The Hardest Month of Law School (So Far)

Greetings, My UVic Lifers!

After a nearly month-long hiatus from blogging, I have emerged from my law school bubble to give an update on how things are going.

Without a doubt, this past month has been the most difficult period of law school so far.

When I spoke to upper year students last semester, many of them told me that “memo season” was the most stressful time of first year law. They were right…

This meme has never been so real.

What is “memo season,” you might ask? The open memo is a 14 page assignment that is worth 60% of our grade for Legal Research and Writing. Students were given a complex fact pattern and a legal issue. Our task was to research relevant legislation and case authorities to determine what the law is in that area, and what the outcome of the case might be if the parties went to court. We were to approach the problem from an objective perspective, and give a balanced report of the strengths and weaknesses of each party’s case.

It was brutal.

The memo, as well as the follow-up assignment based on the memo, tested my time-management, research, and analytical skills in a way that I had never experienced. I now feel like I have a good grasp on legal research methods and citation, which is going to be incredibly valuable down the road.

Needless to say, reading break was much-needed this semester. I was able to have a few days of rest before beginning the arduous task of catching up on my readings. The highlight was the 10 km hike I did on Friday in Gowlland Tod Provincial Park.

With finals coming up in less than 2 months, it’s definitely crunch time. Back to the books I go!