law schools
THE FIFTH YEARS ARE LEAVING
The fifth years are leaving:
The mooters are leaving, the debaters are leaving,
Their trophies, proudly in the library sit,
Smiling at the newer faces.
The researchers are leaving, the writers are leaving.
Their books and papers in the glass cupboard
Tell us of the words they wrote...
Their words tell us of the lives they lived.
The cricketers are leaving, the footballers are leaving.
That hundred is remembered, that goal is remembered.
That ovation is remembered...
An ovation they will always receive.
An LPO owner will get cracking at his work,
Associates at Amarchand will descend to various cities,
Clerks in the Supreme Court will all start anew...
They all did their jobs brilliantly.
Boyfriends are leaving, girlfriends are leaving.
Some together (would-be husband and wives),
Some broken! Ah! An exile...
Their kisses are leaving; the affection still has after effects.
Trying to capture five years
In a measly, mawkish, FB statuses...
Boys are crying, coz they are leaving
Five years of memories, in a building, six storied.
A flight is cancelled,
“I’ll go a day later”
Girls are leaving; days are fleeting...
Fifth years are leaving.
-Legal Poet
Crib means ‘to bicker’, says my dictionary.
NLS cribs about its hectic schedule: the trimester system which doesn’t allow them to lead a sane college life. NUJS cribs how claustrophobic the 4-5 acre campus can get. NALSAR cribs how the college is in a village, far from the city and gets mundane at times.
This cribbing has been going on for ages when LST’s forum used to be a battle-field. Many a time law aspirants are misled by such debates. I pity them and detest the anonymous posters of false, advertorial comments.
The two biggest cribs are: ‘my NLU stronger than thou’ and ‘Non-NLU students are given a biased treatment’. I humbly ask, why? I suggest you hit your heads against a bric(k). It even sounds anti-semantical to crib. Or maybe heed to this advice, as you should to Bahz Luhrman’s ‘Wear Sunscreen’.
Advice no. 1: There are no right decisions. You have to make your decisions right.
Advice no. 2: Don’t say ‘NO’ to ‘what is’.
In NLS ‘there is’ the trimester system. The academic rigour is what makes NLS, the law school. At NUJS ‘there is’ a small campus. But then the entire posh and happening Salt Lake is your home. And ‘NALSAR is’ far from the city. But with 400 college kids at one beautiful place how can it ever get boring?
Now let me take care of the two biggest cribs through a poem and multiple post scripts. See what God has to say on ‘who is the strongest’. (BTW the bolden part in the poem is by God; the holy man whose advice you can’t ignore).
Who is the strongest of all the beings?
One day I just tried to see
As to who is the strongest
Of all the beings?
I called the Elephant and thus spake he
“Oh! Not me! The Lion! The Lion!
He is my King!”
Off he went and the Lion came
With his foot long claws
And a big, bushy mane.
“Of course not me! Though I’m the King
The Elephant I fear.
His trunk, his tusks! Oh my dear”
Bewildered and confused I sat in my room,
“Ummm...Perhaps the snake
Big and Cruel”!?
The big black snake, his voice he lent
“Oh! The Mongoose thanks he is in Kent
Or he in the bushes, means my death”.
Over my life I pondered and pondered
Reached God and there I thundered
“Oh! God tell me! Who is the strongest of all the beings”?
In a voice so unearthly.
In an ambience so heavenly.
The lord began to answer:
(Now, the part below
Do slowly you read.
Here is where God
His message he reveals).
Where are you son?
"Heaven", I answered.
What’s the time son?
"Seven", I answered.
The sun had gone down,
The clouds were yellow.
The Lord had gotten up,
And I turned mellow.
See this map here...
Where does it lead?
Where? I asked, Your lordship
Where you walk towards, he answered.
(Read the above para. I am trying to sound profound J).
PS 1- Where you walk towards. Yeah! It doesn’t matter in which law school you are, but what you end up being once you have completed your college that does. I know students in ‘weak’ law schools emerge strong coz they walk on the right paths and vice versa.
2- Here is another useful analogy- There is a 25 floored building. The terrace signifies the highest point a lawyer can reach. All of us begin from the floor. Students of the top NLUs start on a lift. Others have to take the stairs.
If you take the stairs leisurely you will be left behind. If you are aggressive about the ascend you will be as quick as the NLU guys. And well, law schools can only take you up to a certain floor; say the 5th floor. After that, it depends on how good you are at your work.
