This semester I am externing for the Air Force Judge Advocate General Corps. This experience has reminded me about how vast the legal world is and all the various kinds of work that await us after graduation. Taking an externship is an incredibly valuable experience as a law student. No amount of research in the world will ever compare to the knowledge you gain from experience. Being able to sit in a room full of people who have perfected their craft in a particular practice area, or who have war stories about times in a courtroom is exciting and invigorating. Not only do you get to learn from them but sometimes you get to experience it for yourself. Being an attorney is more than just the reading, and externships give us a taste of what life after law school is like. In my externship I’ve gotten to explore the perimeters of the base I work out of because of potential environmental claims. That is something that never occurred to me happening!

Last semester I was able to extern at the LA District Attorney’s Office as part of the Poehls/Hobbs Practicum. I had some of the most valuable networking experiences in my entire law school career. The people that you meet in your externships can become recommenders for your letters of recommendation, or your future employers for future jobs, and even more importantly people that understand what you are going through as a student and later an attorney. I may not have had access to extern for the LADA’s office had not I participated in the Poehls/Hobbs Practicum. Loyola provides its students with incredible opportunities, we just have to be driven enough to seek them out!

In my last post I told you all that faculty is what made LLS unique, and I’m happy to say that I get to expand on that this week! In my last three years here I have met, been encouraged, and supported by professors and faculty members whose areas of study are all different. It is a privilege to be taught by professors who come from different walks of life and who get to share the stories that have shaped their ideas on the law.

Last semester I took Law of War with Professor Glazier. Everyone I talked to about this course was pleasantly surprised that it was something offered at LLS. Professor Glazier is clearly passionate about international law as it pertains to war, and his prior military background enriched his explanation of the topic. Taking his class was a breath of fresh air in comparison to all the other courses at LLS because it focused on an area of the law that people sometimes forget about. Talking with Professor Glazier was always easy, and he encouraged me to apply for the position I now as an extern for the Air Force JAG Corps.

In the Spring of 2023, I was able to work on the Tiersma Project in the Rains Library on campus. Working on this project I got to meet many incredible librarians. It was a privilege working along-side women who I aspired to emulate in their careers. Librarianship has always intrigued me, and the Tiersma project provided me some insight into what working in a library would be like. My supervisor, Professor Cadra, was an incredible resource and the kindest person I know on campus. She was always understanding and helped me navigate the project with ease. Working with her made me feel like my work was appreciated and valued.

To say that faculty members are accessible at LLS is an understatement. Professors at Loyola are ready and willing to help students succeed in any way they can. It has certainly been my experience that professors want their students to succeed and evolve. I appreciate that all my professors have been more than willing to help not only with issues pertaining to my education but even extending far beyond that to ensure that I succeed in law school.

Hidden away in Downtown LA is a small campus packed with phenomenal professors and mentors. From the summer of my very first year to my current last semester I have encountered incredible mentors who have helped guide me in my career. The summer before law school I was provided with the opportunity to participate in a program called Summer Institute which was designed to help students become acquainted with law school prior to starting. At the time the program was spearheaded by Dean Gary Craig who has become one of my biggest supporters and greatest mentor. Throughout the last three years Dean Craig has helped me figure out how to move forward in my career and encouraged me to always try my best in law school even in moments when I felt like giving up. Without the help of Dean Craig, law school would have been 100 times more difficult to navigate.

As I mentioned the professors at Loyola are equally as incredible as the mentors you will gain. During my first year of law school I had the privilege of having who I consider to be the best property professor. Professor Motomura cares about her students and their education and it shows through her dedication in class! She makes a point to remember her students and makes everyone feel welcome. I knew that before ending my law school journey I wanted the opportunity to take one of her other classes.

There are many things to love about Loyola, but if I had to pick one reason it would be the faculty and staff at Loyola. Dean Craig and Professor Motomura are just two examples amongst the many incredible people who work at Loyola. Everyone here wants to see the students succeed and it creates the most welcoming and encouraging environment to grow as student. Coming into Loyola I had no idea of the amount of support I would receive but it has been the thing I have cherished the most during my time here.

If I could only pick one thing that has gotten me through these last three years of law school, it’s the friends that I have made. While friends and family outside of law school are just as important, no one truly understands the trials of law school like the friends you make there. To say that I lean on them for support is an understatement.

