1L Resources

This guide to surviving and thriving (aka "surthriving") in law school--and beyond--is filled with unique insights from a former BigLaw associate (and current in-house counsel) as well as accomplished guest contributors who offer actionable tools, candid advice, and helpful strategies that law students and all legal professionals can start using today to immediately achieve more happiness, success and well-being in law (and life).

Law school is different from other graduate schools. Students will be confronted by an entirely new vocabulary and unique and demanding educational methods. This book is designed to give these students a head start, both by introducing them to the fundamentals of the legal process and by helping them acquire the study skills necessary for success. The first chapters introduce students to the stages of a lawsuit from the lawyer's initial contact with a client through the filing an appeal. The next chapters include cases that illustrate the different roles the trial court, jury, appellate court, and court of last resort play in a lawsuit, knowledge helpful in doctrinal courses, but crucial in legal writing assignments. The final chapters suggest how students can effectively read and analyze cases, outline, and apply what they have learned on exams and in legal writing assignments. The third edition includes an expanded chapter on note-taking and outlining and how legal writing and doctrinal course demand different approaches to each. More study questions are included with answers to be found in the appendix. This book is the perfect tool for pre-law students to read on their own or for law school orientation required reading.

In celebration of August 2023 blockbuster movies, CAP has released a selected reading from the book with a new introduction by the author, "Sh*t No One Tells GIRLS About Law School." Irreverent. Fun. Honest. Words never before used to describe a book intended for law students--until now. Sh*t No One Tells You About Law School offers law students a compilation of advice culled from the author's fifteen years of teaching experience. Think Jessica Pearson meets Carrie Bradshaw--shoe closet included! This book is a tell-it-like-it-is account of how students can successfully navigate the law school experience (minus the boring stuff). Written for today's law student, this book goes far beyond the run-of-the-mill "here's how you case brief" and "read cases carefully" advice. Expect to be both motivated and entertained by the author's practical, hands-on guidance. Professor Tanya Monestier is a tenured law professor who teaches Contracts, Sales, and Conflict of Laws. She was a first-generation student who kicked a** in law school and who wants to help you do the same.

Hard-Nosed Advice from a Cranky Professor is a must-read for any new law school student who wants to be successful both in and out of the classroom. The book provides advice from the most valuable source: the law professor. It gives a no-nonsense, hard-nosed approach to advising students on what they must do to succeed. The advice is provided in a light-hearted and humorous manner, which makes the book a quick and easy read for any law student. The book's practical, hands-on approach to learning helps students master the most essential skills needed in law school, including briefing cases, outlining, taking exams, meeting professor expectations, and many more. The authors provide step-by-step instructions and concrete examples to help students navigate each skill. The book's user-friendly style and wealth of examples are its greatest assets. In this new, updated edition, the authors enhance each topic by simplifying the approach even further and providing additional hypotheticals to turn the abstract into the concrete. The second edition includes new examples of case briefing, outlining, exam writing, and bar essays, and also includes an entire chapter dedicated to the skill of legal writing. In this new chapter, the authors transform a complicated writing course into a simple, step-by-step guide that makes legal writing attainable for any law student. With detailed explanations, examples, tips, and insights, this book is a tool no first-year law student should do without.

"There are two things wrong with almost all legal writing. One is style. The other is content." Professor Fred Rodell, Yale, 1936. We can't do much about content. You'll have to know how the common law system works, how to read and brief cases, how to study and take exams, how to write and argue law and how lawsuits are tried. We can do something about style. There's advice and illustrations. You'll throw pots, working your first case, making your first argument, briefing cases, taking exams, and writing memos. This is not for the faint hearted nor is law school. Think like a lawyer. I won't be a bore. I'll tell jokes, some of which are actually funny. I'll challenge you intellectually. Where does law come from? Should judges follow precedent? What if your client wants to pave Paradise and put in a parking lot? If you love ideas you'll love this book and you'll love law school. (If you love people you'll love practice.)

“Dear Law Student: Here’s the truth. You belong here.” As all former law students and current lawyers can attest, law school is disorienting, overwhelming, and difficult. Unlike other educational institutions, law school is not set up simply to teach a subject. Instead, the first year of law school is set up to teach a skill set and way of thinking, which you then apply to do the work of lawyering. What most first-year students don’t realize is that law school has a code, an unwritten rulebook of decisions and traditions that must be understood in order to succeed.

The Law of Law School endeavors to distill this common wisdom into one hundred easily digestible rules. From self-care tips such as “Remove the Drama,” to studying tricks like “Prepare for Class like an Appellate Argument,” topics on exams, classroom expectations, outlining, case briefing, professors, and mental health are all broken down into the rules that form the hidden law of law school. If you don’t have a network of lawyers in your family and are unsure of what to expect, Ferguson and Newton offer a forthright guide to navigating the expectations, challenges, and secrets to first-year success. Jonathan Newton was himself such a non-traditional student and now shares his story as a pathway to a meaningful and positive law school experience. This book is perfect for the soon-to-be law school student or the current 1L and speaks to the growing number of first-generation law students in America.