3- My animals are humble. Law students, especially when anonymous are arrogant. Otherwise there is a nice healthy rivalry among these colleges.
HIGH (in) COURT: A Drunk Mooter Prays For A Flowing Stream of Fun
If it may please the honourable court
I would like to proclaim:
The counsel is not ‘feelin' well,
He swears in God's name.
The night before was a trail too long,
Singing li’l life's crazy song
While each and every bit of me
Went 'round Kolkata feeling so Bong.
Your Lordship, hic! I may be wrong
But what is wrong with a first year
Who has hit the gong?
Looking at the memo, a night passes through my mind,
Of all the scenes in Kolkata, in my soul, in my life.
That night was surely the truest bliss,
Like my life giving me a midnight kiss
A kiss that drove me high
And left the judges with a wry,
Smugly, smile on their faces.
But now here is the point, where I plead, for the court
To give a heed, as the counsel gradually proceeds
To the prayer, of all those things, he humanly needs:
A flowing stream of fun; a sky shining with life;
A life without any reasons, and letting destiny to decide;
For till the day comes, I would continue to stress,
Upon this point until your Lordship agrees to be your 'HIGH' ness.
PS- This is not by me. This is by Pipo...my friend.
Putting together a law school conference is hard work. Increasingly law students are taking matters into their own hands and doing it, as the pay-offs for the school and students are tangible.
ICICI Bank has recruited six law students from three campuses to start in its in-house team next year and it is set to hire from at least another five law schools soon.
Two students from NLSIU Bangalore and NALSAR Hyderabad have won the prestigious Rhodes scholarship for 2010 that will enable them to pursue a law course of their choice at the University of Oxford.
One of the most (in)famous Rhodes Scholars is no doubt William Jefferson Clinton (pictured), who of course neither inhaled nor graduated in his time at Oxford.
The names of the latest batch of five Indian Rhodes Scholars were finalised on the eve of 12 October 2009 in Mumbai. As usual, students from the law dominated the list, with Aditya Swarup of NALSAR Hyderabad and V Niranjan of NLSIU Bangalore sweeping the field.
In India, out of hundreds of applicants only a few are selected and invited for a final round of interview. The number of finalists for this year was 18.
The scholarship programme requires the applicants to meet strict eligibility criteria laid down by the Rhodes Trust, which looks for qualities of moral and intellectual strength in a candidate. Cigar, Mr President, sir?
A preliminary round of interviews is then held for successful candidates in the regional centers of Mumbai (Pune), Delhi, Kolkata and Bangalore. This is then followed by a final interview.
NLSIU's Niranjan says the grant of a Rhodes scholarship had been the fulfillment of a long-standing dream of his to study at Oxford.
"I hope to pursue a career in litigation in India, and an education at Oxford is quite inspiring from that perspective, given Oxford's history. The Rhodes Scholarship is something everyone dreams of and my application process was a combination of excitement and apprehension," Niranjan told Legally India by email.
He writes: "I am given to understand that there are about 600 applicants for the Rhodes from India, and about 120 from law. India has five Rhodes scholarships. I applied in July, and was informed that I'd been shortlisted for the preliminary interview to be held in Mumbai on September 5, 2009.
"That interview panel was chaired by Professor V.S. Chauhan, Secretary, Rhodes Trust India, and also had eminent Rhodes scholars like Mr Nandan Kamath and Ms Menaka Guruswamy. The days following that interview were quite trying, as I was nervously awaiting the results. I was told two weeks later that I'd made it to the final interview, which was hosted yesterday at Mumbai.
"The final interview is quite an experience. The eminence of the interview panel makes it a wonderful process to go through, and yesterday's panel was chaired by Mr. Ratan Tata, the Chairman of the Rhodes Scholarship Selection Committee. Other panelists included Mr. Rahul Gandhi, Mr. Nandan Kamath, Mr. Sanjeev Sanyal, Ms. Rakhi Mehra and others. A Rhodes tradition is that a dinner is hosted by the selection committee the day before the interview, and this is a great chance to meet and interact with persons as eminent and accomplished as these.
"The interview itself lasted about 20 minutes, and was a very engaging process - I was questioned on the personal statement I had written, articles I have published, my career goals, accomplishments thus far, etc. Once again, waiting for results was a nerve-wracking experience, but this time the results were declared on the same day, which made it mercifully shorter!
