Feb ZA - Whittier Law School

ZEALOUS ADVOCATE
FEBRUARY 2014
WHITTIER LAW SCHOOL
SPRING ISSUE 1
{in this issue}
2 About the EIC
3 Proud Poets Bring Home
the Award: Frederick
Douglass Moot Court
Competition
5 Welcome Back BBQ
7 International Child
Adoption
8 Making Your Dream
Come True
9 Life at Wallin & Klarich
10 State of the Union
Viewing Party
11 PILF CARES
12 Stella’s Food Corner
15 1Ls Speak Out
16 Upcoming Events
about the editor-in-chief:
Hi everyone, I’m Claire Chang, and I am proud to be the newly elected
Zealous Advocate Editor-in-Chief for Spring 2014.
As an ungraduated student at California State University, Long Beach, I
served as a student reporter for Daily 49’er. Upon earning my Journalism
and Communication Studies degrees, I was the senior contributing writer
Patch of Fountain Valley.
Currently, I am a second-year, the vice president of APALSA and a child
advocate at the Children’s Rights Clinic on campus. I am interested in
pursuing a practice in real property law.
I am originally from Taiwan, but moved to California in elementary school
and grew up in Orange County. I love outdoor activities, eating ice
cream, baking sweets and feeling the sun’s ray on my skin.
I am excited to be a part of Zealous Advocate this semester and look
forward to a great spring term with you all! For any questions, comments
or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me or flag me down in
the hallways.
Best Regards,
Claire Chang
Editor-in-Chief
[email protected]
Proud Poets Bring Home the Award
by Krystle White, 2L
Many people aren’t aware of the Frederick Douglass
Moot Court Competition. So, I’ll fill you in…
National Black Law Students Association, the largest
student run organization in the United States, operates this
competition. The program facilitates and promotes academic
excellence through brief writing, critical thinking, and oral
advocacy.
Each year, between 100-120 teams of Black law
students have the opportunity to compete in oral advocacy
competitions at the regional and national level, and connect
with attorneys and judges.
In 2004, Whittier Law School BLSA Chapter brought
home the second place trophy for best respondent brief. This
year, our school’s chapter chose to participate in the
competition, represented by James Drake, IV , 3L, and
Mykhal Ofili, 2L.
The first round, the Western Regional competition,
took place in Sacramento, CA, where seven teams, including
University of San Diego Law School, UC Davis School of
Law, Santa Clara Law School and University of Southern
California School of Law, competed along with Whittier Law
School in a three day competition that left James and Mykhal
the last team standing.
They will go on to represent Whittier Law School in
the National Competition that will take place March 12 to 16
in Milwaukee, WI.
I spoke with James and Mykhal about their thoughts
and experiences in their preparation for the competition, the
actual competition itself and how it felt to come back with the
ultimate prize.
***
Question (Q): What made you want to compete in the
Fredrick Douglass Moot Court Competition?
James: I heard about the FDMCC during my 1L year
because it was one of the courses that you could sign up for
on TWEN. I wanted to compete during my 2L year, [but] I
was incredibly busy so I made it a priority to do it this year.
Mykhal: I wanted to participate in Moot Court so that I could
better my advocacy skills. I really enjoyed the 1L competition
and looked for any opportunity to continue that experience.
(cont.)
(cont.)
Q: How was it to prepare for the competition?
James: Extremely stressful because like all Moot
Court competitions you are researching, drafting and
editing a complicated brief with a strict page limit
during the school year while you are in school
full[time], [with] working, extracurricular activities and
your personal life all vying for your attention. As the
deadline nears you are constantly tinkering with your
brief and trying to make it better. Once the deadline
arrives, you submit your brief but you always, in the
back of your mind, think it could have been better.
Mykhal: It was pretty time consuming to prepare for
the competition. The problem itself was arguments
possible.
Q: How did you feel once you found out that you
made it to the final round? Were you surprised?
Did you expect to make it to the final round?
James: We came to the competition with the
expectation of winning it and advancing to nationals.
Anything less than first place would have been
personal disappointment. After the preliminary
rounds we had a feeling that we were one of the
stronger teams at the competition and we had the
second highest score of all the teams up until that
particular point in time.
Mykhal: Honestly, we did expect to make the final
round. James and I met roughly one month before
the briefs were due and decided that we weren’t
going to waste our time “putting in a good effort”. We
decided that we had the potential to win and all we
needed was to match our potential with the amount
of time we spent pouring over the prompt and on the
brief. Once we made the final round, we were of the
opinion that we just had to finish strong.
the briefs were due and decided that we weren’t
going to waste our time “putting in a good effort”.
