Law School Graduation Party

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Special thank you to my in-laws for the wonderful graduation party last week.

Trial Practice

On Tuesday, I had the opportunity to conduct a mock murder trial in Suffolk Superior Courthouse in Boston and it was awesome. My partner, Julie Endy, and I were defense attorneys for a police officer who allegedly shot his girlfriend in the vestibule of a cafe. I was extremely nervous but once I made my first objection, everything just came together. My objection was sustained and from then on, it was no stopping us. I'm especially proud of myself for conducting a good cross of the lead investigator in the case. In class, I had a hard time adding new information to my cross examination that was not already written down in my notes. This means that although I would listen intently to the direct examination of a witness, if that witness said something totally wrong, I would fumble and bumble trying to draw it out in my cross, especially if it wasn't expected or in my notes. However, on Tuesday, I found the right words and the right rhythm to tear the witness apart.

My closing argument was a thing of beauty. The judge loved it.
Click here to read my closing argument.

Overall, I really enjoyed this class. As a future prosecutor, I'm going to live in the courtroom. And although I still have a long way to go, I'm now confident enough in my ligation skills that I know I won't embarrass myself in a courtroom (to a certain extent).

Scholarship 'R Us

God is really smiling on the Brooks family! I just found out that I won the Edward T. Bigham Scholarship.

The Edward T. Bigham, III, Scholarship. This $4,500 scholarship was established in memory of Edward T. Bigham, III, (BC ‘75, BC Law ‘78) who served as an Assistant District Attorney in Massachusetts. It is to provide financial support to an outstanding third-year student who intends to pursue a career as a district attorney.

Plus, I finally finished the Delaware Bar Application. All I have to do is put it in the mail tomorrow and I am another step closer to becoming a lawyer.

Paintballin'

Knowing that once Alexander comes into the world, my access to the outside world will be limited, I decided to hang out with my law school friends this weekend. On Friday, I went to
Joshua Tree (Sports Bar) with the black males at BC Law and got a chance to meet some of the 1Ls, chat with the 2Ls, and reconnect with some of the graduates. I really had a good time and I hope we can make this outing a regular event.
Yesterday, my law school buddy, John Condon, had a bachelor's party at Boston Paintball and it was a blast. John and I were in the same section during 1L year and we sat next to each other in Corporations. More importantly, John was the only one who showed up to all of the softball games when I was the captain this past fall. Now that's loyalty.

Last Semester Ever?

After two and half year of surviving law school, I'm finally starting my last semester at BC law. Since Alexander is arriving in a month (or sooner), I trailered my schedule to maximize my time at home and minimize my time at school. I'm only on campus 3 day of the week this term, which leaves me plenty of time to bond with Alex and give Tisha a rest from all of the duties that comes with a new babies. This semester I'm taking Constitutional Law 2, Employment Discrimination, Marriage: Law and Theory, and Trial Practice. I'm thrilled about all of my classes but I'm really excited about Trial Practice. As a prosecutor in Delaware, I'm going to live in the courtroom. Litigation skills is a must in the kind of law I want to practice so I decided to get a head start by taking the Trial Practice class. It should be interesting.

Keep Pouring on the Experience

I really love my job at Grayer & Dilday. Today was only my second day on the job and I got the chance to interview a client in a child custody case. It's a very difficult case but I love the complexity of the issues. I'm gaining lots of experience at this firm and I truly love the mentoring that I'm receiving from Mr. Grayer & Mr. Dilday. Tomorrow I will head to work for a few hours and then go back to school for an interview with a New Hampshire law firm, McLane, Graf, Raulerson & Middleton. Keep me in your prayers. The picture above is from my first hiking trip to New Hampshire's Mount Whiteface.

