work on my CE!

A Golden Sunday/Monday

2010-03-01T08:20:00.001-07:00

For more reasons than one.

Yay for Canada breaking the gold medal count record for winter Olympics:
Canada's golden Games at CTV's Website

Also - just want to put it out there - my kid STTN (that stands for Slept Through the Night). It's a pretty big deal. We never did any sleep training, as I never had a point in time where I could sacrifice a week's worth of sleep in order to better our sleep situation (what with being a law student and articling student and all). She really only ever woke up twice a night on average, and was quick to put back to sleep. Coping wasn't that difficult.

BUT LAST NIGHT ... she STTN. I'm in shock, awe, and delight. She woke up so happy, and so did I. It may just be a fluke, but if so it's a hopeful fluke, and one that I will revel in for today.

As for the "Two Views" article (page 26 at this link), it was a great read. Both authors clearly know what they're talking about, and lay out the issues in an easy to understand way.

Overall, though, I must say that I agree with Michael Geist on this one. I argued essentially the same thing (i.e. the requirement for a principle based policy that can accommodate faster-than-the-speed-of-light advances in technology) in the major paper that I wrote for my Intellectual Property class Conceptualization of Intellectual Property in a Post-Industrial Era; Protecting Virtual Property in MMOGs).

What I like about this point of view is that it really forces us to rationalize and defend our motives, goals, and ideas about intellectual property. So much easier to say than to actually do, but something that I think is important and necessary.

This leads to the only thing that bothers me about Barry Sookmar's view, the way that he lays out as fact that IP law encourages innovation. This is a contentious point in academic circles, debated at length in various papers. To state that it is fact, without further discussion as to why this is true, or why he believes it to be true, discredits his point of view for me (notwithstanding that this is a brief article, which doesn't get into anything in too much detail). He is stating the popular point of view, but I need back-up and discourse. I'm not saying that I don't think it's true, I think that it is true in some cases, but I do NOT believe that it is always true.

Not sure how I feel about the Fair Use issues, though. Haven't read that much about them. Now that it is March 1st, perhaps that should be one of my weekly goals.

As for last weeks goals:

blog sidebar clean-up
finish CPLED LE
send out at least 2 resumes
try not to spend TOOOOO much time online shoe shopping for new good ol' trusty shoes that I can blitz around down-town in (sigh, the shoe industry was really not for me for a few years there, but now its' coming back around to styles that I'm coveting ... what is a girl to do?)
maintain my new "reformed absentee blogger" status
watch as much of the Olympics coverage as I can

I haven't cleaned up my blog sidebar yet, so that's a rollover goal. I somewhat finished my CPLED LE, I did send out 2 resumes, I didn't ponder shoes too much, I have been faithfully blogging, and I definitely got in some Olympics couch time.

So ... this week, a new list of goals:

clean up blog side-bar (top of list, as this is a roll-over)
read up on Fair Use issues with copyright
finish my CE for this week (and do a GOOD JOB ... heh heh heh, I suppose this technically SHOULD be my first priority)
make a dentist appointment (hee - been putting this one off)
organize my desk at work, and try and actually IMPLEMENT the work flow that I have kind of started to get going

That last goal refers to my ongoing files. I have two file stands that sit beside my desk, I'm trying to use one for files that are waiting for some event (i.e. a return of a phone-call, response by correspondance of some kind, etc.), and the other for files that I have been assigned to do something on, but which I haven't yet touched. Hopefully, I can grab a file from the NEW FILES rack, process it, then either get it to where it is supposed to be, or put it on my WAITING rack. Just need to clear off all the files sitting on my desk that have been piling up. Ack.

Somewhat on track for weekly goals.

2010-02-25T22:18:00.002-07:00

Ugh.

Well, I handed in an LE today, but it wasn't quite complete. Grrrr. Just ran out of time, unfortunately. I worked on it at home quite a bit, but I usually get enough time to finish up the details at work.

Unfortunately, my work week has been one of those weeks with MULTIPLE tiny little tasks that didn't really give me very much to wrap up the details that I needed time to wrap up.

Fortunately, this is only an LE (and therefore, not compulsory), and at least I handed in a first draft memo, and a skeleton of some will clauses that should at least garner some helpful feedback for me.

Also - the exercise of completing the LE is helpful in itself, and I did complete my thought process, just didn't have time to write all my thoughts out.

Oh well.

This week I have to work on the CE (compulsory), so I'll make sure that I have some time this weekend to take a good chunk out of it.

No news on the shoe front (I have been sticking to that goal).

Pretty excited about our Women's Hockey gold medal (woot woot).

Looking forward to reading the "Two Views" article in the current CBA National magazine where Michael Geist and Barry Sookman offer their POVs about Copyright Law. Too tired right now, though, I'm thinking over coffee in the morning. Saving it. Putting it next to the coffee maker so that it makes me smile before I get my morning brew.

It's a Happy Wednesday So Far

2010-02-24T08:24:00.002-07:00

... ah ... the middle of the week.

I took my goals seriously today, and sent out two resumes this morning. I'm also working on CPLED right now, and rather than thinking about shoes, I'm thinking about cuff-links ... so I guess that's somewhat on track.

I'm wearing my star cuff-links today which were given to me by a friend quite a few years ago. I really don't wear them often enough (I guess, I really only have the one shirt that requires them). Must look into buying more cuff-link-able shirts, and more cuff-links. They're big red stars, which is fittings, as she's from Texas. Sigh. I miss my friends in far away places.

As for the rest of today, I've got stacks of files on my desk that I need to clear away in order to maintain my sanity, and two client meetings. It's a full one. I think I may try and find a lunch date, too, maybe to grab a quick bite of sushi ... hmmmmm.

I'm feeling rather energized, as the spud-let had a really good night last night. So nice. So much sleep. Don't feel like I NEED my coffee, but I will still drink it (because I love it so). Ah coffee - you and I have a long and vividly recorded love affair. I don't think we'll ever leave each other, we just like each other too darn much.

New Addition to My Sidebar

2010-02-23T19:34:00.004-07:00

Hopefully anybody that hasn't given up on me as a blogger will notice a new addition to my sidebar.

Under the heading "Law Blogs", I've finally added a link to Slaw.

I have been a reader of Slaw for quite sometime, but with my rampant blog neglect which has been festering for quite some time, I never did get around to updating any of my links.

Hopefully, Simon Fodden realizes that I'm not breaking up with Slaw at all (heh):
http://www.slaw.ca/2010/02/23/blog-by-articling-student/

Now that I'm on a blog housekeeping roll, I'll have to make sure that all of my links are updated ... I'm pretty sure that some are no longer active. Look for a clean sidebar in the next week or so.

