Kaulapi World

More thoughts on my bar results, maybe it is the analyst in me, or the NT part of my temperament that has to dissect things to the core, but I can’t help myself.  A few more observations.  First of all, the perception of the test itself as a licensing test assigns a loaded view of competency of the lawyer who takes it when it could not be further from that.  As one of the professors that taught my bar prep course put it, “use the materials and methods you learn in this course to pass the bar, but if you use the same materials and methods to practice, you will be DIS-barred.”  **nervous laughter from the lecture hall of recently minted JDs** – at which point myself and I’m sure several others thought to themselves “then why the hell do we have to take this test?!!”  However anyone who hasn’t gone to law school (and unfortunately, some of those who took the bar and were fortunate enough to pass the first time without any hitches) doesn’t know this part.

Secondly, the subjective nature of the grading is suspect, which even in the guidance issued by the bar cites a holistic method of grading which is in turn curved with other applicants who took the exam. For applying an arbitrary pass/fail mark instead of a sliding scale tied to a reportable score, a holistic and subjective method of grading is definitely suspect.

Thirdly is the insistence to test on the nuances between federal and state laws, and obsolete english common law legal doctrine, much of which may never come up again in the attorney’s lifetime of practice.  I can’t even count how many times a professor in the bar exam prep course told us that we needed to know a certain law only for the bar exam and we could count on never having to ever think about it ever again.

All in all it really seems that the exam is more of a conformity test if anything, in saying this I mean a conformity of test taking methods which has little or no relevance to the actual practice of law since the majority of the substantive aspects can be researched at a later time when the issue comes up.  I don’t buy this whole “It tests what you learned in law school” because none of my law school exams were anything like this, and further, I know way too many practicing attorneys now that have passed the bar but after talking to them now, I’m pretty sure they would flunk this test if they had to take it again.

Don’t get me wrong, it is an extremely difficult test, probably the hardest test I’ve ever taken in my entire experience in the ivory tower, but what aggravates me is that the reasons why it is hard, and how utterly pointless it is to make it this difficult.  It’s not that the concepts in it of themselves are hard to understand intellectually, instead it really tests one’s ability to take tests.  In fact now that I’ve been through one round of the exam, I’m convinced that someone who never went to law school could possibly take a class and pass a bar exam, maybe by a thin margin, but still possible for someone who is just good at taking tests.  Instead what really makes it difficult is the format, the sheer volume of material that you are expected to regurgitate over 2 days, in addition to the pass/fall, all or nothing format with not references or tie-in to the actual practice of law.  In other words, it’s a complete waste of time in terms of substance, on the other hand it serves as a money making tool for the state licensing boards.

The harder question for me at this point is when am I going to do this thing again, and in what jurisdiction?  Given the depressing state of the legal job market, and with the responsibilities of providing for a baby on the way, I have just about no economic incentives to take it again.  I’m gainfully employed right now with no genuine concerns as far as job security (knock on wood).  Further, I’m actually making more than I would probably expect as an entry level attorney, at least from what I’ve seen is out there as far as job openings.  Also, the work/life balance at my current job can’t be beat, especially with the prospects of having a baby on the way, I’d like to spend as much time with him as possible, not working 60-80hours a week at the office.  Therefore it makes no sense to obligate myself to pay annual dues and pay tuition on continuing legal education credits for a license that I’m not using (well not officially)?  And the way that reciprocity of licenses is set up currently, even if I take this test again and pass, I would have to take the Hawaii bar exam anyway, if Hana, the baby and I decide to move back home some day.

Got a more detailed breakdown from my bar results a while back, hadn’t gotten around to looking at them in more depth for the obvious reason that I don’t know when I’ll be taking this test again.  There is also that lingering doubt from not passing it on the first try that maybe I just plain suck at law, and those 4 years of night school were an utter waste of time and money.  However after doing some real analysis on the written samples I know now like everything else related to the law, first impressions are almost never the end of the story.

Some background on the test.  It comes in three components, two standardized national components, and one state-specific to make it a 3 part test over a two day period.  This set up varies by state, but with more and more states adopting the standardized MBE, MPT and Mutli state Essay versions, it makes me wonder if a national bar exam is a possibility.For me the test consisted of ten 25 minute essays on state specific law on the first day, and a standardized multi-state practice test (MPT) at the end of the first day, and 200 standardized multiple choice questions covering 6 core legal topics as part of the multi-state bar exam (MBE).  For my test, the essays are slightly weighted higher, making it the most important portion of the test.  No minimums scores in any section of the test are required to pass, but statistically speaking, if you bomb the essays, you most likely bomb the test.