We decided that we had the potential to win and all
we needed was to match our potential with the
amount of time we spent pouring over the prompt
and on the brief. Once we made the final round, we
were of the opinion that we just had to finish strong.
Mykhal: Ecstatic. Definitely the best achievement
I have had thus far in law school and I look
forward to continuing our success at the [national]
level.
Q: Did you feel the pressure competing in the
final round?
James: We are reaching [out] to the faculty to
help us conduct as many mock panels as possible
before the competition. We are also trying to work
with the Moot Court Honor Board as well to get as
much practice in as possible so our presentation
at nationals will be flawless.
James: The pressure we felt was mainly the
expectations that we put on ourselves to win the
competition. The other team scored higher than us
in the preliminary rounds so they had the upper
hand and we previously faced them in round 3. We
faced them again in the final round so we had a bit
of a chip of our shoulder going in that we used to
our advantage.
During the final round it is a whole completely
different ballgame. The nerves are 10 times worse
than what you experienced in the preliminary rounds
because the final round is the last round of the
competition because you spend most of the day
waiting to compete which is usually spent sitting
around with your opponent engaged in awkward
conversation and going through your opening
statements and arguments a thousand times in your
head. The time goes by so slowly so by the time the
round begins you are ready for the whole thing to be
done with already.
Mykhal: YES! The final round was the toughest
series of questions I have ever faced in doing a
mock presentation. They did not let us slide on
anything and our adversaries were also extremely
prepared. We went in with an argument prepared
and did our best to stay on topic.
Q: How did you feel once you it was announced
that you won first place?
James: After they announced the 2nd place team
we both knew we were going to win the competition
so we just looked across the table at each other and
grinned. When they announced that we won, we just
walked up to the stage and received our trophy. It
felt very good for our hard work and our school to be
recognized.
Mykhal: Ecstatic. Definitely the best
Q: How are you preparing for the National
competition?
Mykhal: So far, James and I have been in touch
with the Moot Court team on campus, as well as
many other professors. We are working on setting
up times so that we may run through mock
arguments at least twice a week with professors
as the mock judges.
Q: What are your expectations for the National
competition?
James: We are not trying to go for 2nd place if
that gives you any indication. I would really like to
bring home a trophy and have a banner in the
cafeteria.
Mykhal: Our expectation is to win. We want to
show people that Whittier Law School does a
fabulous job of preparing its student to go out and
practice. A lot of “big name” schools that are
highly ranked seemed to come in with the attitude
that they just deserve the title based off the name
on their degree. We let our hard work and
performance do the talking.
***
“Teamwork makes the dream work.” Yes,
its cliché, but it’s exactly what brought the first
place trophy of the Western Region competition to
WLS. They’re not done yet though. There’s still
one more trophy to be brought home and that’s
the first place trophy of the national competition.
If you see them around campus, be sure
to congratulate them on their win and show your
support as they prepare for nationals.
Good luck guys! Peace and Blessings.
WELCOME BACK BBQ
January 23, 2014
Kicking off Spring 2014
INTERNATIONAL CHILD ADOPTION
A Different Approach on the Theory of Intercountry
by Melissa Chichportich, 2L
On Jan. 16, Professor Christopher Balding
from the Peking University’s HSBC School of
Business in Shenzhen, China, gave a presentation
entitled, “A New Ethical Framework for
International Child Adoption.”
My first thought, along with others I’m
sure, was why an economist would be interested in
the issues of international adoption.
To my surprise, his presentation was
To my surprise, his presentation was
interesting as well as eye-opening. According to
Professor Balding, all public policy and legislation is
data driven except in intercountry child adoption.
Professor Balding became interested in this
topic because despite the overwhelming data and
statistics available on international adoption, no one
in the field was using these statistics in the
discourse regarding the pros and cons of
intercountry adoption.
Rather, many of the arguments both in
favor of and against intercountry adoption were
based on anecdotal information.
The data that Professor Balding
presented was staggering. According to his
presentation, one in six couples are infertile and
approximately 750,000 women are actively
seeking to adopt. The problem is not that people
are not willing to adopt, but rather that there are
obstacles to adopting internationally.
Using these statistics and others,
Professor Balding focused on applying and
understanding data and statistics to help
construct a safer and more ethical legal
framework for intercountry adoption.
Professor Balding uses an economic and
statistical approach to this problem by using risk
analysis.