I've always been a fairly goal driven person, and so in addition to my blog housekeeping goal, I also need to get a few more resumes out this week. The sole practitioner that I'm articling with does not hire students back, and so I need to secure a job for September 1st. If anyone knows of an opening in a litigation or IP setting - make sure to leave a comment!

So ... goals for this week look like:

blog sidebar clean-up
finish CPLED LE
send out at least 2 resumes
try not to spend TOOOOO much time online shoe shopping for new good ol' trusty shoes that I can blitz around down-town in (sigh, the shoe industry was really not for me for a few years there, but now its' coming back around to styles that I'm coveting ... what is a girl to do?)
maintain my new "reformed absentee blogger" status
watch as much of the Olympics coverage as I can

That's not bad for this week. With next week bringing the beginning of a new month ... I'll have to come up with some more ambitious goals for then.

If You're Going to Article in Litigation ...

2010-02-23T07:30:00.001-07:00

... make sure to have appropriate footwear.

Ha.

I've been lucky enough to lose all my baby weight, and I attribute it to many things, but one in particular is the amount of walking that I do as an articling student at a litigation practice.

Between jumping around down-town and from the office to the court-house and back again, I log a lot of walking time, which has been great for the slim-down process.

As for all my cute shoes that aren't exactly hiking shoes - they sit at the office and wait for me to return from my adventures in the good ol' trusty comfortable shoes.

My good ol' trusties are flat dress shoes that are actually made by Naturalizer, and they're on their last legs. I'm going to have to go shopping for a new pair of good ol' trusties, and I'm kind of nervous about the process. Finding cuteness mixed with comfort can be a daunting task, mix in the good deal factor, and I may have to spend a while on the prowl.

This week is swimming by so far. Other than my shoe ponderings, I've been busy drafting pleadings, sorting out medical charts, going through corporate minute books, and trying to work on CPLED.

I'm on the Wills and Estates module for CPLED right now. I LOVED wills class, very algorithmic, very logical, like puzzle solving. When I sat down to actually draft a will from scratch, I realized that I never actually had done one before. Took me awhile. This is why it is so good to actually DO all of the Learning Exercises. Now that I've got the one under my belt, in addition to the feedback that I received from my Learning Group Facilitator ("LGF"), the next one should be a lot less painful to crank out.

It seems like CPLED really is organized to help you to be successful, but you do have to do the work.

Interesting ...

2010-02-18T08:14:00.002-07:00

... that JK Rowling is still dealing with copyright infringement claims:
Globe & Mail: Harry Potter author calls plagiarism claim ‘absurd'

AS IS George Lucas:
The Lawyers Weekly: Empire fails to strike back: Star Wars creator loses helmet appeal

IP Law is so interesting to me, but must be a bane to those with epic success.

So, I've Been Busy?

2010-02-17T08:21:00.002-07:00

I've had some epic blogging pauses before, but I think this one may take the cake.

I'm still here.

I'm still articling.

I'm still loving it.

Why the humongous hiatus? In an acronym ... CPLED. I'm now finished 4 modules out of a total 9. I've had 2 of the in-class sessions (where we were assessed on a mock Chambers Application the first time, and on a client interview the second time), and 2 online modules that consist of written assignments (the Debtor-Creditor module, and the Real Estate module).

The online modules consist of a weekly assignment, optional learning exercises ("LE") that lead up to the compulsory competency evaluation ("CE") at the end of the unit.

Even though the LEs are optional, I've been doing them all. It's really been worth it when it comes to the CE, as much of your ground-work is done, and you can focus on doing a good job with the writing aspect.

So why the absence in blogging? I wouldn't say that the CPLED assignments are DIFFICULT, but they are time consuming. There is a lot of reading (if you do it all, which I do), and the CEs have many subtelties that sometimes take me awhile to flush out.

Over the past few months I have started quite a few draft posts, but just haven't had the time to finish them.

So ... hopefully I can check-in once in a while and do a better job. I really did want to relate how my articling experience was going, and give a flavour for what to expect.

I must admit, though, that it can be difficult. There are, of course, confidentiality issues to consider, and so I can't talk too much about work. There is a CPLED professional integrity policy, and so I can't talk too much about CPLED. I'm still trying to wrap my head around how to relate my experience without losing too much meaning through necessary vagueness.

Ah well.

In terms of my articling experience, my CPLED in-class time has been so enlightening. Being able to compare experiences with other articling students has really made me thankful for the position that I landed. I've been so hands-on, I've been able to see so many things, and I really do have confidence in what I'm doing (even when I don't know what I'm doing, I know that I can always SOMEHOW find an answer). I'm lucky that I have a principal who MENTORS. Hopefully, I can really take advantage of that resource while I still can. I'm about half-way through my articles now, so there's a light at the end of the tunnel (egads).

Busy, busy, busy.

2009-11-13T20:13:00.000-07:00

Haven't had much time to update, but articling is swimming along.

I've been so lucky at this job. The hours are tremendous, I'm learning so much, and I'm feeling like everything is going to be OK (although, I could use a few more hours in the day everyday).

I started CPLED last week. I now have one "Competency Demonstrated" under my belt, for the Chambers application exercise. 1 down, 8 to go (sounds intimidating ... 8 to go ... may have to reconsider how I report that until I'm closer to half way).

I have much more to write about, but I just can't muster the energy right now. Fridays are so hard (even though Wednesday was a day off). I'll try and muster some energy tomorrow morning (i.e. my munchkin and I will go for a walk tomorrow morning and grab Mommy a Starbucks), and relate all of the exciting things that I have to tell you.

Feeling Bad For My Fellow U of S'ers That Are Still In School

2009-09-15T21:44:00.001-06:00

U of S law students face first fee increase in five years @ Canadian Lawyer Magazine

Learning to Multi-Task - Again

2009-09-09T21:45:00.003-06:00

First of all, where the heck did the last week go? Wow.

Long weekends ... sigh. Awesome. We entertained my sister who came to visit for the weekend, and got to make it out to the In-Laws for a visit and to do some awesomely-fun-muddy-quadding.

Back to work yesterday, though. Wasn't too bad. The new office coffee maker really helps out with the Monday-or-Tuesday-After-A-Long-Weekend-Blues. Mmmmm ... coffee.

This week, it seems that my lot in articling life is to re-learn the meaning of multi-task.

I swear, the Admitting Department at Foothills Hospital was wonderful training grounds for this Articling position. In Admitting, we had tons of things thrown at us all the time, where everything was a number one priority. We were put into extreme situations with extremely emotional people, and we were part of a very clear hierarchy, where orders and organization came through the proper channels.

Now, when I look at my desk at work, I'm always reminded of Admitting, and how I learned to keep my cool when there were important tasks piling up, with time running out.

