Occupy Movement

The Occupy movement is fascinating me on so many levels; first as a amateur sociologist, second as a student of law, and finally, as a fed up citizen of the United States.  I was a sociology minor in undergrad, which strangely prepared me for the study of law.  But it is at times like this that I truly am amazed at how systems push back and forth against each other.

While studying this subject, I focused on social movements and protests... Every radical protest in the 1900's started with the militants and the college students.  They made ridiculous demands.  Yet, the movements grew and as that happened, the average citizen joined and the demands became reasonable.  Size has everything to do with a successful protest, but also, persistence... especially if what you are protesting is the government.  So far, it looks as if Occupy is here to stay.

The student of law looks to the first amendment.  Yes there is a right to protest, but what and how far can this go?  What about when the protestors right violates one of mine:  say like walking peacefully through my favorite park or driving down a road.  What then?

Early yesterday morning, the city of Portland arrested protestors that had shut down Main Street.  Many were outraged.  But the question remains, whose rights are more important?

This is interesting times for sure.  Will Occupy stick around long enough to become a powerful voice, rather than the irritant it is right now?  Only time will tell......

You Should Teach....

That has been the common statement to me lately.  Oh, don't worry, I still plan to practice law.... but I need something to pay the bills in the mean time.  To be honest, I ache because I miss school so much.  I have been considering going back to school to get an MA then a PhD in something.... yet when someone said teach, I thought "Ya, that might fill the void."  So, I am going to keep applying for adjunct positions.  I think there is something valuable to be had by sowing into others lives.

Silence needs to be broken....

Yes, it does.  I haven't been talking a lot.  Mostly because I am disappointed in myself.  See, I have taken the bar a few times and have not been able to pass.  Latest example is this past July.  Results came out and again, I did not pass... this time the points for not passing were HUGE.  Not only that, but the fact of the matter is that the MBE (multiple choice questions) continues to be my stumbling block.

Now the MBE has become a monster in my head.  I was in good company.  Two of my good friends, both tops students in the class, were right along side me, except they did pass this last time.  I don't begrudge them.  But I have to wonder what the heck???? I bought a book, which has prompted me to write this post.  The book is written by a professor at Penn State who is speaking to those that have a hard time passing the MBE.  I never considered myself a high risk test taker.  But he says I am.  Why?  I am a single parent.  That means that I cannot cut off my life for the 8 weeks necessary to study for the bar.  I can't.  It's not possible.  So how do I rebound from that?

I don't know.  I wish I had some simple answers for everyone so I can pass and then pass on the solution for you.  As I navigate my way through this, I will share. 

The funny thing is:  If we gave only multiple choice answers, and twenty minutes to answer that question with one of those answers, and no research available -- in the real world of lawyering, it would be called malpractice.

This isn't about what you know... it's about whether you can pass a standardized test.

More money does not mean better product

It's taken me 36 years to figure this out.... just because a product is more money, does not mean it is better.  For the past 4 years I have battled adult acne like you would not believe.  I have been embarrassed by breakouts and have tried everything. I have spent endless money on expensive products which Clinique ladies and MAC artists have assured me will clear all up.  Then I went to try all organic at ALBA and spent close to 40.00 for a months worth of product.  I even tried proactive...... spent the 40 dollars there too.

And then this past month I did some research.  Seems that most women my age do something fatal.  We listen to those "makeup" experts who tell us to wash our face twice a day.  That ends up doing two things:  1) making your face produce more oil because it drys everything out, 2) makes for more acne.

After researching drugstore options, I ran across an article by a dermatologist.  They recommend Purpose.  5.99 for the bottle.  Non-soap, no oil.  Wash once a day.  The Dr went on to say that it is important to exfoliate to clean all pores out.  She recommended a 2.79 bottle of Queen Helene Mint Julip exfoliation product.  So, for the past 2 weeks I have faithfully been using these products.  I finish with a non-comegenic, oil free, moisturizer that I already had.  And guess what?  No more acne.  And as a bonus all the red spots left behind from breakouts are fading too. 

