Resources
General Academic Achievement in Law School
(Time Management, Outlining, Study Skills, and Exam Preparation)
Books
Dennis J. Tonsing, 1000 Days to the Bar But the Practice of Law Begins Now: How to Achieve Your Personal Best in Law School (2003)
Michael Hunter Schwartz, Expert Learning for Law Students (2005)
Herbert N. Ramy, Succeeding in Law School (2006)
Helene Shapo & Marshall Shapo, Law School Without Fear: Strategies for Success (2d ed. 2002)
Rita K. Stropus & Charlotte D. Taylor, Bridging the Gap Between College and Law School: Strategies for Success (2001)
Carolyn J. Nygren, Starting Off Right in Law School (1997)
Kimm Alayne Walton & Lazar Emanuel, Strategies and Tactics for the First Year Law Student (2004)
Shana Connell Noyes & Henry S. Noyes, Acing Your First Year of Law School: The Ten Steps to Success You Won’t Learn in Class (1999)
Ann L. Iijima, The Law Student’s Pocket Mentor: From Surviving to Thriving (2007)
Websites
Learning Law: General Resources for the Study of Law (Prof. Barbara Glesner Fines, Missouri-Kansas City)
Online Academic Support Program for Law Students
Study Skills and Outlining Workshop Handout (Brooklyn)
Weekly Schedule Planning Handout (word) (UC Berkeley – Boalt Hall)
Outlining: An Introduction (word) (UC Berkeley – Boalt Hall)
Outlining: For Open-Book Exams (word) (UC Berkeley – Boalt Hall)
Outlining: For Closed-Book Exams (word) (UC Berkeley – Boalt Hall)
Do’s and Don’ts of Exam Preparation (pdf) (Chicago-Kent)
Getting Answers to Questions About Exams (pdf) (Chicago-Kent)
Sample Exam Study Schedule (pdf) (Chicago-Kent)
Learning From Experience: How to Interpret Your Exam Results and Move Ahead (pdf) (Chicago-Kent)
Outline Bank (UC Berkeley – Boalt Hall)
Using Commercial Study Aids Effectively (pdf) (Idaho)
Learning and Remembering Material (pdf) (Idaho)
Outlining a Course (pdf) (Idaho)
Tips for Organizing an Effective Study Group (Hofstra)
Time Management Tips (Texas Tech)
Learning Styles
Websites
VARK: Visual, Aural, Reading/writing, Kinesthetic learning styles questionnaire (helps you understand how you best absorb information)
Index of Learning Styles inventory (helps you understand how you best organize and process information during learning)
Taking Exams
Books
Richard Michael Fischl & Jeremy Paul, Getting to Maybe: How to Excel on Law School Exams (1999)
Suzanne Darrow-Kleinhaus, Mastering the Law School Exam: A Practical Blueprint for Preparing and Taking Law School Exams (2007)
Charles R. Calleros, Law School Exams: Preparing and Writing to Win (2007)
Websites
Exam Skills Workshop Handout (Brooklyn)
Taking a Law School Examination Handout (word) (UC Berkeley – Boalt Hall)
Do’s and Don’ts of Exam Taking (pdf) (Chicago-Kent)
Multiple Choice Test Strategies (pdf) (Chicago-Kent)
The Basics of American Law Exams Handout (for international students) (pdf) (Chicago-Kent)
How to Approach and Take a Law School Exam (pdf) (USC, hosted by Harvard)
Writing Law Examinations (Yale)
CALI Lessons on Legal Writing and Law School Exams
(email for a password to set up an account on CALI )
Reading, Note-Taking (Including Case Briefing), and Class Participation
Books
Ruth Ann McKinney, Reading Like a Lawyer: Time-Saving Strategies for Reading Law Like an Expert (2005)
Websites
List of Common Abbreviations to Use While Taking Notes (word) (UC Berkeley – Boalt Hall)
How to Read a Judicial Opinion (pdf) (Prof. Orin Kerr)
Case Briefing Workshop Handout (Brooklyn)
Sample Case Brief – Contracts (word) (UC Berkeley – Boalt Hall)
Sample Case Brief – Criminal (word) (UC Berkeley – Boalt Hall)
Sample Case Brief – Property (word) (UC Berkeley – Boalt Hall)
Sample Case Brief – Torts (word) (UC Berkeley – Boalt Hall)
Tips on Getting the Most Out of Your Classes (pdf) (Chicago-Kent)
Active Case Reading (pdf) (Idaho)
Case Briefing Basics (pdf) (Idaho)
Stress Management
Websites
Law School and Stress (Missouri-Kansas City)
Managing Stress (pdf) (Idaho)
Stress Management Links (Suffolk)
Grammar, Punctuation, Style & Usage / Legal Writing Basics
Books
Black’s Law Dictionary (Bryan A. Garner, Ed.)
Bryan A. Garner, A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage
Bryan A. Garner, A Dictionary of Modern American Usage (2003)
Bryan A. Garner, The Redbook: A Manual on Legal Style (2d ed. 2006)
Martha Kolln, Rhetorical Grammar: Grammatical Choices, Rhetorical Effects (5th ed. 2006)
Richard C. Wydick, Plain English for Lawyers (5th ed. 2005)
John Bronsteen, Writing a Legal Memo (2006)
Bryan A. Garner, The Elements of Legal Style (2d ed. 2002)
Bryan A. Garner, Legal Writing in Plain English: A Text With Exercises (2001)
Websites
BLS Courses Recommended Readings Page
How to Write Good Legal Stuff (Prof. Eugene Volokh & Prof. J. Alexander Tanford)
Handout About “IRAC” Writing Structure (word) (UC Berkelely – Boalt Hall)
Rule Synthesis Example – Contracts (word) (UC Berkelely – Boalt Hall)
Rule Synthesis Example – Torts (word) (UC Berkelely – Boalt Hall)
Legal Logic, Reasoning, and Argument
Books
Hon. Ruggero J. Aldisert, Logic for Lawyers: A Guide to Clear Legal Thinking (3d ed. 1997)
J.S. Covington, Jr., The Structure of Legal Argument and Proof: Cases, Materials, and Analyses (2d ed. 2006)
Wilson Huhn, The Five Types of Legal Arguments (2002)
Richard K. Neumann Jr., Legal Reasoning and Legal Writing: Structure, Strategy, and Style (2005)