The risks associated with orphaned
children are mortality, malnourishment, physical
health, mental health, and disease.
The risks of intercountry adoption include
the potential for child trafficking, removing
orphans from reliable single parents or extended
family, child labor, institutionalization, and
domestic violence.
However, the risks of not being adopted
far outweigh the risk of falling victim to one of the
risks of being adopted.
Professor Balding argues that risk is
driven by data and facts, anecdotes and
innuendoes are no substitute in making policy.
When one removes the emotion and
anecdotes and simply applies a statistical
analysis, the overwhelming amount of evidence
points to the fact that we should be encouraging
intercountry adoption rather than creating
bureaucratic and other roadblocks to it.
His presentation was definitely not what I
expected, but maybe an economist view is exactly
what is needed.
MAKING YOUR DREAM COME TRUE
by Claire Chang, 2L
On those days when the feeling of
defeat is taking over, be reminded that, “Success
is never final, failure is never fatal, and courage
is always crucial.” Those inspiring words were
spoken by Ruthe Ashley, Esq. during her visit on
campus last month.
Orange County law school students and
local professionals gathered in room 3 on Jan.
10 to attend APALSA’s first spring event,
“Making Your Dream Come True,” where guest
speakers, Ashley, and Quyen Tu, Esq. shared
the key to success: building relationships,
learning how to overcome obstacles and having
leadership skills.
Tu, a solo practitioner in Orange County,
emphasized the necessity of having a mentor
and building relationships with those in the legal
community. As she was making the transition
from being a Consumer Law attorney at Public
Law Center, to starting her own firm, those who
encouraged and guided her through the
challenges she faced as a new business owner,
were attorneys whom she had maintained
relationships with throughout the years.
One of her biggest supporter was, and
still remains to be, Ashley, whom she met while
attending University of the Pacific, McGeorge
School of Law. Ashley had been the Director of
Career Services at that time on campus.
“She just walked into my office one day,
introduced herself and said, ‘I want to be your
intern,’” said Ashley. “I didn’t even know I
needed an intern!”
Ashley used that story of how she met
Tu in order to demonstrate a leadership quality
that many are afraid to embrace and act on:
taking that leap, despite the chances of falling.
She reminded us that success never arrives
without failures (yes, plural).
As a former National Asian Pacific
American Bar Association president, founder of
Reeves and Ashley, LLP, and current CEO of
Diversity Matters Consulting, Ashley knows a
thing or two about those heartbreaking
moments when things don’t pan out as
imagined. She reminds us that it is not until we
learn from those failed attempts, which then we
grow and be one step closer to making our
dream come true.
Law school brings out all sorts of
feelings for us students -- whether it’s the
feeling of acing that paper or the gut-wrenching
moment the professor calls on you and you
realized you weren’t as prepared you had
thought. Despite it all, we all keep going back
for more the next day. For better or for worse,
it’s that determination to be better that drives us
to be the future attorneys of the world.
My Life at
Wallin &
Klarich
by Adam Jackson, 3L
For the past six months, I’ve been working
as a legal assistant at Wallin & Klarich, a private
criminal defense firm. I got the job through a seldomused part of Whittier Law School’s system:
Symplicity.
During my time in law school, I have worked
exclusively in the criminal law field and wanted to
find a way to continue learning more about this area.
I externed for three semesters at the Orange
County District Attorney’s Office and spent a
summer working for the Honorable Judge Stephen
Bromberg, who handles criminal law matters in
Central Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana.
Like many of my classmates, I panicked once that
externship ended. I knew I needed to work
somewhere. I needed experience.
I needed something for my resume. I
needed a job and I needed it badly. So, I went onto
Whittier’s Symplicity website, looked through the
various job listings and stumbled upon Wallin &
Klarich. I did some independent research and then
submitted my information. It wasn’t long before I was
contacted for an in-person interview.
Wallin & Klarich has been practicing criminal
law for over 30 years. I interviewed at the corporate
office in Tustin, but noticed that Wallin & Klarich has
offices throughout Southern California, including San
Bernardino, Riverside, Ventura and Los Angeles.
Now, working at a private criminal defense
firm, I find myself on the opposite end of the criminal
law spectrum. I thought the adjustment would take
time, but it was seamless.
During my time at Wallin & Klarich, I have
realized many things cannot be replicated without
experience. For one, I’ve had direct, face-to-face
contact with clients. I’ve met them, talked to them on
the phone and e-mailed them – I know who these
people are. From the first day our clients retain us
and I open their file, I begin to understand their
stories.