Luckily, since I really have been EASED into the whole articling experience, there hasn't been an overwhelmed feeling of too much work, but I can see how lawyers really must perfect the fine dance of keeping on top of many files. I can see, as well, that my inefficient processes will hopefully soon be refined. As things become clearer, I'm more comfortable mixing tasks together ... today I had about three files open, and as I was waiting for something to come through for one file, I'd putter away at another, etc.

Ah ... the multi-task.

And now ... to bed. So. Tired. Good. Night.

Ah The Life of an Articling Student

2009-09-01T20:34:00.003-06:00

It's like being a brand- new law student all over again, wandering around in a fog of confusion, except this time things sound vaguely familiar. I've had some amazing experiences so far, which makes me so thankful, yet again, for the job opportunity that I landed. I've drafted some actual court documents, I've written a real memo answering a question of law (hee), I've seen quite a few matters attended to at court, and I've even seen parts of a preliminary hearing ... all very exciting for someone that has never seen these things before.

By the end of the day, I'm exhausted. Just enough energy to properly tickle and bounce my daughter around, eat some dinner, wrestle her through her bath and bedtime routine, and then slunk into a stupor of chill for a couple of hours before wrestling myself to bed. Must work on the energy scenario. Sleeping at night would help, but I'm not going to count my chickens before they hatch (teething has put a real CRAZY SPIN on our nights, waking up every hour on the hour hasn't been great, but the last few nights have been decent ... I'm sure it isn't a pattern yet, though, and I don't want to jinx it).

Anyhoo - with September 1st being today, it felt weird not preparing to go back to school. While I know that CPLED will be school-ish, my CPLED session doesn't start until November, so that still seems years away.

And now, to figure out a way to work on my law lingo ... so that I don't sound like a complete dunce when I'm let loose from the office. Ooooh - and must remember to make a dentist appointment (yay for having benefits again ... woot woot).

I'm Loving It

2009-08-26T20:37:00.002-06:00

Articling, so far, has been great. My principal is really easing me in. I've been doing actual drafting of various court documents, I've used my Notary Seal, and I'm learning the ins and outs of the office - oh - and I'm also trying to soak up as many of the stories that my principal doles out as I can. He has an amazing memory, and is the best storyteller ever.

Got to have lunch today with a fellow U of S alum, which was very nice ... especially in a town where it feels like all the local law school peeps know each other, and I don't know any of them.

The heel is healing ... heh ... and I think the cute dress shoes will be back on the menu in no time.

As for the suit wearing, it's a far cry from the Lululemons that I'm so used to wearing. I still feel like I'm playing dress-up when I walk around downtown in the suit. Maybe one day I'll feel like it suits me ... ahahahha. Sorry, so tired.

I'm sitting in the loft, watching some crazy lightning outside, which is reflected in the office towers around our building ... pretty spectacular ... and trying to decide if 8:42 is too early to go to bed. Grrr.

I think I'll wait a bit longer. Don't want to wake up too early in the morning.

One Day Left in the First Week

2009-08-20T19:39:00.003-06:00

I'm still feeling a little lost, and like I'm swimming in vagueness. Similar, amazingly enough, to how I felt at the beginning of law school. I figured out the law school thing, so I'm hoping that this too shall become more clear.

Amazingly, I'm looking back at my years working in Admitting in a hospital in Calgary with gratitude. My multi-tasking skills are coming to a forefront again, and while I'm being eased into the fold with a more than manageable stack of files, I can see how it all becomes a juggling act. ESPECIALLY when I look at my principal, a master juggler if I've ever seen one. Thank goodness for post-it notes, which I LURVE to use to organize files sitting on my desk.

Oh - and I am still LOOOOVVVVIIIINNNG my "I am not a paper cup". Best purchase ever. Starbucks lattes are so cheap in it! It's equivalent for a tall, so it's $2 and change. YIPPEEEEE!

Oh - AND I went to my first bar call ceremony today. They are still individual here in Alberta, and they're so personal and intimate. It was so special (although I didn't know the person being called to the bar ... I went with my fellow articling student who knew her), and I can't believe that just one year from now it will be me going through the same thing ... EEP!

Also, today is my baby's 8-MONTH birthday! Aurgh! She's such a big girl! I can't believe how much she can do now (stand up on her own, with support, thank you very much). The time has gone by so fast, and they grow so fast, and all that jazz.

Day 2 And ...

2009-08-18T23:02:00.004-06:00

... my feet, accustomed to wearing flip-flops, Uggs, or sneakers everyday for the last ... oh ... 3 years, have begun to reject dress shoes already. I suppose it's my fault for putting my bare feet into the shoes, with nary a sock or nylon in sight, but I still can't believe that day 2 is already resulting in blisters.

I suppose my treks back and forth to the court house didn't help either. Yup ... got to sit in on some court action today. Made me feel like a real growed-up law student.

Also got the news today that I am officially a "Student-at-Law". My paperwork all cleared last week, and the Law Society is mailing my "Student-at-Law" card to me this week. Exciting. That means that I'm a Notary now. I have my notary seal, guess I better learn how to use it.

Did I mention the treat that I bought myself for my first day of articling? It thrills me in the mornings. The "I am not a paper cup.... " ceramic mug, which I picked up at Chapters:

I love it so much it hurts.

The First Day of Phase 2

2009-08-17T20:29:00.002-06:00

I know.

Forever and a day.

But ... I'm back. With a looooooong story.

Today was the first day of my articling job. Thank goodness. The economy, it's not doing so great (did you hear, ha), and articling jobs have been less than plentiful. I've been super lucky to secure work at a general litigation practice. My principal appears to be hugely into mentoring, and has a vast array of experience and knowledge. I'm stoked. The $$$ isn't great, but the hours are incredible (9-5, Monday to Friday, generally) which is SOOOO IMPORTANT for me, so that I can spend as much time with my Husband and Daughter as possible.

Oh. Did I mention? I had a baby in my third year of law school. Ahahahahahahaha.

If you know me in real life, that is no shock to you, but if you know me only through my blog, I kept the baby news under wraps so as to secure articling work without any prejudice towards my new Mom status.

So ... back to April 2008, found out I was pregnant. Due date was December 29th. The blog enteries weren't plentiful during my first trimester, the three months of nausea that I endured. Sitting at the computer wasn't a great position for me, actually, only lying on the couch was, when I think back.

Came back to school with a little baby bump, and sat through my first semester behind a growing belly, and a mountain of healthy snacks to keep me going. Luckily, as a student, when I wasn't in class, I could be at home napping and studying. Made the final trimester a dream.

