By Dan Rosenthal '10

SBA President

The air is getting crisp, the leaves are changing color and you are spending far too much time trying to come up with a witty Halloween costume. Yes, it is October in Charlottesville! By the time you read this article, the Fall Picnic will have come and gone and the Yankee’s will, God willing, be on the march towards a 27th World Series title.

October is also a great month for events at the Law School. Here is a rundown of some of the happenings in and around the school over the next week.

As I have discussed in previous columns, the SBA has set a goal of providing 1,000 hours of public service for the Charlottesville community this school year. Accordingly, the SBA Public Service Committee is organizing our second Public Service Day of the year on Saturday October 17. Students will have the opportunity to: help build a house for a family in need with Habitat for Humanity, assist at soccer practice with the Special Olympics, lend a hand with repair work at a local group home for people with special needs with Arc of Charlottesville or cook dinner and socialize with children and their families who are staying at the Ronald McDonald House while being treated in local hospitals. If you are interested in participating in one of these activities, please email Peggy Nicholson at pn5z@virginia.edu.

Next week, the various Bar Review companies will be coming to the Law School to sign students up for their Bar Review courses. Tables will be set up in Hunton & Williams Hall throughout the week. The SBA will also be sponsoring an information session for 3Ls that will discuss key deadlines and information about the various state bar exams. This information session is tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, October 21 at 11:30 a.m. in Caplin Auditorium.

If you are reading this on Friday, make sure you come to Rock-a-PILA tonight at Wild Wing Cafe. It should be a memorable evening, and how can you go wrong when judging your fellow classmates’ musical talents?

Finally, the SBA Graduation Committee is planning to hold the 3L Bonfire on Tuesday, October 27. There will be more details coming soon.

That’s about it for now. Got an idea for an issue you would like me to address in an upcoming column? Stop by the SBA office (SL 196e) and let me know. Have a great weekend.

By Dan Rosenthal '10
SBA President

This week’s column is going to be slightly different than most. Normally I take this opportunity to give you a rundown of the various happenings in and around the Law School in the upcoming week. I am going to forego this routine in order to devote this week’s column to talk in greater detail about public service at our school. I promise to only stand on my soapbox for a moment or two.

None of us needs to be reminded of the great tradition of public service here at UVA Law. From Thomas Jefferson to Ted Kennedy, our school has always stood as an institution that takes its civic obligations seriously. Those that have come before us have set a lofty bar for each and every one of us, and it is necessary, from time to time, to assess whether we are doing everything we can to live up to these expectations. From involvement in student organizations to clinical work and everything in between, we should be proud of the culture of giving we have created here at the law school. Yet, unquestionably, there is much more work to be done.

So what else can we do? Well to start, we can each take ownership of the fact that we, as a law school and as individuals, have a larger role to play in helping those most in need in our communities.

At 1L orientation and subsequently during the Public Service Kickoff, I urged those in attendance to increase their commitment to pro bono assistance. In particular, I challenged the Class of 2012 to commit to graduating with the highest number of Pro Bono Challenge recipients in the history of the law school. I know this will not be easy but after seeing nearly one third of your class participate in the first SBA Public Service Day in August, I am convinced that you can and will accomplish this if you set your minds to it.

We, the SBA, are also committed to redoubling our efforts in this regard. You have probably already received an email from me describing the D-22 silent auction that will be taking place this week. Much of the proceeds of this auction will go to PILA in order to fund summer public interest work for 1L and 2L students. This year, we have decided to add something new. For the first time, we will be awarding the right to purchase one D-22 permit next fall to the 1L or 2L student who logs the most pro bono hours over the course of this school year.

Of course, a better parking spot or some other type of recognition is not the driving force that will push us to go out and commit ourselves to this type of work. There are clearly far more important motivations at play. Yet I believe that a public acknowledgment of the importance of public service, albeit a small one, speaks volumes about the values of this law school and the students who attend it.

By Dan Rosenthal '10
SBA President

If you are like me and you have been trying to avoid acknowledging that finals exams are here again, (weren’t we just talking fall semester exams?) the fact that there is only one more week in the semester is a tough pill to swallow. But fear not, your friendly neighborhood SBA is here to assist you as you tackle your exams.

Need an outline to help you with your exam preparation? Have an outline that you believe is a work of art and should be admired by others? Visit the SBA Outline Bank at http://www.virginiasba.com/Eservices_ol.aspx. Since the Outline Bank is only as useful as the outlines it contains, I encourage you to take the time to browse through the outlines that are currently offered and submit your own as well. Come on, a well formatted outline is as close to an arts and crafts project as a law student gets; you know you want to share yours.

In the next few days, you will start to see “RESERVED” signs placed throughout the library, Scott Commons, the fishbowl, and the Slaughter Conference Rooms signaling that these areas are reserved for law students and legal research only, beginning Monday, April 20, and running through Friday, May 8. The library will have extended hours during this time and will be open from 6 a.m. - 2 a.m. on April 20 - May 8, except for Sundays, when it will open at 8 a.m. Please, don’t all scream for joy at once.

On a different note, a belated congratulations to Benjamin Holley and Lee Peifer for winning the 80th annual William Minor Lile Moot Court Competition. I’m sure it has got to feel nice to know that your names will be permanently ensconced on a wall in Slaughter Hall. I think the only way that I would be able to leave that type of lasting mark on the school is if I took a permanent marker and signed my name on one of the bathroom stalls in WB. In all seriousness, great job guys and I encourage all 1Ls to consider participating in the competition in the fall of next year. It really is a great experience to have, especially since you will (likely) not have to argue any cases involving windmills, the ADA, or medical arbitration agreements.

Good luck to all of you on your upcoming exams and, for all you brave 3Ls and daredevils out there, enjoy yourselves at Foxfield next weekend. Thanks for reading and have a great weekend.

I. BLSA had great success at competition.

II. Committee Chairs will be announced next Monday.

III. Appoint Jessica Childress for Student Council Representative Confirmed.

IV. SOSAC: allocating office space. Dan has picked 3 representatives, 1 from each class, to oversee the implementation of the process. Student Organizations need a chance to voice their concerns with the recommendations. Voted on ultimately by the SBA. Groups MUST meet deadlines.

V. Admitted Students Open House: Come to Thursday bbq. Come to SBA table.

VI. Committee Chair: Prior: every SBA Member should be on at least two committees.

VII. Career Services Town Hall Meeting: we want students to voice their concerns and have good communication with the career services folks.
3 major changes:
i. The calendar for interviews is moving up to August 12th—bigger firms coming earlier in August. The second week will be for other types of interviews.
ii. Going from 80% to 50% of prescreening slots.
iii. Changes to programming
Concerns: SBA needs to actively seek out information and concerns from peers. Students need to have confidence in Symplicity. Online tutorials would be helpful. No late grades.