Final Meeting of 2007 (Mock Trial Project & Sports Representation)

To all fellow members of the Stony Brook University community,

I invite any and all who are interested to attend the Stony Brook Pre-Law (SBPL) meeting today at 8:30PM.

Today's meeting agenda includes:

+ a presentation on sports and athletic representation

+ an introduction of the new Mock Trial Subcommittee

+ a layout of plans for the first full semester of SBPL

+ information about the Kaplan-sponsored raffle

This will be our second official meeting of SBPL this semester, our first with an approved constitution, and the last of the year 2007.

We will be meeting in room 309 of the Student Activities Center. Once again that is at 8:30PM.

I encourage all who are even the least bit curious to feel free to attend.

Wishing you all good luck on finals,

Kevin Brady, Stony Brook Pre-Law Vice-President

Holiday Book Recommendations from VP Kevin Brady

Law 101: Every You Need to Know About the American Legal System
Author: Jay M. Feinman
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Released: July 27, 2006

Feeling out of the loop on the Law? Looking to brush up or dive right into the jury pool? Got a relative, friend, or special person who just doesn’t get all this law stuff you talk about every waking hour and wants to learn (we should all be so lucky)? A popular read since its first release, Law 101 is a particularly great primer for pre-law students, covering the basic introductory fields of first-year law school (property law, criminal procedure, torts, constitutional law, etc.) using famous cases (the McDonald's elderly woman vs. spilled coffee lawsuit, for one) to underscore basic facets of American law.

Law School Confidential (Revised Edition): A Complete Guide to the Law School Experience: By Students, for Students
Author: Robert H. Miller
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Released: January 1, 2004

Described by The Houston Lawyer as “a must for anyone attending or thinking about law school,” that endorsement alone seems to make the grade for a mention on this blog. Author Mr. Miller, now practicing law in New Hampshire’s Queen City (Manchester for all non-New Englanders), pools retroactive advice from former students of law schools at Harvard, Vanderbilt, University of Pennsylvania and others to offer a lived-in and breathed-in testimonial into law school and all the processes it entails. LSATs, bar exams, first semester testing; advise regarding the examinations alone makes this a worthwhile read. On top, there are personal windows about the other side of the equation: paying for it all. That’s not to mention pointers on how to mentally adjust to being surrounded by the Law and the Law alone for what is likely the first time in your life.

A More Perfect Constitution: 23 Proposals to Revitalize Our Constitution and Make America a Fairer Country
Author: Larry J. Sabato
Publisher: Walker & Company
Released: October 2, 2007

For those of you who are political junkies like myself, read no further (I will see you at the church basement meeting next week and you can tell me what you already think of this book). For those who are not, Larry J. Sabato has grown into quite the political prognosticator and analyst, both on the Internet and television, and now evidently in print as well. As director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, and thus in the middle of the latest “purple state” du jour of establishment media and politicians alike, Sabato has taken the bold and refreshing step of putting in his two cents on a subject that could the use even the dullest of copper shine: constitutional reform. Yes, most of these proposals do not have a shot in Hell. Others have been bandied about for years by the grey beards of the U.S. Senate for some time (Warren Rudman and the Balanced Budget Amendment, we mean you). But to read a personal and optimistic pondering of what our nation could be is something that is rarely done nowadays, especially in the circles of government and law. It is in Mr. Sabato’s contagious optimism and yearning to spark debate that lies the real incentive to read A More Perfect Constitution.

Black’s Law Dictionary (Pocket), Third Edition
Author: Bryan A. Garner
Publisher: Thomson West
Released: June 22, 2006

Let’s face it, this guide’s description sells itself:

Arguably the most valuable reference tool available to the legal community, Black's Pocket Dictionary provides more than 10,000 clear, concise, and precise definitions. The essential companion dictionary to the Standard edition and as a stand-alone tool, Black's Pocket Dictionary also includes a dictionary guide and the complete U.S. Constitution. Black’s is cited more than any other legal dictionary, comes recommended by law faculty, and is available in the pocket format and a variety of other useful editions.

P.S. – And yes, John Ventura has penned a Law for Dummies, published by the For Dummies series and released February 5, 2005. But wasn’t that obvious?

P.P.S. – For those needing law in their fiction, John Grisham does have a new novel out, but it’s a finding-yourself-again story about a U.S. football player seeking solace in Italy and laced with language Publishers Weekly dubbed “food porn” (though overall they apparently liked the novel). In other words, it isn’t much caring about the law. If you have never read Harper Lee’s classic To Kill A Mockingbird or Truman Capote's In Cold Blood consider this your window. Published in 1960 and 1959 respectively, and the winners of multiple literary prizes, there are perhaps no other works of fiction (penned by two real-live friends) that offer such direct perspectives into the average person’s outside perspective of the Law, the emotion at work behind it, and its effect on the lives of ordinary people.

Meeting synopsis: Inaugural general body meeting

Date & Time: November 14th 2007 at 9:30 -10:30pm

Description:
What took place was essentially what was intended, namely:

(A) Personally get our message across to the members that attended the meeting (i.e. formally introduce the members of the e-board, explain the objectives and goals of the club, and introduce the constitution, underscoring particularly pertinent pieces)
(B) Hold a brief open forum for newly affiliated members to express any queries, concerns, and offer suggestions for improving the club.

Summary Thoughts: Despite the difficulties facing any new club yet to receive Student Activities’ recognition, SBPL was able to retain a room after all. Thanks to our generous compatriots at Business and Law, we were able to hold the two meetings simultaneously. The dynamic of give and take, share and hear, was unexpected and productive. A lot of unique ideas were aired. Overall, the meeting was a productive one, especially as inaugural first-runs go (when Disneyland first opened in 1955 almost nothing worked). The intimate space, as well as the conjunction with Business and Law, allowed for us to meet with students on similar career paths and prospective Pre-Law members alike.

P.S. - Thanks again to all those who came out to support the SBPL on it's "opening night."