All of the Faculty at U of S were beyond supportive. My profs were great, always accomodating of the preggo in the room, asking about how my pregnancy was going, offering their own parenting stories. When it came time for exams, I was essentially 9 months pregnant, and operating on a very active bladder. I was able to secure exam accomodation, which meant that I could take up to an hour in bathroom breaks without penalty to my writing time. This was amazing considering that I did have to go to the bathroom, and that getting up to walk once every hour and a half was crucial to minimize the feet swelling that plagued the final stages of my pregnancy.

Previously, we had found out that the little spud was breech, and so we booked a c-section for December 20th, 3 days after my last final exam in the winter semester. I wrote my last exam on December 17th, flew home the next day (yup, Westjet will fly any pregnant woman with a Doctor's note), hung out the day after that while Jason drove home, and then Saturday morning, we booked it to the hospital to have our baby.

I had just about two weeks to recover, then we drove back to Saskatoon, with our baby in tow, as well as my Mom, and I went back to classes full time. My Mom stayed for a week, and was then replaced by my Mother-in-Law for 3 weeks, which meant for the first 6 weeks (crucial recovery time for a c-section), we had an extra set of loving hands to help with our little bundle'o'joy.

After that, the semester was a fog of going to class, hauling a breast-pump with me, and sleepless nights. My Husband was beyond supportive, and was home with the baby while I was at class and while I was studying.

I finished up the semester and even ended up getting more than decent grades.

So ... it can be done.

You can have a baby in law school. Having proper support in place, though, is crucial if not essential.

As for my articling job, with the baby on the way, and with previous experiences hob-nobbing with bigger firms, I had decided that the big firm way of life was not for me. I had been told that smaller firms frequently hired in April/May, and so when I finished school, I religiously tracked both the U of C (as an alumni, I have access), and the U of S career listings for articling jobs. There just really wasn't much coming up for this year, only jobs for next year. I began to send out resumes to law firms, with a cover letter, looking for work for this year. I'm sure I sent out close to 80 resumes (conservative estimate), with nary a positive response.

Panic set in.

Finally, in July, there was a posting on the U of S job board for an Articling job, but it wasn't in Calgary.

I applied. I got the position. We moved. Now I'm working, am totally grateful for the opportunity, and my Husband and baby are looking forward to exploring this new city and carving out a little niche for themselves here.

Whew.

Now that you're all caught up ... ahahahahahaha.

My first day was pretty awesome. I had so many questions and uncertainties flying around my head before I walked into the office this morning. What should I wear? What should I bring? What am I going to be expected to know? Do I look alert and awake enough (the baby decided to BARELY sleep last night)? They were all answered fairly quickly, and I was eased into the flow of the office. Hopefully it felt as natural to everyone else as it did to me. I'll be working with another articling student, which is awesome, so that I'll feel like I have a shoulder to cry on when I'm feeling overwhelmed.

As for the classes that I'm thankful for so far ... Civil Procedure. Thank goodness for you. To a lesser extent, Contracts (though it seems so long ago that I took you).

I received my stamp with "Student-at-Law" below my name, and my Notary seal, and my business cards are on their way.

Hopefully, I'll be able to continue this blog over the next year, highlighting some of my experiences and advice about being an articling student. We'll see how much time I have ... I am a new Mom you know. Ahahahahahahaha.

Three Down, Two to Go

2009-04-10T20:28:00.002-06:00

I wrote Civil Procedure on Thursday, so I'm down three exams, have two left to write. That means that I'm 93% done law school. Hard to believe.

I'm sort of still in a stunned state right now. Can't wrap my head around being done.

Sigh.

Exams Left:
Monday - Family Law II
Friday - Intellectual Property II

Then it's over.

I need time to reflect on how to convey this experience in a blog post.

Two Down, Three to Go

2009-04-07T13:43:00.001-06:00

Finished Admin. law this morning. Sigh. Three more exams, but at least now they're a little more spaced out.

3rd Year Apathy ...

2009-04-06T14:13:00.000-06:00

... it'll getcha!

Wrote my first final today, out of 5 total. 4 exams left ... possibly EVER. Unreal. Can't believe I'm so close to the end.

I'd love to write a bunch more, but I have back-to-back finals. Next one is tomorrow morning, so I'm off to study my face off.

Will hopefully be back to do an update on Wednesday, but seeing how my blogging effort has been lately, I make no guarantees!

Wow ... I'm Neglecting the Blog

2009-03-11T09:10:00.002-06:00

But ... I'm only doing so because I'm NOT neglecting everything else in life, so I suppose that's a good thing.

Colour me unimpressed with the weather this AM:

Our friggin truck has been giving us grief with starting in this cold, so I'm crossing my fingers today that it will start today.

School is swimming along nicely. Not much time left, which is both exhilarating and terrifying. I've had my grad portraits taken (looking to pick up the proofs today), we do the voting for our valedictorian this week ... it's all coming on fast.

We've had a few guest speakers over the last few weeks in our classes, which has been pretty awesome. I attended the Heald Lecture where Mr. Justice John Evans, from the Federal Court of Appeal, gave the lecture “The Standard of Judicial Review, Post-Dunsmuir”. I love going to talks given by Judges, they're always such great speakers and writers. Makes for a somewhat entertaining delivery of material that could easily turn dry.

I've got to go try and get the truck started now, but I'll try and be a little more diligent with the blog writing.

2009-02-06T12:09:00.000-07:00

I blame Nancy for having this in my head:

I'm Always Worse ...

2009-02-03T06:38:00.002-07:00

... at posting in the 2nd semester. I'll try and do better.

Well ... the silly groundhogs are predicting 6 more weeks of winter ... bah. Luckily, I have it on good authority from a classmate (in fact, I got some kind of guarantee), that winter is on it's way out. I honestly am so ready for the spring. It doesn't help to see all of the spring-like weather that Calgary is getting ... soon ... soon I'll be moving home.

In the meantime, school is trucking along. There seems to be a consensus among all of us 3rd years that motivation is at an all time low. It is so hard to keep trucking with the end so close at hand. Sigh.

My classes are alright, although a little dry (which makes me feel kind of bad saying that, since I've basically loved everything up to this point). The highlight of my week is Family II. Super interesting, and super relevant class discussions that incite controversy and critical thinking about the way that we organize ourselves.

My goal for this week ... get organized about my paper writing. I still haven't really gotten focused with that yet ... this week is the week.

Also ... write a cover letter to start sending out with the resume that I edited last week. Time to put the job search into full throttle. Anyone need an articling student?

Wow.

2009-01-27T22:20:00.002-07:00

It's been crazy in my world.

Routines have gone out the window and chaos has moved into the house here ... but I'm fighting my way to being back on track.

Must pick out paper topics and refine out a thesis for each, and do some work on outlines.

Must do civ pro assignment at some point, before deadline next week.

Should probably do some readings for some classes.