Essays and the MPT are given a score of 0-6, with the MPT counting twice, making it a total of 12 possible essay scores.  The MBE is scored by taking the raw score (number of correct out of 200) and standardizing it with scores from all bar takers nationally to get a scaled score.  Each state then uses that scaled score to incorporate in their own calculations and cut-offs.  From my bar prep class, the magic number to shoot for is a 4 average on all 10 essays and the MPT, as a 48 total score makes it almost impossible to fail even with a very low score on the MBE, less than 100 scaled. On the MBE, my course recommended that we shoot for a raw score of over 110, about 55% in order to get a scaled score of 130, depending on how the curve for that particular test ended up.

For the essay section I got one 6, five 4s, one 3, and three 2s.  My MPT was a 4, therefore out of 12 possible, I got one 6, seven 4s, one 3, and three 2s for a written score of 43 with an average of 3.58, below the targeted average of 4, but within striking distance.  My MBE scaled score of 114 was on the lower end, but due the nature of the weighting of this section, just by itself, it wasn’t the end of the world either.  How my scores lined up by topic is also worth mentioning.  My high score 6 was on property, the 2 scores were in Family Law, Civil Procedure, and Contracts.  my borderline score of 3 was in Criminal Law, the other 7 were solid 4s, (Torts, Evidence, UCC 3/4/9, Business Organizations, Professional Responsibility, and the MPT).  Constitutional Law was not tested.  On the MBE, the breakdown was roughly 1/2 for Criminal Law, and 2/3 for Constitutional Law and Torts.1/3 for Contracts, Property and Evidence.

Going into the test based on practice exams and just overall knowledge from law school I knew that I my strongest topic is Constitutional Law, and my weakest is Contracts.  So the 2 in contracts I expected.  One of the other 2 score was in civil procedure, which outside of broad concepts, it is very state specific and could hinge on the extract provided on the day of the exam.  The last 2 scores was Family Law, a topic that I didn’t take in law school, but had pretty extensive real-life experience with in the legal clinic and prior to law school.  It kind of reaffirms my thinking that the test is disconnected from real life practice.

First glaring observation this breakdown is the luck of the draw was not on my side as far as topics tested.  Had there been a Con Law question, I’m fairly confident that it would’ve averaged out a weaker Contracts question.  And likewise, had Contracts not been on the exam at all, I would’ve ducked one lower score.

Another eye-opening observation is the disconnect in parity from my scores on the 6 MBE topics and and the same 6 essay topics.  If the test was accurate to ability and knowledge, then you would expect some parity.  Of the 5 topics (Con Law was not tested), 3 of them, Criminal Law, Contracts and Torts were consistent to my essay scores.  2 of them however, Property and Evidence were way off, in that my MBE was significantly lower than the essay score in the same topic.  One might think that given the relative weight of the essays to the MBE, that a higher essay might be grounds for curving a lower MBE in the same topic up a bit given a discrepancy, but that doesn’t happen.

Thinking about backdating this entry in part to memorialize a very busy and eventful November 2009.  As it turns out the end of 2009 presented another set of crossroads for sure.  I had figured there would be a handful, starting with a new division, enjoying my first fall in 4 years in a non-evening student capacity, getting my bar results, and some other normal life developments.

My transfer to my new division has worked out great so far.  Also have had an opportunity to compare and contrast with the old one, and based on comparisons on many levels, my new peers, work topics, middle and upper management philosophies, working styles.  I can say that it’s been almost like working at a new place entirely.  Although its only been a few months, I can say that I have no regrets in requesting the transfer earlier this year.  I’m working in a topic area that I think fits me better now, an area I had an interest in for a while, but never really got into it until law school.  Although I can’t point to direct evidence, I got a sense that my JD helped make a compelling argument for my transfer, which in a backhand way was something that I think was missing from my old division, an overall recognition of the value that my 4-year investment could bring to the job.

Being a normal joe, non-evening student has been a refreshing change of pace.  I’ve been able to catch up on a lot of netflix movies, come home at a decent hour, spend time with Hana, not worry about having to read for class, or even go to class anymore.  It’s also given me some time to read up on the changing nature of the profession that was going on while I was in school.  Some sobering facts about the relative value of my legal experience and others around the country and at different points of their careers.

