Law Library News for Nov. 18, 2002

• Thanksgiving Library Hours
• Preparing for Law School Exams
• Book of the Week: The International Lawyer's Deskbook

Thanksgiving Library Hours

Preparing for Law School Exams

by Ann Hemmens

Those dreaded law schools exams are fast approaching (exam period is December 14-20). Check the Final Exam Schedule for Fall 2002 online, http://www.law.washington.edu/lawschool/students/Registration/Aut02ExamSchedule.pdf). Below are selected resources to help you study for and write law school exams.

Books

• A Practical Guide to Writing Law School Essay Exams, by John C. Dernbach (Rothman, 2001)(KF283 .D47 2001 at Reserve)
• Answering Law Exams--Power Think, by David H. Barber (Spectra Pub. Co., 1986)(KF287 .B36 1986 at Reserve)
• Aronson Lecture on Exam Preparation [sound recording] by Professor Robert Aronson (Seattle, 1980)(KF283 .A7 1980 at Classified Stacks)
• Getting to Maybe: How to Excel on Law School Exams, by Richard Michael Fischl & Jeremy Paul (Carolina Academic Press, 1999)(KF283 .F57 1999 at Reserve)
• How to Do Your Best on Law School Exams, by John Delaney (J. Delaney, 1982)(KF283 .D44 1982 at Classified Stacks)
• How to Study Law and Take Law Exams in a Nutshell, by Ann M. Burkhart and Robert A. Stein (West Pub. Co., 1996)(KF283 .B87 1996 at Reserve)
• The Legal Essay Exam Writing Primer, 4th ed., by Wentworth Miller (LEEWS, 1993)(KF277.L44 M5 1993 at Folio on 5th floor)
• Strategies & Tactics for First Year Law: Maximize Your Grades, by Kimm Alayne Walton (Emanuel, 1995)(KF283 .W35 1995 at Reserve)

Old Exams

Online UW Law School Exams, http://lib.law.washington.edu/exams/exams.html. The exams are organized by faculty name then course title. Some exams include answers.

Law School Exams from schools other than UW, see the April 16, 2001 edition of the Law Library News column.

Online Resources

“Writing Better Law School Exams: The Importance of Structure,” http://lessons.cali.org/cat-exam.html, written by UW Law Professor William Andersen is an interactive online tutorial available through CALI (Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction).

To obtain a password for downloading exercises from the website, contact lawhelp@u.washington.edu, a computer lab attendant, or the Reference Office (543-6794). There are many subject specific exercises on the CALI website including civil procedure, contract, evidence, sales, and torts.

Law School Exams, http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/exams.htm, is a collection of websites with information on studying for and writing law school exams

Book of the Week

by Mary Whisner

The International Lawyer's Deskbook, edited by Lucinda A. Low, Patrick M. Norton & Daniel M. Drory. (K85.I574 1996 at Reference Area & Reference Office

It used to be rare for a lawyer in general practice to have to deal with questions of international or foreign law. Those were just for specialists. Now many lawyers encounter transactions or disputes with an international dimension. Perhaps a client wants to export its product or enter into a joint venture with a company in a foreign country. Or maybe a client wants to adopt a child from China or Chile. Or perhaps a client's children have been taken to a foreign jurisdiction by their other parent. This book is a good place to start to build knowledge about a variety of issues that might arise.

The editors acknowledge that all of the topics covered – from antitrust to wills – require more knowledge and experience than a short chapter can provide; their goal is to "give the non-specialist reader a basis for dealing intelligently with the problem at hand." Each chapter gives you an overview of an area, often discussing key statutes and treaties. The end of each chapter has "Sources of Assistance," which can include texts, periodical articles, websites, and even phone numbers (for instance, the hotline for the United States Trade Representative). This is a good book to browse if you want to get a sense of international law practice.