Have a few things to do on a personal level, as well, which will also take some time.

Need a few more hours in every day, and quite possibly a few more days in every week.

AND ... need more sleep.

I've Decided

2009-01-15T08:25:00.002-07:00

I'm going to go ahead and try to write two major papers this semester. One in Family Law II, and one in Intellectual Property II. I already have a start on the ideas for Family Law II, I'll just need to complete some research to refine my thesis. For Intellectual Property II, I want to be a little more cautious in picking my topic; I wrote a paper for Intellectual Property I, so I want to make sure that this paper is quite different from that paper, also, I want to make sure that I relate the topic back to my background in technology. So ... we'll see what I end up with for a topic.

Classes seem to be going relatively well so far ... nothing surprising or shocking. My schedule has my toughest day as Mondays, so my long day is over first thing in each week, which is really great. This weekend, my plan is to get organized for the long haul. I'll have three days to really get on track, and then hopefully I can stay there all semester.

Well ...

2009-01-10T09:35:00.003-07:00

... the marks are in and it looks like I passed all my courses ... so onto my last semester of law school unhindered. I'm finally thinking that I actually have a chance at getting through (haha)!

As for my trip to the bookstore last week - unnecessary. 4/5 of my courses are providing material online. Awesome. The last class (Admin) does require a textbook, but I already purchased it before Christmas (the vendor came to the student lounge to sell it). So ... I'm set. What a treat for my very last semester, no bookstore chaos.

I still can't believe that this is the last start to classes in law school that I'll get to experience. It's such a bittersweet feeling. I'm so ready to move onto the next phase ... it will be nice to be earning a paycheque again, and I am so excited to see how the practice of law differs from the study of it. On the other hand, I go to school with a pretty great group of people, and it will be hard to be so scattered from them. I'm thinking we'll have to schedule get-togethers once in awhile ... we'll see. Also, I've really loved the law school experience. The faculty at U of S are so amazing and so supportive, and for the first time I've felt myself in an academic environment where I can really explore things that I find interesting and riveting; it's a feeling that I'll really miss ... especially since it allows me to be truly (academically speaking) self-indulgent.

Sigh.

Now, to decide if I'm going to try and write a couple more major papers. Two of my classes seem to be offering the option. That means I'd only have 3 exams to write again, which is a very compelling idea to consider ... especially since that means I'd be done April 9th instead of April 17th. Looking at my marks from last term, I seem to perform better in paper classes ... which ... all things considered shows how far I've come. Last year, academic paper writing was most definitely NOT an area of strength for me (what with the technical background and all). I made it a goal and priority to do better in that area, and it would seem that I'm finally getting it. BUT ... I've never done TWO major papers in one semester ... can I do it? Can I be organized enough? I must deliberate, hopefully wisely.

Back in the Saddle ...

2009-01-06T09:03:00.002-07:00

... ah 2009. The beginning of my last semester of law school. The Christmas break went by entirely too fast (as per usual), and we're back in Saskatoon after a wonderful time in Calgary visiting with friends and family.

Our semester started yesterday, and I have the following classes lined up this time around: Administrative Law, Municipal Law, Intellectual Property II, Family Law II, and Civil Procedure.

I don't quite feel organized yet, for a variety of reasons, but I'm getting there.

Now ... to plan my trip to the bookstore ... the most dreaded event of each semester's beginning.

DONE!

2008-12-17T13:50:00.002-07:00

Finished my family law exam this morning. I'm done this semester (as long as I pass everything). It's such a good feeling, but I'm in a state of utter exhaustion and numbness. Going to take 'er easy tonight, and maybe tomorrow I'll feel a little more jubilant. So nice to no longer have a crunch-time to-do list.

So ... tired. Where's my couch?

Two Down, One to Go

2008-12-16T14:09:00.002-07:00

(AGAIN) Exams, that is.

I liked looking at it in terms of classes, though, so if we look at CLASSES, I'm four down, one to go. Much more encouraging.

Wrote my International Trade Law exam this morning. Yikes. It was definitely a fair test, had enough time to ponder and write, while still taking the full three hours. Hopefully I was on the right track for answering some of the questions ... they seemed to me to be the kind of questions where you could go a couple of different ways in approach ... just hope I covered all my bases.

What's always lovely about law school exams is that even if you think you smoked an exam (or bombed an exam), you'll never truly know how you did thanks to the lovely curve. It all depends on how all of your classmates did. Both a curse and a blessing. AND ... a good reason NOT to think about it until marks are available in January.

So ... to-do list for crunch time shrinks again:

Write my Family Law final exam on Dec 17

Last exam. Tomorrow morning. Must motivate myself to study somehow. I think I'll take a nap to refresh myself, first. THEN ... straight to scholarly pursuits. Why is it always so hard to motivate for the last one? Because ... the light at the end of the tunnel is just too close ... you can almost bask in its glory ... you can feel the heat of it but you can't quite see it through the darkness yet.

I'm going to keep picturing the feeling that I'll have when I walk out of the test tomorrow and I'm 5/6 done law school. THAT is a good motivator. Being able to focus on the holiday break and put my feet up without guilt ... that is enough to get me to study ... AFTER my nap of course.

So ... the Cold Hasn't Let Up Yet ...

2008-12-15T21:09:00.002-07:00

... and our car wouldn't start this AM. Luckily, we're good ol' AMA members, and so we put our call in to the booster truck. About 8 hours later, we got our boost. Yikes. Must be BUSY out there. To be honest, it was nice NOT to be a priority, we were safe in our house ... can't imagine being stuck in the middle of nowhere and having to wait!

Oooooh ...

2008-12-14T08:32:00.001-07:00

... just found a new motivator for studying. I made myself some hot chocolate (stove-top styles, cocoa, sugar, milk, and a little peppermint extract), and cut up some apple slices. Mmmm ... so satisfying, so worth sitting infront of the computer for.

Oh the Weather Outside ...

2008-12-14T07:58:00.003-07:00

... is truly frightful:

The warning is an EXTREME WINDCHILL warning. YIKES! Good day to stay inside and not leave the house, I'm thinking. I guess procrastinating the studying will be a bit tougher ... although there's always the house to clean ... my place is never cleaner than during exam time.

For Jason's birthday on Friday, we had a nice little date night. We went over the the Keg to get a nice steak dinner, but as per usual the wait there was 60 - 90 minutes. We should know better by now, and get there before the dinner rush, but apparently we're not good at dragging our butts out the door much before 6:30 or 7:00.

In the interest of saving our poor stomachs from hunger pangs, we decided to check out Red Lobster instead. We got a table right away (faster than it took Jason to park the car), and I got to indulge in those garlic cheese biscuits that I always forget how much I love. Jason's snow crab was especially yummy, too ... I even got to sneak a nibble.