Then there are my bar results, I missed the cut by a very thin margin, either by a handful of MBE questions, or one higher grade on a single essay question, I probably would’ve made it.  This would put me definitely within striking distance should I decide to fire up the books again but there have been a few game changers which actually put into question whether I’ll be back in study mode anytime soon, or will be better off just putting a hold on it.  Looking back on the experience I can say that I’m more irritated than disappointed by the outcome, it was pretty clear after about a week of bar prep that the exam was just another example of like a lot of other things in the legal profession, another round of intellectual hazing, although this one is clearly more of a test taking performance test than a legal competency test.

The reasons to put retaking the bar on hold seem to be mounting lately, there is the deteriorating economy in general, and the trade-offs between being fully employed in a non-legal capacity, with decent salary and benefits, sane work hours, and several years of consecutive work experience.  There is also the reality that the legal profession may be undergoing massive structural changes right now that have put a lot of well credentialed and experienced attorneys in the job market.  But the main thing on my mind is that we learned recently that there will be a little one coming in 2010.  At least for now I’m ok with putting that first in priority above all else.  The law can definitely wait.

Bar prep has taken up most of my existence since the last posting. been going to classes, taking practice tests, and otherwise trying to keep focused and in a positive mindset. One plus is that I’ve taken some annual leave for the most of July, something that never was able to do during all of my previous final exam sessions.

Meanwhile the tab on the great bailout of 2008-2009 continues to climb. It’s been an interesting distraction from the studying reading up on all of the unprecedented economic and financial events over the past few years.

Was thinking about having a deep and insightful post for this entry, but honestly, I’m still recuperating and just chilling out from my last round of finals and readjusting back to work. Enjoying the new apartment, and life after night school. I just went to the school today to pick up my cap and gown, got borderline assaulted by the career center staff seeing what kind of prestigious sounding attorney position I had snagged post graduation.

As for me, I’m going to tough it out and reassess as appropriate, maybe after tha bar exam results come out, then a few months later, no matter what the circumstances may be. In the meantime, I’ve got a degree, and will see how far it’ll take me, either at my current agency or another. In the interim while I’m studying, I’ll be counting on Kina’s songs (as accompanied by her family) to keep me company.

At 3:22pm today I officially graduated, as in: the grade for my my last required class was posted online. The sick thing about law school is that even though in your mind you “get it” already as to how to study and take law school exams, the always lingering voice in the back of your head wonders if you did enough studying to pass muster and get through. One thing for sure, law school makes you respect the material, the curve, and of course your fellow classmates.

Looking back this semester was a bit of a mixed bag, in that it was kind of a throwaway officially, I only had to take one class to graduate, having enough credits from summer school over the past couple of years. On the other hand, one of my courses was a bar-related one, and the other 2 I had a personal interest in the subject matter. I could’ve cruised through this semester, but instead decided to take a full load and learn a few things. Wondering if it’ll be worth the extra tuition that I forked over though. ouch.

Finished my last final a few days ago.  It hasn’t sunk in just yet, but barring some suddenly stringent grading policy, I should be a Juris Doctor officially now.  Part of me hasn’t accepted it just yet, thinking that I’ll believe it when I get that diploma in my hand.  In the meantime, I’m just enjoying not having to read any thick red/green/blue/brown books a t least for the time being.

Last day of classes today as a 4E, that is evening law student.  Kind of a numb perspective really, having gone the part-time route for close to 4 years now.  I ended up taking a lot of summer classes, which makes it almost 4 years straight with no breaks in between.  Wrapping up things for the semester mostly, I’m doing course evaluations and getting ready for my last round of review sessions and finals.  Then it’ll be off to bar prep class for about two months.  Looking forward to being pau for real come August.

Probably  due for an update since my last entry in march.  I’ve actually moved to a new place, a couple of stops along the metro line.  So far still getting used to apartment living.  Its an upgrade in many ways, much bigger space, lots of natural sunlight during the day, and a closer commute to work due to the closer walking distance from my place to the metro station.  The thing is that I still feel like I’m living in a hotel suite or something, and will have to move out in about a week.  I suppose it takes some time to get used to it.

I was able to take advantage of the zipcar fleet to move all of our stuff, used some old boy scout knowledge to pack up and tie down a cargo load in a pickup truck.  I’d say we moved everything in about 6-7 trips total, not bad at all.   Since our last place was furnished, the concept of buying furniture was completely foreign one.  We also got some pretty good deals on furniture given the slowing economy.  IKEA is pretty amazing.

After a busy but tough 2008, the new year is already in full swing.  This year brings a lot of things to look forward to, a new assignment at work, a new division chief,  new semester of law school, and of course the ever present buzz around the district these days, a new administration taking on white house.

