Yes, you read that right. Brand new 1L’s starting law school in August should immediately think about exams taking place in December. 2L’s & 3L’s are nodding their heads right now because they know I’m right. And, I have the data to prove it.
1L Orientation starts soon and can be an overwhelming information overload. Most law school orientations teach basics like IRAC, reading and briefing cases, and outlining to prepare students for the first few weeks of law school.
Too many 1L’s mistake the advice on reading and briefing cases and outlining as the only steps necessary for getting “good” grades in law school and budget their time per day or week based on how many pages in a casebook they have to read and brief. Spoiler alert: over the course of a term, you will read 100’s of cases. For each subject.
Reading and briefing cases is the barest of bare minimums. Put simply: Reading and briefing cases is studying, but is NOT learning.