We then (finally) checked out the movie Zack & Miri Make a Porno. It was pretty much what we were expecting based on what our friends had said about it ... started off strong on the comedy side, got a little sappy near the end ... pretty much what you'd expect from Kevin Smith and the gang. It was a good date movie for us (Jason thought the beginning was funny even though the humour was a little over the top for me, I thought the ending was sweet even though Jason was a little disappointed in the lovey-dovey twist).

Yesterday, we opted not to leave the house due to the cold, so I actually did get a lot of studying done. Today ... hopefully ... will be the same. I was feeling pretty overwhelmed over the whole International Trade Law preparation, but now that I've spent some quality time with the material, I'm feeling much better about it. Sure does pay to actually DO THE READINGS and MAKE CANS throughout the semester, as opposed to right before the test. I always say that I'm going to to do that for every class ... this semester I did it for one. I guess that's a step forward.

Family law preparation has been slow for me, for some reason. I think because there is just not as much material to cover, so it feels like I should be going over it in painstaking detail. May have to just call it a day soon and focus on practice exam problems. We'll see.

Either way ... 2 exams and 3 sleeps to go before I'm finished this semester. Can't even express how impatient I am. I'm jittering with it, the impatience is leaking out of my pores ... I don't know how Jason stands to be around me right now!

2008-12-12T07:26:00.001-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JASON!

AND ... oh yeah ... So EXCITING

2008-12-10T14:47:00.001-07:00

Picked up my new jacket today:

Now even MORE SO, I can't wait for spring.

One Down, Two to Go

2008-12-10T13:41:00.002-07:00

Exams, that is.

If we're talking classes, it's three down, two to go ... sounds a little more encouraging that way ... like the exhaustion that I'm feeling has been worth a little more.

Ah sigh. Wrote my International Law exam this morning. I love my pre-exam routine ... went to Starbucks, got a YUMMY peppermint mocha twist, and relaxed my way through getting into the International Law frame of mind while fully waking up by going over the practice exams that I'd already done. No new material, boosted my confidence, and made me feel warm and fuzzy.

Ended up being a long test, but it definitely seemed more than fair. The questions were very similar to the practice exams, so doing those in the last few days definitely helped this girl out. Spent SOOOOOO much time writing! One of those tests where I didn't know if I'd have time to touch on everything that I wanted, especially as I was still trying to keep a mind to HOW I was writing it all out, trying to keep the style a little more on the logical reasoning side as opposed to the frantic-rambling-about-material-from-the-syllabus side of things.

I don't like to dwell too much, though, on exams once they're written. It's done. Can't do anything about it now. On to the next one.

So ... the to-do list for crunch time shrinks again:

Write my International Trade Law final exam on Dec. 16
Write my Family Law final exam on Dec 17

I think tonight I'll get over the exam hang-over by organizing myself to begin studying for Family Law (preferably with my feet up, something yummy to drink, and some kind of festive movie on TV) ... and then I'll have to organize my time between International Trade and Family over the next week.

And now ... a nap (I feel I deserve it ... ha).

First Exam Tomorrow

2008-12-09T20:21:00.002-07:00

Well, I'm just about ready to head to bed. I've prepared like crazy for this exam, although "preparing like crazy" seems subjective at this point. I've spent a lot of time on it, but I'm not sure that all of that time was super efficient.

International law is so tough to put together, especially with so many unanswered questions and no real binding authorities. This will be a really different kind of exam, hopefully I'm on the right track though.

I'm going to try and take 'er easy now ... relax into what will hopefully be a deep and super refreshing sleep.

I SMASHED DOWN THE WALL!

2008-12-05T10:57:00.002-07:00

Yay! Must have just been having an off day yesterday ... I pushed through that material that was holding me up, and I'm already well into the next section ... I feel like I'm getting a lot done today. Hooray. So encouraging. Looks like I don't have to drop-out of law school yet.

Motivation is Dissipating

2008-12-05T08:30:00.004-07:00

Yikes. For being so organized and getting so much done last week, I feel like I'm hitting the motivation wall now. I guess it's usually the same around exam time, though. Just don't really want to study, and want exams to be over (and want to focus on fun holiday festiveness).

I've been doing my prep work for International Law, a class I've really enjoyed, but I've just hit one spot in the curriculum that I can't get past. My goal for today, get it done by noon and then move on. Maybe a time limit will help (helped when I was little and didn't want to eat my supper ... I don't see how this is any different than that).

If I just can't get the International Law stuff going, I think I'm going to switch over to International Trade Law prep. I've been making CANS for that class throughout the semester, so it will be a far less daunting class to study for.

Sigh. Might have to throw something festive in for a study break somewhere ... I'm thinking ... some kind of baking maybe? Dangerous, since I'll probably eat it all ... hmmm ... must put my thinking cap on. Maybe I'll just put on the Bell fireplace channel (which actually IS playing holiday tunes this year too), and read a little Harry Potter ... that would be a nice break from studying. I could even make my poor-man's version of the Starbucks Peppermint Mocha
Twist ... I've been making hot chocolate (just milk, cocoa and a little sugar), and putting in a little peppermint extract ... so good! Is it bad that I'm thinking about my study breaks before I've even begun to study?

Busy Few Days - Huge Sighs of Relief

2008-12-03T10:34:00.002-07:00

Well, with handing in both my ADR Progressive Learning Journal and my Intellectual Property Major Paper, and with my classes all being finished, I'm officially DONE two of my classes, and only have three to go. My to do list is looking a lot better:

Write my International Law final exam on Dec. 10
Write my International Trade Law final exam on Dec. 16
Write my Family Law final exam on Dec 17

AND NOW ... a word about citations.

Yuck. I had a tonne of authorities for my major paper. I thought I was being smart about the whole citation thing by creating a new system for doing them ... tried to be über organized ... but I think I ended up spending a good 7 hours total, after my paper was done (which is another story), just wrapping up the citations. Too long. I must find a way to cut this process down.

After 2 years of law school complete, I think I finally understand (more or less) how to use the McGill Guide ... and use it I did ... but I'm getting ahead of myself already.

As I was researching and writing my paper, I compiled a numbered authority list (in no particular order) in a word document. This reached about 60 authorities in no time (yikes).

While I was writing my paper, I would add footnotes, and reference the authority in the footnote as "Authority #", where the # corresponded to the # where that authority appeared on my numbered list.

I was able to edit away at my paper, add footnotes, delete them, etc. and I still knew which authority they referred to (as opposed to previous approaches that I've taken, where I did Supra and Ibid. references while writing, and when I changed the structure of the paper, I had no way to figure out which footnote referred to which reference). When I was finally done with the paper, it was time to address the footnotes.