What does this have to do with practicing law, law school, opening a practice?  We all know that if your face is a mess, you feel a mess.  I no longer feel a mess in this area.  I have a glowing, healthy look to my face.  And I am ready to face any opposing counsel or judge when the time comes!

Business Plan: Mission Statement

As I am writing the business plan, the biggest thing that I am struggling with is the mission statement.  This should sum up your business neatly with what you are about and plan to do.  I spent the whole weekend fine tuning mine, running it by people, figuring out what core values I want my firm to hold.  I decided that my whole model will be based upon scripture in a round about way.  In Isaiah 1:17, the bible defines justice for us.  My model is going to paraphrase it to:  do right, seek justice, help the oppressed, defend the cause, and fight for rights.  All that  I do, all that I promise will be based upon those words.  If it doesn't fit in with that model, it's not me.

If you are thinking you might open your own practice, think carefully about this.  Think about what you will put out there for the world to think of your business.  Choose wisely, choose carefully. 

The kids....

My practice is going to focus on family law and disputes.  I know this is a hard area of the law, I don't pretend that it will not be.  The hardest part of this is that I am finding out how much parents use their children as weapons.  Over the last three years, I have had several friends that have gone through a divorce with children involved.  Here is what I have learned:

1.  Petty complaints abound.  That's right.  These complaints are numerous.  A few of my friends have new "legal" (what they think at least) complaints every few days.  They think that the court will intervene.  I use to play counselor to these (they psych kind, not legal kind) and entertain each of the complaints.  But that is NOT the way to deal with it.

2.  Ex wants to control morals.  Yep.  The big thing, more so with moms than dads, is that pesky new girlfriend around the kids.  And unfortunately, some ex's have a revolving door of new hookups and dates.

3.  "I just want him/her to stop being a selfish person and put the kids first."  What can I do to make the other parent, parent?  It is as if the parent believes that there is a motion to file in order to make someone stop being selfish.  Sorry, if your ex does not put your children first, (s)he is never, ever going to.  A court can do nothing about this -- and the truth is neither can you.

Bottom line:  I'm not an attorney yet.  I don't give legal advice to these friends.  I actually refer them to speak to their lawyer AFTER I ask this question:  What is your goal/objective in filing a new motion?  That is, what do you want the court to do?  Inevitably it comes down to something that I want to drive home emotionally and logically to them.......................  They will say things like:  I want him to be a dad, or, I want him to ______.  Then I say this:  No, that's not something a court likely enforce -- that's morality, it seems.  So what do you want the court to do?  The court can ordering parenting classes, or issue a noncompliance contempt order, or require supervised visitation in severe cases -- so what do you want that is within the power of the court??? When asked that they pause.  See the really GOOD parents realize quickly that the outcome means their ex being further alienated from the child's life and the child being hurt even more.  They stop and think about it.  Or, you get the truth:  I don't care, I just want him/her to hurt.

So I have learned quickly something I will apply in my practice:  What do you want the court to do?  What is your goal/objective? 

Yeah, no wonder attorney's are referred to as counselor's.

Trust Accounts....

One thing that the bar is SUPER crazy strict about is definitely those pesky trust accounts.  And as a law student, this is not something that we think about too often.  We are told about the need for a trust accounts and taught a few little things about it.  For instance, in Oregon, any interest earned off the accounts is paid into a fund that goes to legal aid. 

For me, after the fiasco's I have had with my personal banking and customer service, I am definitely going with a local bank.  I want to go be able to go to a bank when I have an issue and deal with someone face to face.

I was able to call the bar today and find out which bank pays the best interest rate off the trusts.  I narrowed my choice down to two banks.  Then from there, I networked out to other solo practitioner's asking their good and bad experiences with the banks.  I think I have narrowed it down. 

I am nervous, unsettled, excited, itching to get going..... all the dominoes are falling into place.