a carrell with a view

I have a lovely view from my favorite study spot in the Law Library:

The photo doesn't actually do it justice. In real life the NOLA sky-line can be seen much more clearly from the 5th story of Tulane's law library.

And it is from this vantage point that I watch the hours of the day, and the days of the week, and the weeks of the month pass me by.

My days begin around 6am with a round of sun salutations, even though the sun cannot be seen from within our little basement apartment. Then I pack myself a healthy lunch, and blend up a healthy liquid breakfast in the form of a fruit-soymilk-lowfat yogurt-and flaxseed-smoothie.

After getting dressed and double-checking that I have all required books for the day as well as weather appropriate accessories, I head out to catch the 7:15 streetcar. Sometimes I miss it, and end up on the 7:25 streetcar instead. Other times I'm early enough to get on the 7:05 streetcar.

But I'm always on campus by8am. I stop off at my locker where I stow away my lunch and any reading materials that aren't immediately necessary. And, depending on the day, I either head directly up to my 5th floor carrell, or to class at 8:30. If it's an 8:30-class-day, then I'll be in the library by 10am.

And there I settle in, unpacking my bag and spreading my personalty about the carrell like strategically placed soldiers. As I read and think and write the hours pass by. At the appointed times I pack up and go to class, or go eat lunch in the courtyard when hunger strikes, but then I'll retreat once again to this safe place of quiet and solitude until the day is done and I retire to the comfort of home, hubby, and kitties. (And even there I must diligently continue to read and write and think about the law.)

why torts?

The new machines [of the Industrial Revolution] had a marvelous, unprecedented capacity for smashing the human body.

– Lawrence Friedman, 2005
A History of American Law

I simply love this quote. There's something spectacular about the words "marvelous, unprecedented capacity for smashing the human body" that really speaks to me.

AND, perhaps more importantly, they helped me to understand the purpose of the law of torts. In a complex society such as we now live in (thanks to the machinery made possible by the industrial revolution) unintended injuries are unavoidable. The costs of these injuries can either be left to lie where they fall, caught in a well-weaved social welfare net, or distributed in some other way.

Tort Law functions as the third option. Since Capitalist America won't be having any of that social welfare stuff, but we still hold dear to ideals such as equity, Tort Law serves to distribute the costs of injuries more evenly among the members of society. (Caveat: My understanding of all this may yet change; for instance, I can't yet speak to intentional torts; it is, after all, only the 2nd week of class.)

Regard Maxine Hammontree, who was working in her bicycle shop one sunny afternoon when a car comes crashing into the wall, injuring her and damaging her shop. The driver, Tom Jenner, suffered an epileptic seizure and lost control of his car. Maxine files a tort action to gain access to Tom's insurance, and in doing so seeks to distribute the costs of her injury where it can better be absorbed.

Nevermind the outcome of the case or the finer points of law I've been analyzing for a week. It was the first case in Torts for a reason: it perfectly illustrates the need for the Law of Torts. Folks get hurt all the time for reasons that were out of their control. They incur medical bills, and sometimes they can't go back to work. They need help, and often there's not any available unless an action can be brought based on the law of torts.

I used to think tort law was a flimsy mechanism by which greedy lazy folks leeched off of large corporations. Now I see that tort law exists for a genuinely good reason, which makes me much more interested in the subject matter of this class.

old hat

Universal insurance, if desired, can be better and more cheaply accomplished by private enterprise.

– O.W. Holmes, 1881
The Common Law

While I haven’t the time to elaborate and/or share my own perspective regarding the health care debate, I just wanted to share this little reminder of the fact that history does have a way of repeating itself.

initial impressions

So far, so good. A week and a day into the Law School Experience, and I don't hate it yet.

Sure enough, I was feeling absolutely overwhelmed at the beginning of the first week, but as the days slowly pass by I feel as though I'm settling into a groove of intense focus and acute diligence. If I can keep up the momentum, I think I'll be okay.

My classes are all great, and if I'm crazy for thinking that, so be it; but I'm totally enjoying this. From Contracts to Criminal Law, Civil Procedure and Torts. The Legal Research and Writing class is the only one that's at all dull. (And it doesn't help that it's at 4pm, which just happens to be the time every day when my mind kicks out of high gear after go-go-going since 6am.)

All of my professors are awesome, and in that regard I feel I am very fortunate; others I've talked with have at least one professor they would rather not have. Perhaps my insanely positive attitude helps in this regard.

The atmosphere here is one of congeniality amongst the students and absolute support from the faculty. None of that Socratic humiliation here. Sure, the Socratic method is utilized, but it is with rhyme and reason and with no intent other than to help us orally articulate our budding legal minds.

And the competition among the students is barely palpable beneath the surface. Sure we will be ranked at the end of the year, but right now we're all just struggling to stay alfoat, and thus more than willing to help one another. From my perspective, the rankings are little to compete over, because in the end it will boil down to each individual's dedication, diligence, and natural capacity for legal reasoning.

The campus itself is spectacular. I feel as if I have finally arrived to a place where I belong. I've never been to a school like this: an old, prestigious university, with oak-lined lanes and old stone buildings. And yet it is the kind of place I've always imagined myself belonging. It's as if I have always known I would someday, somehow get to a place like Tulane, steeped in history and beauty and busting at the seams for all the knowledge it has to offer me, but I never quite knew how it would happen that I might find myself in such a place. And yet here I am, and it's difficult to convince myself that this is, in fact, my campus. In time familiarity and comfort will replace the intimidation and novelty, and I'll feel as at home here as I ever did at JSU.

In some ways I feel like it's 1997 and I'm a freshman all over again, and in some ways that is true; amongst the upperclassmen, the faculty and staff, I'm just another new face. But I'm making friends. The variety of people I've encountered is stunning. It stands in stark contrast to my experience at JSU, where folks seemed to have been pressed from a half-dozen or so molds. At Tulane, my fellow 1Ls come from all over the country and the world, they're of all age groups (I'm not the only married student for a change! And some are even parents, too!), and there's a variety of ethnic and cultural groups represented.

It's odd to find myself here, coming from JSU. There, it was obvious that I did not belong, and I had become accustomed to being the odd student out. Here the situation is wholly different; I feel as if I belong, and I feel a sense of camaraderie with all of my fellow 1Ls. But at the same time, I feel acutely aware of my difference. I'm the girl who only completed the 9th grade. I'm the one who took the alternative route: GED to junior college, and then to university and now law school. I don't have the common bonds that many of the younger students share: high school prom, graduation, moving away to college, dorm life, and so on and so forth. My path has been one less traveled, and yet I've arrived just the same. The differences between myself and my classmates at JSU were both external and internal; here the difference is almost wholly internal, and so it is a different sort of chasm to navigate in order to cultivate friendships. And I'm positive that I'll leave Tulane with several friends for life, which were a rare commodity at JSU.

All in all, I'm completely enamored. This is absolutely one of the best decisions of my life, and the most satisfying, awesome thing about it is that I'm here thanks to little more than my wits and my perseverance.

There's a ton of work waiting for me, and it's going to be a challenge, but one I'll be able to meet, and in the end I'll be so much better for it. So, bring it on, I say.