First, I had to go through my authority list and find the proper citation format from the McGill Guide. This took awhile.

Next, I went through my paper, and began to substitute in the proper citation from the list for the "Authority #" that was in the footnote, all the while keeping track of the original footnote citation # on my authority list so that I could cross-reference easily while adding Supras and Ibids (i.e. If the first time I referenced Authority 1 in my paper was at footnote 22, I would put the proper citation in footnote 22 and write "22" next to authority 1 on my master list. If the next time that I referenced Authority 1 was in footnote 57, I would look on my authority list for "Authority 1", see by my notation that it had been originally referenced to in footnote 22, and I would then write "Supra note 22" for footnote 57).

May seem slightly complex, but it allowed me to complete all citations in one pass of my paper. This was a VAST improvement over other papers that I've written where citation chaos was the norm.

NEXT TIME I do a major paper ... I think I'll take the time, as I add each authority to the list, to actually put the proper citation on the list as opposed to just the author/title/website url approach that I used this time. This could probably cut almost 3 hours off the process. Could be enough for me to downgrade citation from "miserable pain in the butt" status to "tedious, but at least I have a good system" status.

As for finishing my major paper ... this one was really hard for me to "put to bed". I had a lot of things to say, but didn't have the space to say all of them (who'd have ever thought that a 50 page maximum would hold me back ... so crazy). I tried to pick and choose the most meaningful things, present them in a sufficiently general way so as to appeal to a legal reader as opposed to a legal/technical reader ... AND ... tried to keep the focus centered around what we covered in class. Also - it was tough, as someone with a technical background, to know how to inject my technical knowledge without referencing back to some authority from a class I took in University 10 years ago. As someone not super experienced in academic paper writing, this was a tall order. Hopefully I somewhat achieved these goals ... only time (and my Professor) will tell.

So funny how, when I'm actually trying to convey a point of view that I care about, my insecurity about how the paper will be received and understood goes WAAAAAAAY up. While caring about the subject matter makes it easier to write (especially on the motivation front), it sure leaves me quite vulnerable feeling in the end.

On a final note, there was a Jostens Rep in our student lounge over the last couple of days showcasing rings that could be purchased for graduates of this year. I had to really get me head around the fact that I fall into this category. Law school has gone by SOOO FREAKIN' FAST! Once exams are done, and it is established that I've passed everything (heh), I'm 5/6 done ... that's 83.333% done ... that means that I have about 3 1/2 months left of being a student before I'm back out in the real world as a working woman. Crazy. Don't get me wrong, a salary will be a nice thing to re-establish in my life, but it seems like it's happening so fast.

Welcome December!

2008-12-01T06:36:00.003-07:00

Holy smokes. It is December.

Usually, I'd be raring to deck my halls with various holiday paraphernalia, but this year I'm opting to focus on school instead. The halls will have to wait.

Luckily, there are a few things that definitely get me into the holiday spirit, without all the grunt work of digging out my decorations.

The smell of mandarin oranges. I'm not a huge orange fan myself (it's a texture thing, love the taste, not fond of the texture, I will still eat them, but I don't LOVE them). Jason bought a box for himself at the grocery store, and every time he eats one, the smell makes me feel Christmas-y.

The fireplace channel on our Bell satellite. Last year it played holiday tunes as well, this year it seems that it's just the sound of a crackling fire ... still OK by me though. Chucking that channel on and listening to holiday tunes while wrapping presents ... definitely makes me feel Christmas-y.

I've already mentioned the Starbucks addictions that I've fallen prey to, flavoured as they are with festive merriment and goodness. They make me feel Christmas-y.

Seeing the Tim Horton's holiday cups around school. Also ... makes me feel Christmas-y.

I'm so excited about our donation drive for adopt-a-family beginning this week. I'm pretty sure that this will give me the ultimate Christmas-y feeling.

Unfortunately, when I'm feeling especially Christmas-y, all I want to do is bake, which both takes time away from studying, and adds unnecessary layers to my butt ... I will have to resist the impulse.

I do have quite a few birthdays to focus on ... December is a big birthday month for my family. I'll have to try and shift my focus ... that may just help.

Now ... all I have to do is get through the crunch-time to-do list (which is shrinking - fa la la la la, la la la la):

Go through major paper one more time in an editing spree, and fix all citations, then hand the sucker in tomorrow.
Write my International Law final exam on Dec. 10
Write my International Trade Law final exam on Dec. 16
Write my Family Law final exam on Dec 17

While it is so nice to be crossing things off of my list, I must admit that there is a certain paranoia to holding 25 pages of text in your hands and realizing that it compromises 80% of your grade (as in the case of my ADR learning journal), or holding 45 pages of text and realizing that it compromises 100% of your grade (as in the case of my major paper). Yikes. Where's a salted caramel hot chocolate when you need one?

It Pays to be Organized

2008-11-30T20:28:00.003-07:00

If only it were easy to be organized.

So ... I had a really successful weekend. I finished my major paper. I've edited it (on paper, still must transfer edited changes to the e-copy), and only need to tackle the citations before I hand it in by 4:00 on Tuesday. This is, quite possibly, the earliest that I've ever finished a paper for law school. While two days early doesn't seem like a big deal, it really squashes the stressed out feeling that usually comes with finishing these types of assignments.

I'm also a member of the LSA's Community Outreach Committee (a new committee this year), and we're launching an event this week, which I worked on a little over this weekend. We're hoping to raise enough money to adopt a large family through Rawlco Radio's Brent and Penney's Adopt a Family program. Tomorrow we're starting the donation drive, so that should be super exciting. The support from the college faculty, staff, and students so far has been so amazing and encouraging ... I'm pretty excited to see how quickly we can reach our goal.

AND ... I'm printing the final copy of my ADR Progressive Learning Journal. It seems like a big commitment to actually print this, since it is such a different style of writing than I am used to for assessment in university, and I'm feeling a little insecure over whether what I've done is what was expected for this exercise. Ah well. Since it's due tomorrow, I'm not going to be changing it.

Now ... I'm going to start transferring my paper edits to my e-copy of the major paper ... and try and stay away from the half a Twix bar that Jason just put on my desk. I've already brushed my teeth, which is helping, but resisting the siren call of a Twix ... I'm just not sure if I'm up to it. Luckily, I'm pretty tired, and it is pretty close to my bed time. Will the Twix survive? Only time will tell.

Well ...

2008-11-28T20:13:00.002-07:00

... I made some real progress on my paper today. I have wrapped up talking about the legal theory, I just want to point out how my thesis topic has been handled in other jurisdictions, and then get into the analysis portion of the paper ... which SHOULD be easier and quicker than what I've done so far. I'll definitely have no worries about meeting the page number minimum quota, which is kind of nice ... felt like last year I had to stretch a little.