Law School Exams: A Guide to Better Grades is the complete handbook for students seeking to improve their performance in law school. This book offers a concise and practical strategy that can be applied to almost any law school exam, regardless of topic or level. The new edition offers unique insights by reducing the exam format to a series of repeatable steps. It also teaches students how to "prepare for exams, instead of preparing for class," with proven time-management and outlining techniques. The main focus of the book is on law school exam success, but it also includes comprehensive guidance on reading, note-taking, use of supplements, and common mistakes made by law students. The latest edition adds guidance for in-person and online testing, and three new practice exams with model answers (on the topics of Torts, Property, and Contracts). Law School Exams: A Guide to Better Grades is an impactful resource for students who are beyond the first semester and struggling to improve their grades, as well as for brand new students who want to start strong in law school. Alex Schimel is a longtime professor, university administrator, and a leading subject-matter expert on law school academic success.

Beyond One L: Stories About Finding Meaning and Making a Difference in Law is inspired by Scott Turow''s One L, the classic account of a first year law student''s experience at Harvard Law School. With an introduction by Turow, Beyond One L explores first, second, and third year experiences in the decades since One L was published. It then moves beyond law school to tell the stories of taking the bar, searching for judicial clerkships, practicing law, and leaving law practice to become a teacher or judge. Story authors include lawyer Gerry Spence; Above the Law editor David Lat; professors Ian Ayres, Stephen Carter, Deborah Waire Post, and Adrienne Wing; and judges Marilyn Skoglund, Donn Kessler, and Michael Zimmerman. The stories are about the moments in life that were game-changers--ones that changed the course of the authors'' careers or brought them extraordinary meaning. "I have always been a believer in the power of narrative and Beyond One L did not disappoint! I had a hard time putting this book down. I loved the way the authors framed their stories to illustrate how the first year of law school was instrumental in forming their personal or professional identities. I laughed at some of the stories, and cried at others. I was inspired by the "kaleidoscope of experiences" that were shared. I would highly recommend this book, particularly if you have gone to law school, are planning to go to law school, or just want to read a meaningful book." -- Christine Coughlin, Professor of Legal Analysis, Writing, and Research, Wake Forest University School of Law "Law students and lawyers all too quickly forget why they went to law school. Inside each attorney is some passion that does not involve billing hours. Beyond One L is a reminder to find that passion. From stories of questioning the Torah, to a federal judge''s journey through racial segregation, to a professor''s admission during his 1L year at HLS that "I''m not sure exactly where I''m lost...but I am", I was reminded of the real world of law. Law school can be funny, affirming and sometimes even enjoyable. The profession is a challenge, but clients are inspiring, the justice system valuable and law school provides lifelong advice like "never turn down free food," "do not sleep with that person." Regardless of where you are on your legal path- just considering law school or Buddhist monk-this collection of stories will bring a smile to your face and may just rekindle that passion."-- Judge Stephen Bough "What a wonderful way to gain perspective on law students, law school, and law practice! The stories in Beyond One L give great insight into the process of becoming a lawyer, starting even before the decision to apply to law school and continuing long beyond law school. Some authors give guidance: David Lat, the founding editor of Above the Law, offers three recommendations on what he would do differently as a law student, including "calm down" (easier to give than follow, he concedes), while Wanda Temm, author of Clearing the Last Hurdle, a best-selling bar prep book, provides practical advice on bar exam prep. Others explore how law school changed them, empowering them to speak and advocate. And others discuss how they have made their lives in the law. Reading each story reminds me of why I became a lawyer!"-- Naomi Cahn, Professor of Law, George Washington University "Beyond One L reads like a novel. Whether you are thinking of going to law school or reliving decades-old experiences, the stories will captivate you. They capture the hopes, stresses, challenges and adjustments that indelibly mark those who make it through law school, and they do so with humor and insight. The volume salts the personal stories with useful tips on not just surviving the first year, but applying for clerkships, passing the bar, starting your own practice, entering the academy and following your dreams as a lawyer wherever they take you."-- June Carbone, Professor of Law, University of Minnesota

In The Law School Journey, James R. Elkins offers students a newly minted view of legal education that follows in the humanistic tradition of Karl Llewellyn's The Bramble Bush and James Boyd White's The Legal Imagination: Studies in the Nature of Legal Thought and Expression. In this engaging collection of commentary and readings, Elkins invites students (and their teachers) to reflect on the nature of law school work, the culture in which it takes place, and the lasting effects of law school rites of passage on those who undertake the law school journey.