Coming into law school can be daunting, and a big deal is made about creating study groups for the best grade results. That puts a lot of pressure on not only choosing the right people but also being a part of a group in general. It is a pressure that I feel is unwarranted because many people don’t study well in groups. I think what is more important is to cultivate friendships and relationships that aren’t entirely reliant upon the idea of study groups. I lean on my law school friends not just to rant about school but also to deal with personal issues, or to spend time together away from school. These types of friendships are especially necessary during exam season. During my 1L year, my friends were also the people I studied with, and it made getting through the hardest courses that much easier. Now as a 3L, while we may not have the same courses, having friends around that can lift me up when I’m not understanding a concept or I need a break has been comforting.

All that said however, don’t put pressure on yourself to make friends or be in study groups! We are all different people with different capabilities, and not having a ton of people to rely on in law school does not make your experience any less valuable. While it is important to every once in a while, strike up a conversation with the people in your class in case you need notes, it is not the end all be all of law school to not have a study group or friends. Loyola’s student body is filled with all types of people from all different backgrounds, its welcoming and embraces people’s differences. While you may not get along with every person you meet (not unlike regular life) you are bound to find someone in Loyola who you can connect with.

Welcome back Loyola! I love the start of new years and new semesters because it feels like an opportunity to reset and start anew. This is especially so if you’ve had an unwelcome experience with exams. Exam season is always stressful, whether you’re a 1L, 2L, or 3L. You never really know if you’ve studied enough, and curved exams can be your friend or your enemy. This past fall semester, I had two exams to worry about: Business Associations and Law of War. Both terrified me for different reasons. No matter how much I studied, Business Associations felt extremely difficult to master and had a vast amount of information to remember. I studied for about five hours for five days straight and with each passing hour I felt even more unsure of how much information I could retain. In times of crisis, I like to vent and get advice from friends, and in this case I reached out to a friend who had taken the course in the past with the same professor. She told me that I should not worry so heavily and that the professor’s exam was fair. This alleviated some tension for me and in the end she was right! The exam was difficult in some ways but in others it was fair and covered exactly what the professor had discussed.

 

Law of War on the other hand was troublesome because it was a take-home exam and I had no idea what to expect. While I did study I did not feel the need to overstudy because I would have access to my notes. This exam turned out to be the opposite of what I had expected. The professor had informed us it would be about two hours and we would have eight total hours to complete. I ended up taking six hours. Granted, I spent some time going over the material but nevertheless I was amazed at how long it had taken me to respond to the questions. Ultimately with exams you do the best you can with what you have. Sometimes you have a week to study, and other times a few days. No matter the situation, it’s important to focus on doing what you can do and not comparing your study methods, or grades to others.

 

The best part about finish exam season is getting to take a break! This winter break I was able to spend time with the people that I care about and take small trips to Nevada and Yosemite. Nothing compares to reconnecting with your life after focusing on school for months!

I spent this past summer working for Andelson Atkinson Loya Ruud and Romo in the Education Law Practice Group. I was tasked with conducting legal research on client questions and writing out memos for the partners who would then send over a response to the clients. Although a large majority of my time with the firm was spent in front of a computer, I was able to hone in my legal research and writing skills. I learned that writing for law school and writing for a partner could be vastly different particularly because many times I was asked to complete my tasks within hours or a day. I also had to become acquainted with saying no to associates or partners which can be daunting given the idea that you always want to make yourself available and put your best foot forward. Nevertheless, it was a skill I am thankful to have gained because burn out is real even as a law clerk.

In between the writing assignments and meetings, the partners made time (usually twice a week) to take us out to lunch and get to know us. They would give me and the other law clerks advice on how to proceed in the legal field and talk to us about their times as clerks. They took us out baseball games, both Angels and Dodgers, and we even got to do an escape room as a team. However, the best part about working at AALRR this past summer was getting to work with my mentor. Elena was a large reason as to why I wanted to work in AALRR. She got my foot in the door with the firm and then continued to support me throughout the summer. At least once a week she would check in and ask me how my week was going, give me some advice, and sometimes talk about the office culture and what I could expect if I came back to work for AALRR. On days I wasn’t in the office, I would spend my time with friends or just do some self-care.