Hot Time in the City

Its was 94 degrees in Boston today and things were definitely heating up. I had a interview with Grayer & Dilday, a small firm that practices family law, for semester in practice and I was pretty excited about this opportunity. My good friend, Christine Lee, worked there last summer and had nothing but praises for this firm, so I anxiously got on the T and went over my resume in order to prepare myself for the interview. The interview was at 2:30 but since it was so hot outside, Tisha gave me a ride to Davis Square so I didn't have to wait outside for the bus in my suit. As we got closer and closer to the Park Street, I felt a mixture of nervousness and excitement so I pulled out my copy of The Catcher in the Rye, that I keep in my briefcase, and read a few pages to calm down. However, just then, the T stopped on the bridge just before the Charles MGH. After a few minutes, a voice came over the load speaker and announced that there was a communication problem on the red line and all trains were not permitted to move. Well, to make a long story short, we sat there for over 40 minutes waiting for the system to come back on. I called Grayer and told them my situation and they assured me that they would wait until I arrived. When the T finally started to inch towards the Charles MGH stop, the MBTA worker announced, "You get out now and walk to your destination or you can ride to the next stop but we're not sure how long its going to be before we move again." I sat there and thought about it for a few seconds and decided to walk from Charles MGH to Downtown Crossing. If any of you know Boston, this is not a nice little walk in the park. It's mostly up hill and accompanying the fact that I was wearing a suit in 94 degrees weather, needless to say, I was pretty sweaty by the time I got there. It took me a little while to find the place but once I got there, I gained my composer and knocked it out of the park. I start on Monday. I also have a crazy story to tell about the ride home but I'll spare you the details.

Semester in Practice

Due to the BC Law lottery system, I was selected for Semester in Practice and I'm pretty excited about it. Basically, it's a program that allows me to apply the skills that I learned in the classroom and acquire the skills that are not taught in the classroom. Hopefully, I'll get a placement at a Family Law firm or clerk for Probate judge but nothing is guaranteed. My back up placement is working in a Elderly Law Firm, Margolis & Cohen.

Margolis & Cohen, LLP begins its representation of many clients with a comprehensive estate and long-term care planning evaluation. This evaluation dictates the best planning strategies to pursue in order to meet the estate planning and long-term health care objectives of the client. The attorneys examine all aspects of the client's financial well-being and issue a follow-up letter which summarizes the client's unique situation, reviews the law, and explains our recommendations for the best possible estate plan for the client. The complex and every evolving rules of Medicaid play an increasingly important role with respect to traditional estate planning concerns.

Well, either way, this is going to be a great semester.

p.s.
I mailed over 40 resumes today. Let's pray that I get a few interviews

The Beginning of The End

Today was the first day of my last year in law school and it was bittersweet. It was weird to walk around knowing that you are now the top dog on campus. 1Ls and 2Ls will look upon me for advice and the teachers will reminisce about how I was a wide-eyed 1L just minutes ago. However, on the other hand, this is the year that counts. I have to find a job and this is probably the last time I will see some of your classmates. 3L year is definitely bittersweet.

The Answer Man

Since I want to practice family law after law school, I decided to work with BC's Family Law Guru, Prof. Katz, for the summer. When I met with him yesterday to pick up my first assignment and along with a couple of funny stories, Katz dropped a bomb shell on me. He wants to research two major issues. One is same sex marriage and the other is common law marriage. I have to compose a 50 state survey on same sex marriage (which states have constitutional amendments against it) and I have to examine the early history of common law marriage. This has the potential to be the best summer of all time.

1 Down and 2 to Go

I finished my first final yesterday and I'm feeling pretty good about it. The class was Family Law with Prof Howe and the final wasn't that bad. Part 1 dealt with a long fact pattern that consisted of a divorcing couple and the division of their assets. We had to pick a side and then go to town. Part 2 gave us a few options but I chose a cohabitation couple who got married but the husband was still officially married to his first wife. The presumption is that the subsequent marriage is the valid one, thus the first wife has the heavy burden to prove that the marriage didn't dissolve but was continuous. I think I knocked this final out of the park!
Spidey 1
Law School 0

Still Studying

Yes, I'm still studying and typing. However, the only thing that keeps me going is the knowledge that I'm going to the midnight show to see Spidey 3 tonight.

p.s.
Big Thank You to my Aunt Tee for the Spidey Outfit

Finals! Finals! And More Finals!

