Academic Calendar Reminder.  In observance of Dr. King's Birthday, there will be no classes on Monday, January 21.

Spring 2002 Initial Reading Assignments.  Initial assignments for many Spring 2002 courses are linked to this page.

Spring 2002 Classroom Assignments. Classroom assignments for Spring courses are posted in the front lobby.

Spring 2002 Schedule Changes.  A list of additions and other changes to the Spring schedule is linked to this page.

Spring 2002 Trial Advocacy Section Assignments.  Assignments for the Spring 2002 sections of Trial Advocacy 1 and Trial Advocacy 2 are linked to this page.

Spring 2002 Final Exams.  The final exam schedule for the Spring semester is linked to this page.
The Student Handbook requires that you take your finals at the times scheduled, even if you have two exams in a row, or one at 6:00 p.m. and another at 8:30 a.m. the next morning.  Absent extraordinary circumstances, the only exception is if you have three exams scheduled consecutively (which rarely happens) or two exams scheduled at the same time.  If you believe you have an exam conflict or other circumstance justifying the rescheduling of an exam (see Student Handbook sections 7.2 and 7.3), please contact me.

Bar Registration for First-Year Students. First-year students who plan to take the Illinois Bar Examination after graduation should register with the Illinois bar examiners.  Registration packets are available in the Registrar’s office.  The registration materials must be postmarked by March 1, 2002. The forms and instructions are also available on the bar examiners' web site: http://www.ibaby.org/.  Because the forms are now available online, the bar examiners have provided us with fewer application packets than in past years. We will distribute them as long as supplies last. Although you are not required to register as a first-year student, the advantage of doing so is that you will avoid paying a late fee of $250 imposed on those who register at any point after March 1 of their first year.  If you are uncertain whether you intend to practice in Illinois, you may want to consider waiting to register and paying the late fee should you eventually decide to take the Illinois bar exam.  The application form is very comprehensive and requires you to provide a significant amount of background information, some of which may be difficult to remember or obtain.  I suggest that, if you do plan to register by the March deadline, you pick up an application as soon as they are available and begin working on it. If you have any questions about the application materials, you may call the Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar at 217/522-5917.

All information you disclose on the bar registration application should be consistent with answers to questions on your Application for Admission to the law school.  Please note, however, that the bar registration application asks for a considerable amount of information that you were not asked to provide on our Application for Admission.  You only need to be concerned about the consistency of your answers for questions asked on both forms.  You can amend your Application for Admission, if necessary, by addressing a letter to me setting forth the details of the omission or misrepresentation and the reason for it.

First-year students who think they may practice in another state should contact the bar examiners office in that state as soon as possible to determine their registration requirements.  Booklets with the addresses and phone numbers of state bar examiners offices are available for you to consult in the Registrar’s office and in my office. 

July 2002 Illinois Bar Application. The July 2002 Illinois bar applications are available in the Registrar's office.  Applications must be postmarked by February 1, 2002.  The forms and instructions are also available on the bar examiners' web site: http://www.ibaby.org/.  Because the forms are now available online, the bar examiners have provided us with fewer application packets than in past years. We will distribute them as long as supplies last. Please note:  Even if you registered with the bar examiners as a first-year student, you must still file a final application by February 1. If you did not register during your first year, you will need a separate application packet, which contains both the registration application and the final application. Please be sure that you ask for the correct application packet. If you have any questions about the application materials, you may call the Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar at 217/522-5917.

The law school sends a “Certificate of Dean of Law School Proof of Legal Education” to the Illinois bar examiners for every student who graduates in May, so you may discard the one included in the application materials. Please be sure to file an Application for Graduation so that we will know you plan to graduate in May.

All information you disclose on the bar application should be consistent with answers to questions on your Application for Admission to the law school.  Please note, however, that the bar application asks for a considerable amount of information that you were not asked to provide on our  Application for Admission.  You only need to be concerned about the consistency of your answers for questions asked on both forms.  You can amend your Application for Admission, if necessary, by addressing a letter to me setting forth the details of the omission or misrepresentation and the reason for it.

Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (MPRE).  The MPRE is required for admission to the bars of most jurisdictions, including Illinois.  The exam is administered in March, August, and November each year. You may take the exam after you have completed the equivalent of two full academic years of law school, i.e., after you have completed two-thirds of the academic requirements for the J.D. degree. Applications for the next exam, on March 9, 2002, are available in the Registrar's office.  The deadline for applying for the March exam is January 29, 2002 (the late deadline is February 14).

Joke of the Week.  A guy goes into a bar and says, "Give me a drink before the trouble starts."  The bartender gives him a drink.  After the guy finishes the drink, he says again, "Give me a drink before the trouble starts."  This happens a couple of more times, and finally the bartender asks, "When is the trouble going to start?"  The guy responds, "The trouble starts as soon as you realize I don't have any money."