My goal for tomorrow is to finish the paper off, so that I can have all day on Sunday to edit, and then Monday to wrap up the citation nightmare that I am sure will ensue. Not sure if it's wishful thinking, but here's to having goals.

OMG

2008-11-28T09:04:00.003-07:00

I think I just finished my ADR journal. I'm just going to do a quick edit, but that's one thing off the list already. I'm so excited!

...
...
...

YUP - I'm done. Did my quick edit and I'm fairly happy with it all. Just have to find where I wrote down the method for submission. Crikey. At least that part I can wait until Monday for.

AND now ... to tackle the beast that is my Major Paper.

Crunch Time

2008-11-27T21:59:00.003-07:00

Things Left to Do before December 17th:

Finish 1 1/2 ADR Progressive Learning Journal entries (amounts to about 3 1/2 pages of writing, I already have about 23 pages and 8 1/2 journal entries done) - will be handed in on Monday Dec. 1.
Finish Major Paper for Intellectual Property (have about 25 pages written, have about 12 pages or so to go, outline and research are done though) - will be handed in on Tuesday Dec. 2.
Write International Law final exam - Dec 10.
Write International Trade Law final exam - Dec. 16.
Write Family Law final exam - Dec. 17

Only 5 things to do before I'm officially 5/6 done law school (assuming I pass everything, of course).

I think I'm in decent shape. I've already handed in my International Trade Law term commentary, so that's already a burden lifted from my shoulders. I feel much more organized this semester than any other semester so far. Hopefully that's a good sign. I felt rushed the last time that I wrote a major paper, for Natural Resources, and this time I think I'm way further ahead in schedule than I was then. Hopefully I don't have that same rushed feeling at the end (I always leave citations to the last, and MAN is that tedious stuff that gets the blood pressure going when running out of time).

AND ... all I want to do is bake gingerbread men. Sigh.

International Law, Fish, and it Feels Like Home

2008-11-27T07:29:00.004-07:00

I've really loved my International Law class this semester, and it helps that it's taught by BVT (love her). It will be our last class today, which makes me kinda sad. Lately, we've been going over the prohibition on the use of force, and the self-defense exception. Makes me look at the terrible happenings over in Mumbai with a new perspective, wondering what will happen next (ahem ... what will the US do) and the significance of State responses, especially in terms of what would seem to be a non-State actor's use of force and the US/Pakistan exchanges from earlier this semester (although the origin of the non-State actor here seems to be in question from what I can gather through media reports, i.e. either from Pakistan or from within India itself).

As for me, I caved and got another salted caramel hot chocolate from Starbucks last night. I'm weak, especially for evening classes it would seem. Luckily, I only have one evening class left this semester, so I should be able to contain the beast of addiction that I seem to be developing for them. Still haven't looked up the calorie count and have no intention of doing so.

Also, the realization is starting to hit home that, after today, I have 2 days left of classes, with 3 classes left in total to attend. I still feel like I'm fairly organized, and the Family Law review class yesterday made me feel A LOT better about that class, but it's hard to ignore the heightened frenzy of energy that always occurs around this time of year. Must try and insulate myself from the aura of panic that will soon descend on campus ... but not tonight ... tonight is EVIL FISH!!!

Oh - and one more thing. I hope writing this doesn't jinx it, but I can't BELIEVE how lucky we've been with the weather so far this year. I almost feel like I'm back in Calgary.
Here's a post from this same day last year, showing all the snow, and here's a screenshot of the U of S webcam from right now:

Still looks a little frosty, but it is supposed to warm up today, which makes this cowgirl ever so happy.

Mmmm .... Starbucks

2008-11-25T07:20:00.003-07:00

So, one aspect of being a student at the College of Law in Saskatchewan is that there is a Starbucks located, literally, across the street from our building (in the Royal University Hospital). It's pretty much a STAPLE for law students.

The fall is always awesome when the Pumpkin Spice Latte comes out. My usual lately has been a non-fat, decaf, 1/2 sweet PSL (and with getting Starbucks gift cards from turning in some points I've been accruing on an airmiles-like program, it's been FREE ... mwoo ha ha ha ha). Last night, though, I dashed over to SB on a 10 minute break in my ADR class and was in a rush (had to get back for a guest speaker). I had wanted to try the Peppermint Mocha, but they were out of it. So ... I quickly decided on a Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate.

In the illustrious words of the character Janice from Friends ... Oh.My.God.

It was so good that the classmate sitting next to me asked me what it was because it was even tantalizing her olfactory senses.

I don't even WANT to look up the nutritional information. It will only spoil the splendour that was last night. OK ... maybe I should ... ahhhhh ... saved by the internet Gods ... that part of the SB website is down right now ... I take this as a sign that I should never know and that any calories that were consumed last night no longer count! WOOT! At least now that I've identified this weakness, I shall have to be very cautious when approaching the Starbucks kiosk. "I will not become a slave to the Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate" is my new mantra.

Yay Stamps

2008-11-24T09:08:00.001-07:00

Congrats to the Stampeders!

While Researching for my Paper

2008-11-22T10:31:00.002-07:00

... I stumbled across this. Love it. Hilarious.

WIPO's copyright comic book.

Had to Share

2008-11-22T07:08:00.002-07:00

A classmate of mine had this picture for their Facebook profile:

Intrigued, I had to find it and see what it was. Mental Floss sells it, here's the run-down from their website:

Law School in a Box

Sure, you could spend $100,000 on an Ivy League law degree. But then you'd have to deal with crowded classrooms, inconvenient course schedules and rigorous academic study (the worst!) That's why we're proud to offer the very prestigious Law School in a Box, jam-packed with:

• Law School in 96 Pages: This mini-textbook features Law Lingo (what’s the difference between assault and battery?), Famous Cases (Brown v. Board of Ed.), and the most supreme of the Supreme Court Justices.

• 10 Heroes of the Courtroom Trading Cards: They’re all here—Abe Lincoln, Johnnie Cochran, Sandra Day O’Connor—with portraits and famous quotes on baseball-style trading cards.

• 10 “You Be the Judge” Cards: Put your new legal knowledge to good use! One side features an ethical dilemma—the other side features real courtroom verdicts on the matter. Test your legal IQ!

• Mini-Bar Exam: Ready for trial, Matlock? Not so fast! Better answer these tantalizing legal trivia questions first! They come complete with detailed answers on an accordion-folded exam.

In fact, we're so confident in our system, we're even including a rolled-up diploma with real Latin words. It's the perfect gift for lawyers and would-be lawyers of all ages.

I'm not gonna lie ... kinda makes me want trading cards of the Canadian Supreme Court Justices ... hmmmm .....