"I couldn't quite believe it when my name was announced, and in truth, I still can't - I think it will take time for this to sink in but I'm more delighted than I've ever been. The Rhodes Scholarship is more than just a scholarship - it is an institution that is filled with world leaders spanning generations, and to be awarded the scholarship is both humbling and a reminder that there is so much to accomplish in one's field, which in my case is law.
"I can't find words to express my gratitude to the people who made this possible for me - first and foremost, my parents, my Professors at the National Law School, some of whom were my referees, law school alumni who wrote references for me, Mr. Arvind Datar, Senior Advocate, who gave me a chance to intern under him and wrote a reference for me, one of my schoolteachers, a couple of inspirational and wonderful seniors who have been guiding me right from when I entered law school, a few very good friends in law school and many other people.”
Have a look on the ever-helpful Wikipedia for some more background on the Rhodes scholarship.
Details of procedures in India are given on the web site of Rhodes Scholarships India.
Law minister Veerappa Moily has reiterated his stance on liberalisation and vowed to set up four super-charged "law schools of excellence" throughout India.
Luthra & Luthra has made offers to five further students from National Law School of India University (NLSIU) Bangalore after what is likely to be its last campus recruitment visit for the year.
ILS Law College Pune students have started up a corporate law forum last week hoping to foster discussion and awareness of the area and improve students' career prospects.
National University of Juridicial Sciences Kolkata (NUJS) has agreed to decrease its tuition fees by Rs 5,000 per year, although students are still hoping for a larger decrease to be agreed by the finance committee.
Amarchand Mangaldas Mumbai has completed its student hires for the year after making pre-placement offers to nine law students from NUJS Kolkata last week.
The firm's latest offers also included its first hire of a law student who is blind.
Picking interships is probably the most important step in a budding legal career, particularly as CVs without internship experience are likely to end up in the bin. An increasing number of firms are also beginning to exclusively recruit from their batch of interns.
However, applying for internships is also a potential minefield. We will attempt to deal with some common questions.
Hidayatullah National Law University Raipur (HNLU) students returned for classes today to their new 70-acre campus, ending four years of strife with university officials that included protests, agitation and hunger strikes.
NLSIU Bangalore will close for 10 days in the wake of the H1N1 influenza virus strain, following 20 deaths in Karnataka and the temporary closure of several other educational institutions in the state.
NUJS Kolkata has extended the tuition fees payment deadline after students refuse to pay in protest against the fee-hike, which was announced only several weeks before the start of this term.
The intra-university mooting season has started at many colleges this month, with a select few hoping to qualify for the most prestigious domestic and international moot courts. And judging by track records and past performance, Indian mooters stand a good chance of going far and wide.
For most lawyers it has been business as usual this week despite much of India descending into swine flu panic, today's streets being awash with Hindu god Lord Krishna's birthday celebrations and Independence Day national holidays tomorrow.
Deals still need to get done, after all, and there are plenty of sides to be acting for.
Jindal Global Law School (JGLS) wants to redefine India's academic study of law. Its ambitions are high but so is the price of admission – the college has costlier tuition than any other major law school in the country.
Legally India has asked JGLS' founding dean and vice-chancellor of O.P. Jindal Global University to explain the law school's fees and its vision.
A new university course offering a qualification in legal process outsourcing (LPO) has been launched in a barrage of acronyms.
The course is a joint venture between Indian legal training providers/recruiters Rainmaker and the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) School of Law.
The Rs.18,000 one-year on-line taught course is snappily entitled P.G.D.L.P.O. (or Post-Graduate Diploma in Legal Process Outsourcing, to give it its full name).
According to a press release published on LPO blog Legally Yours, the syllabus will cover: "Professional English Proficiency (“PEP”), Virtual Intelligence Methods (“VIM”), Legal Education and Proficiency (“LEAP”), Skills, Personal Effectiveness and Enterprise Development (“SPEED”)".
Catchy! (even though VIM's long-form is slightly confusing).
Apparently, according to the press release, 500 students have applied already for the first semester and the University is going to roll out a second intake in August to meet demand.
This programme could very well catch on and it could also be something that LPO providers facing high staff attrition have been clamouring for.
The main question will be whether law graduates will really be up for spending another year studying and losing themselves in an acronym jungle.
Photo by vlima.com