New Blog!

I am transitioning my blogging from here to a brand new blog that I have created called Starting to Look Up.  It will be an inspirational blog intended for a wide audience, so I hope you will feel comfortable sharing it with any and all of your friends and family.  My original plan is to post a couple of times a week, probably Monday and Friday, so subscribing by email won’t overload your inbox.  My rationale is that everyone can use a reminder to “look up” every now and then. I hope what I do will be useful in that regard.  Please go to Starting to Look Up to subscribe. The subscription widget is at the top of the menu on the right side of the page.

Finally, for those of you worried that regular law school happenings won’t be covered anymore, nothing could be further from the truth.  In fact, our amazing director of communications is working on another place where such things will be new and improved!

Thank you for reading along for these past three years.  I anticipate that the blog moves will make things better and better.  As I will say it, things are starting to look up!!!

Graduation Day – and Beyond

Well, the big day is finally here for our graduating students.  Today, there is the mixed bag of Malibu finally receiving much-needed rain and the irony of it arriving on the day that we typically celebrate this great accomplishment under sunny skies overlooking the Pacific Ocean.  So, today, we will be indoors where our graduates, their guests, and their diplomas (!) will be safe, dry, and warm.

It will still be a fantastic day.  I am so proud of the Class of 2015.

On the blog front, I have a big announcement today, too.  Personally, I will be transitioning my blogging from here to a brand new blog that I have created called Starting to Look Up.  It will be an inspirational blog intended for a wide audience, so I hope you will feel comfortable sharing it with any and all of your friends and family.  My original plan is to post a couple of times a week, probably Monday and Friday, so subscribing by email won’t overload your inbox.  My rationale is that everyone can use a reminder to “look up” every now and then. I hope what I do will be useful in that regard.  Please go to Starting to Look Up to subscribe. The subscription widget is at the top of the menu on the right side of the page.

Finally, for those of you worried that regular law school happenings won’t be covered anymore, nothing could be further from the truth.  In fact, our amazing director of communications is working on another place where such things will be new and improved!

So there is good news all around today (well, the rain is mixed good news today!).

Thank you for reading along for these past three years.  I anticipate that the blog moves will make things better and better.  As I will say it, things are starting to look up!!!

Graduation Breakfast!

Graduation breakfast is held the day before the actual graduation ceremony (which means the breakfast is today!!!).  It is one of the most fun and most special events of the entire year.

The breakfast is just for graduates and faculty. At the breakfast,there will be a class photo, awards announced and given, and speeches from (i) a law professor, (ii) a female 3L, and (iii) a male 3L. The speakers are selected by the graduating class.

The Class of 2015 selected the following individuals to speak this year:
• Female Students: Laura Grubb & Cathy Chukwueke (there was a tie!)
• Male Student: Dustin Hesseltine
• Faculty Member: Jim Gash

Straus & Palmer Receptions

Graduation week festivities begin this evening with two special events:

• The Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution will host a Straus Graduate Reception in the School of Law Atrium for all non-Juris Doctor degree and certificate recipients from 4:00pm until 6:00pm.
• The Palmer Center for Entrepreneurship and the Law will host a Palmer Center Certificate Ceremony at Duke’s of Malibu from 6:30pm until 9:30pm.

Information on all graduation week activities can be found HERE.

Graduation Week!

Graduation Week is here!  Typically, graduation occurs on beautiful Alumni Park overlooking the Pacific Ocean, but there is a little rain in the forecast for Friday that we’ll have to keep an eye on.

There are several events scheduled on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday this week, culminating in the wonderful commencement ceremony.

On Thursday, we’ll take a class photograph of the Class of 2015.  Pictured above is the Class of 2014 from last year!

8th Annual William French Smith Lecture

While our students were toiling away at final exams, the School of Law hosted the 8th Annual William French Smith Lecture featuring Professor Ed Larson in downtown Los Angeles at the Jonathan Club.

You can see a wonderful photo album of the event HERE.

Final Day (Day Ten) of Spring Final Exams!

Well, it ends today, and it has been quite a year.  Our 3Ls are now graduates scheduled to receive their diplomas one week from today.  Our 2Ls are now rising 3Ls.  And, late this afternoon once our 1Ls emerge from the Introduction to Ethical Lawyering exam (with Professors Cochran, Ogden, and Weston), they will be rising 2Ls.

Meanwhile, our new 1L class is in the process of forming.  What a great time of year!

Next week is Graduation Week, which is always a great week.  I will share some graduation-related posts throughout the week and then share a major announcement about this blog.

Thanks for reading along during this great year!

Day Nine of Spring Final Exams

Almost there!  Only one upper-division final today:

• Business Reorganizations in Bankruptcy with Professors Scarberry and Averch

All upper-division students should be finished with final exams by lunch today — only 1Ls left for tomorrow!

Day Eight of Spring Final Exams

We are truly coming down the home stretch now.  Only two upper-division exams on tap today:

• Community Property with Professor Miller
• Trademarks, Unfair Competition, and Unfair Trade Practices with Professor Dagodag

Day Seven of Spring Final Exams

Three upper-division exams this morning:

• Accounting for Lawyers with Professor Taha
• Conflict of Laws with Professor Childress
• Evidence with Professor Goodno

This afternoon, the 1L class takes their third (of four) exams during spring finals:

• Constitutional Law with Professor Kmiec
• Constitutional Law with Professor James
• Constitutional Law with Professor McDonald