Since I'm studying for finals this week, I probably hold off on posting anything new for 2 wks. However, if I hear some exciting news about the summer, I will make sure to post it.

For the meantime, enjoy the Making of Spiderman 3 part 1

Go BC!

As the semester is wrapping up, I'm really looking forward to next year. I got into the Semester in Practice program, which means I'll be working at a family law firm during the fall semester. most of the semester. I'm also thinking about taking mediation next year. Although some family lawyers say that mediation is not a requirement, others say its a valuable skill to have. Since I have a good time for registering classes, I'll probably pick it up and decide later.

Time Waits For No Man

Today is the last day of class, which only means that finals are just around the corner. This year I have two papers 20 papers to write and only 1 in-class exam (Family Law: Marriage and Divorce). I'm feeling pretty confident about this semester but the fact that my lower back is still in pain doesn't' help my cause. I want to try and knock out one paper this week so I can freely watch Spiderman 3 next week without any remorse.

My two paper classes are Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Family Law: Best Interest of the Child. For CRT, I'm writing on the lack of black participants in the criminal justice system. Thus, the lack of black cops, black prosecutors, black judges, and black jurors. I want to know what effect does this have on our justice system. In the Family Law paper, I want to explore the Best Interest of the child standard in regards to alienation of affection on the child.

Wish me luck. See you at the movies.

Each One Teach One

Thanks to my Juvenile Rights Clinic, I had the opportunity to teach a class this morning at Brighton High School. Although I fought with Catalina tooth and nail to excuse myself from teaching, I really loved the experience. The students were great and asked really poignant questions. The topic of the class was about juries. The students learned about the role of the jury, voir dire, and deliberations. If you want to view my lesson plan, click "Here" for my outline.

p.s.
I will never doubt Catalina again.

Heritage Dinner '07

Last night was BLSA's Heritage Dinner, where the Black students at BC Law celebrate the 3Ls for their hard work and dedication to the black community. As the historian, my job was to present a slide show of the year events. But, since the tech people were being difficult, I didn't get a chance to reveal the slide show.
However, we still had a good time at the dinner and I'm going to try and present the slide show at the last BLSA meeting.

Law Prom / Election

Sorry guys but I didn't win the election for LSA President. It was a tough race and but I came up short. I just want to thank everyone for voting for me and I wish Adam the best of luck next year.

As far as the Law Prom, Tisha and I had a good time but we thought last year was better. The live band was good but they slacked off for the last hour playing only oldies and dance music. I want to thank Josh and Meredith for showing us a good time.
You can check out more pictures of the Law Prom in my picture link.

Law Prom

Get ready to go back to High school. BC Law is having their annual law prom on Friday. This year is suppose to be bigger and better than last year because BC Law is celebrating their 75 year anniversary.

Tisha and I are ready to dance the night way on Friday so we hope to see everyone there. I will post some pictures on the blog next week.

Thank You For Supporting Me

Since this is the last night of Campaigning, I want to give a final push for your vote on Thursday and Friday The most important thing that I learned during law school and this campaign is that: it's not what you know but who you know. Now that the candidates emerged with their ideas, we get a chance to see who is really making things happen on campus. My hope is that whoever wins the election, use these resources to make positive changes on campus.
Personally, having access to people who make great websites and promote great events can only enhance the school's quality of life. What I would bring to the table is someone who can connect all these great resources (as well as my own) to produce something great for BC Law. I would organize new committees to help develop great websites and help promote great trips for law students. One issue that I talked about today during the candidate forum, was connecting the law school with the main campus. I would do this by harnessing the connections of the Double Eagles but take it further by attempting to develop "Super Fan Law Students" T-shirts or having more sporting events.
Thus, if you put your trust in the "3C" system, I promise to do everything in my power to improve the quality of life at BC Law. I basically want to be a connector and a promoter of all things that are great about our school.

Branden Brooks

p.s.
It's been a great ride and I thank you for supporting me.
Don't forget to vote.