One of the good things about my work is that it allows for some flexibility on job assignments, so that if one assignment doesn’t work out for the better, either because of the subject matter, the workload, or the personalities on the team, it’s really just temporary.  Not uncommon in staff management at my agency, I’ve been going through the grueling transition period between assignments, which means that I have multiple sets of bosses and work styles to adjust to.  In the 5 years I’ve been at the agency I’ve never experienced a clean transition from one job to the next.  It really puts you at a tough spot, you want to get some closure on the old assignment, but you want to get off to a good start on the new one.  I’ve also noticed that I prefer to do short-term and periodic projects as opposed to being bogged down on one long-term project, even if it means that I have to multi-task.

My courses this semester started last week and are looking pretty good so far, and they are shaping up to be a good final set to close out at least the classroom portion of my legal education.  I have Professional Responsibility and Practice, which is basically a course on the rules of professional conduct and ethics that all lawyers are supposed to be versed in before entering practice.  My Bar prep course for the semester is Sales & Leases, basically a continuation on commercial transactions law and contracts law, looking into the application of the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC).  On the elective front I’ve got Debtor and Creditor Rights, a course that I think is pretty contemporaneous to the meltdown on wall street and the consumer credit markets.  My last elective course is White Collar & Business Crime, something that I think might come in handy again, given the times we are living in.

The entire DC metro is in an inauguration frenzy mode, it seems like daily we get new announcements or updates on the developing security plans, road closures, metro service outages.  I’ve gotten a kick at the uptick on the Obama merchandising and lyrical symbolism and imagry around town.  The street vendors that usually sell bottled water and FBI shirts are all decked out in Obama gear, the metro fare cards now have his smiling face printed on the card stock.  And there are the obvious corporate bandwagoners like IKEA and Pepsi. There is talk around town about who has gotten tickets to the ceremony and the balls, and whether the tickets are to THE ball that Obama and Biden are making an actual appearance at.  All in all I hope that most of the 2M+ estimated people coming to the district for the inauguration are coming with an open mind, its going to be a logistical mess out here with the crowds.

Meanwhile for the policy wonks and politicos, there is the talk about how the new administration will be replacing the old, what changes will be made, and I mean real structural change to the federal bureaucracy, not the campaign slogan, which so far is appearing more and more to me to be just that, a catchy phrase to run an election on, nothing more.  I happen to be in that category of people skeptically optimistic, but really waiting to see how if he can effective transition his administration from one that ran an effective campaign to one that can run the federal government.

One indication that this might not be the case is the decision to open this office of the president-elect, supposedly to assist with the transition period between the election and the inauguration, and to respond to the historically unprecedented challenges the nation is facing.  The fact is that the president-elect does not have any of the executive powers until he is sworn in on Jan 20, it really is dishonest to putting himself out to the American people as if he can do anything in the interim.  Presidents are human beings, they are not super humans that we make them out to be, they rely heavily on their cabinet and staff in the executive branch agencies to get their job done, that is, run the federal government.  As of November 5, 2008 when the office of the president-elect was established, there were no cabinet members confirmed by the senate, and therefore no means to do anything at all but plan for the transition.  Maybe there’s a reason why the Constitution doesn’t provide for an office of the president-elect?

The other point to consider is more of a tactical, and that is that really one of the risks of establishing the first office of the president-elect is that you automatically open yourself up to criticisms with how you and your staff conducts themselves in the interim period, perhaps even before you’ve established your system of spin doctors and public relations.  I think the whole mess with Ill. Gov and the Treasury Secretary nominee not paying taxes might not have been as prominent had the office of the president-elect been pumped up.  Almost like a damned if you do, damned if you don’t, it may have been a better idea to keep a low profile, do things behind the scenes and then take the White House by storm on Jan 20.

Still stuck in the middle of my finals month, week 2 of 4, I’d like to say. Drawing from past semesters I thought I’d use this journal as a source of taking mental breaks from here and there. We’ll see how far this goes from here on out – and how often I’ll actually do it.

Another part of the dream I was calmly walking in an crescent shaped atrium with large glass windows worried that my cover had been blown, I knew I was being pursued by a young military officer. He was tailing close that I figured he probably knew something was up. As I turned around the bend I jumped maybe 60 feet in the air and wedged myself between the archways on the ceiling and the glass panel. When he passed I descended down only to see him reaching for his sidearm. What happens next was a little fuzzy, but I overpowered him with a jiu-jitsu arm lock and ran off with his weapon. I’m not sure if this part of the dream precluded the dinner meeting or came after.