Author: Lisa Junghahn

The Law Library now subscribes to The Economist, The New Yorker, Time, and The Atlantic.

These magazines are available next to the iPad in the Library Reading Room.  The librarians invite you to take an information frolic to enjoy some popular reading.

This librarian just stopped to read The Atlantic, where I learned that the avocado is mostly an invention of marketing.  Or at least the success of this fruit in America arises from strong product promotion!  On my information frolic, I learned that the avocado was once known as the “alligator pear”!

I also stopped to laugh over some cartoons in latest The New Yorker, and admire the cover, which is a sassy image of Kim Jong-un at the Oscars!  Enjoy!

Congratulations to UCI Law 1Ls for finishing your first term of law school!

You have successfully made the transition to thinking like a lawyer.  From now on, law school will be busy and (at times) stressful – but never as hard as your first classes!

Your first class as a seasoned law student is Legal Research (Intersession).

This class will run from Monday, January 5 to Friday, January 9, and will include a pre-class assignment (due by 11.59 p.m. on January 4) and a final assignment (due by 11.59 p.m. on January 30).

The class is designed to prepare you to take on the research assignments typically encountered at school and in the workplace.  Concepts will build on those introduced in your first semester of Lawyering Skills.

Before the first class, you will need to login to TWEN, and

1. Read the syllabus.
2. Complete Class 1 Reading.
3. Complete a Pre-Class multiple choice assignment.

The Pre-Class assignment is located in the Homework Drop Box.  You will need to use your Student Paper Number as your TWEN Anonymous ID.  Access your anonymous Student Paper Number through MyCourses, http://apps.law.uci.edu/mycourses/

The Pre-Class assignment is five questions, and worth 5% of your course grade.  You will have one hour to complete the five questions from the time of starting.

The law librarians are very excited about this class, and look forward to working with each of you to further develop your legal research skills.   We have made every effort to integrate our course learning goals with the law school curriculum, and to ensure a positive student experience!

Send pre-class questions to your course instructor or to Lisa at Ljunghahn@law.uci.edu.

Ready for the Thanksgiving and Winter Break? Check out a Movie from the Library!

Thanksgiving is a time for family, food, football and law-themed movies. Likewise, winter break is a time to unwind from exams and engage with the law through film!

Good news!  The Law Library has a robust law movie collection, including most of those on the ABA list of top 25 Greatest Legal Movies.

The Library can’t compete with streaming Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, HBO, but we can provide you with a curated library of films to help you on your way to becoming a great lawyer!

Browse the movie collection in the catalog here, and stop in to check one out from the Library. (Movies check out for 7 days.)

Some movies are serious, like Crime after Crime, the story of the battle to free Debbie Peagler, an incarcerated survivor of brutal domestic violence.

Others are more for fun, like Legally Blonde, the story of a California sorority queen who attends law school in the Northeast, and is able to succeed with major style!

And, of course, we have the all-time top ranking film for lawyers: To Kill a Mockingbird.

The story is based on the Harper Lee novel and takes place in a small town in Alabama during the Depression-era.  It involves a southern lawyer (played by Gregory Peck) who defends a black man (wrongly and for-prejudice) accused of rape.

It’s a great story and a great movie.  I would especially recommend it for anyone hoping to be the kind of lawyer that works for a more fair and inclusive society!

For other must-sees for the law student, check out:

• IMDb Essential Movies for Law Students
• Wikipedia Trial Films List
• Above the Law Top Legal Movies of All Time