Customer Reviews

Getting to Maybe: How to Excel on Law School Exams

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Having graduated with high honors from one of the top five law schools, I relied on several of these books to identify the appropriate approach to taking law school exams. I applied the approach as follows: (1) read only those assignments provided by the professor (ignore commercial outlines, etc.); (2) take extensive notes of everything the professor says in class (and do not write down any student comments or student answers to Socratic questions); (3) organize your notes of the professor's lectures into your own outline; (4) read the professor's prior exam files, including any student answers selected by the professor as "model answers"; and (5) practice taking the professor's old exams in the few days leading up to exam day. The rationale is that your professor will be looking for you to spot those issues that he or she views as important. The more of these issues you spot, the higher your exam grade will be. Ditch those commercial outlines and study group meetings. In addition to Getting to Maybe, you should also prepare for law school by conditioning yourself to what its competition will feel like. Two excellent books that accomplish this goal are Scott Turow's One L (Harvard in the 1970s) and Scott Gaille's The Law Review (2002 book about competition at The University of Chicago Law School).

This book saved my law school carreer. law school tests are notoriously ambigous. There are no right answers. Unfortunatly, there seems to be no help for students. One of the proscribed methods is the IRAC method (when you get to school you will learn this and this is not the time to write about it). This book gives you a different way of acheving success in the test. The book does criticize IRAC and offers its own way of handling the testing questions. "Getting To Maybe" is written by law professors and who would know more about passing their tests as well as how a professor thinks? The book is a well written philosophy on the test and the mistakes. The authors spend a great deal of time explaining their philosophy and it is helpfull for the second half of the book. The book shows the common test question mistakes and how to fix them. The book also provides sample tests with sample answers and explanations of why they are good answers. This is the best part of the book, a side by side comparison of good and bad answers which makes this book invaluable. Highly reccommended.

read before first year law school. Now having completed two years, I feel as though I gained nothing from this book. It is entirely unapplicable.

This book is in no small measure the reason that I am still in law school. I bombed the first year exams. After reading this book, and practicing the skills in it, my next set of exams were great. Just like the book says, Law school Profs do not teach what they test. The book lifts the "veil" of secrecy so that a student can do well on exams. The law schools should TEACH this book to every first year student.
Thanks

Who better to get advice on law exams from than two law professors, who also graduated at the top of Harvard Law's class? My grades have gone up and up since reading (and re-reading) this book. Anyone who goes to law school, especially where competition for grades is tight will benefit. The more you read it, the more you grasp the strategy. So don't get discouraged if you're a bit confused the first time. I'd recommend reading through this before you enter law school and at least once (maybe twice) a semester as you can squeeze in a few extra minutes. I've looked at every book about legal reasoning and taking law exams that I've been able to get my hands on and this book has the best system by far. It might not be the easiest system to understand (after all the easy road isn't always the best road in law school), but once you grasp it you'll be thankful.

I gave this book two stars for its discussion on addressing policy issues on the exam--this was helpful, indeed. It also gives good tips and provides answers to frequently asked questions on how to prepare--but this is standard advice you'll hear in any law school. Does this book provide a concrete strategy on handling a law school exam? No. In sum, it describes what is wanted on an exam, but doesn't come close to adequately showing students how to get to this "maybe." You are on your own...

I am a student at a top 5 law school. This book does not outline a specific system for taking exams, so if that is what you are looking for, look else where. What this book does provide is a good overview of the different types of gray areas that appear time and time again on exams. This will help you "spot the issues" and give you a feel for the kind of stuff your profs want to see written about come exam time. There are also plenty of general exam taking tips that area helpful. I have read many exam taking books, and this is the best of them. Read it early in the semester. It will help you focus on the important stuff in class and in the reading.

A very thorough, explicit, step-by-step guide to what law school professors want to see on your written exams. Very lucid, sometimes even witty. Most law schools still adhere to the Socratic, sink-or-swim method, in which students are kept in the dark about what's expected of them. As a result, many students are totally flummoxed and panic-stricken when exam time rolls around. Be sure to read this book just before you head off to law school; then read it again a couple of weeks before your first exam. If you follow the authors' advice, you are practically guaranteed good grades. Hey, you might even make the Law Review. It worked for me.

Other good books to read before heading off to law school:
Law 101, by Jay Feinman
Introduction to U.S. Legal System, by William Burnham
Planet Law School, by "Atticus Falcon"
The first two give a nice overview of the whole subject and will help you tie everything together. The last is an overcynical but very amusing description of the kind of mind games you're likely to encounter; it also contains the best study tips I've seen.

Also: If you have the time and money, enroll in an intensive paralegal training course before law school. I did, and it really saved my ass during 1L.

Last but definitely not least: Spend at least six months prepping HARD for the LSAT. Work your way through a good logic textbook (I recommend Copi's), study a good prep book (e.g., Jeff Kolby's), and practice on as many real LSATs as you can, under time-pressured conditions. It really pays off.

I'm a 1L and our first semester grades came out today. I am thanking Getting To Maybe, along with my hard work, for my GPA. This book will tell you HOW to answer exam questions so you don't waste time and points on the exam writing stuff you don't have to. I highly recommend Getting To Maybe, attending class, carefully reading your assignments, and judicious use of study aids to reinforce not replace your readings, to get those A's you deserve.:) And BRIEF first semester, at least for most of it: it really does help get the structure and legalese of judicial opinions into your head. Good luck everyone!!!! -Amy

I'm glad I bought this book.It gave me an understanding of legal reasoning and what law students go through.