I get accounts from various sources, such as
the police, the client and the district attorney, in order
to learn more. I’ve also worked on countless motions,
including expungements, petitions to seal and
destroy arrest records and petitions for early
termination of probation – many of which have been
granted.
I work directly under Attorneys Jonathan
Lynn and Matthew Wallin. Our teamwork plays a vital
role in allowing us to give each client our best efforts.
Working at a criminal defense law firm is interesting
and enjoyable. I’ve seen people screw up. Some
people do bad things and must atone for their
decisions. Other people make mistakes that can be
forgiven.
Through my supervising attorneys and
mentors like Senior Partner Paul Wallin, I have
learned what it takes to run a business, help a client
throughout the entire legal process and, ultimately,
do the right thing.
This experience has prepared me, in my
last semester of law school, for what lies ahead. I
couldn’t recommend a better place to work or a
better opportunity to have. I began working at Wallin
& Klarich because I needed a job, but found much
more than that. I’ve seen the entire gamut of
criminal law opportunities, but no other experience
has prepared, challenged, or made me grow more
than my time at Wallin & Klarich. I can truly say I am
lucky for this opportunity.
by Naheed Sahak, 2L
Campus Democrats held its
annual viewing party in room
14 on Jan. 29.
Students gathered to watch
President Obama give the
2014 State of the Union
Address as he gives his
recommendation to Congress
on the agenda that are
important for him to push
through for nation.
JOIN
BECAUSE
YOU
CARE[S]
by Mykhal Ofili, 2L
Public Counsel: Connecting Angelenos
to Resources and Essential Services (CARES)
allows volunteers the opportunity to provide
direct legal services and advocate on behalf of
indigent and homeless clients who are receiving
or applying for public assistance.
Advocates will go to Los Angeles County
Department of Social Services Offices as the
result of a famous law suit: City of LA v. County
of LA. Participants receiving public benefit
brought suit in federal court because of improper
administrative barriers placed on benefits by the
workers.
Pursuant to the lawsuit, the court
ordered that Public Counsel and other non-profit
legal agencies go directly to these offices and fill
out “benefit inquiry forms” that will force the
DPSS workers to provide participants with clear
rules and reasons why they are denying their
benefits.
In plenty of cases, the DPSS workers
realize they have made the mistake and will
award the participant back benefits.
CARES
represents
an
amazing
opportunity for law students to get experience
dealing with a client in a live setting. To get
involved, students must either attend a live
training on public benefits or listen to the
audiotape available on Whittier’s Public Interest
Law Foundation’s TWEN site.
Once
the
student
gains
an
understanding of the different rules present to
receiving benefits, they will be matched with
other law students or master’s students and a
supervisor familiar with the process and
assigned to a DPSS office.
Whittier students have frequently
advocated at the Southwest Special DPSS office
in south Los Angeles due to the close proximity
to Orange County. Teams typically meet outside
the office and walk in together to begin
advocacy.
The process is very much “trial-by-fire”
and many who participate feel as though they
could always learn more about the process. One
does not need to know every single law of public
benefits in order to advocate effectively. There
are six key questions every advocate must ask
the participants and once the supervisor is made
aware of these answers, they will know whether
to submit a benefit inquiry or not.
If you are interested in participating with
the program, be proactive! Join Whittier PILF
and register with the TWEN page because the
trainings are password protected.
Listen to an audio recording of the
training and look out for announcements from
PILF regarding future outings.
To learn more about CARES, visit: the
official Public Counsel website or contact a
Whittier PILF member.
Stella’s
Food
Corner
by Stella Kim, 3L
Breakfast at Tiffany’s?
Check!
Breakfast at Plums?
Check!
If you haven’t had breakfast at Plum’s Café and Catering, you’ve
been missing out!
Located: 369 E. 17th St. Costa Mesa, CA
92627
Phone: (949) 722-7586
Reservations? YES!
Refund check worthy: YES! POSITIVE YES!
I think I have had almost everything on
their menu and there is nothing I don’t like!
Between their famous Crab Dungeness omelet
(which is AMAZING, with chunks of crab and
crispy asparagus to top!)and their famed Dutch
Baby (perfect with lemon and powdered sugar)
being raved in reviews, I love the variety that the
offer. The food appeals to all types, from those
that crave sweets, savory, or both.
The French Toast is crispy, flaky, and
perfectly gooey inside. Do you see those crispy
flakes? The French Toast was doused and
baked with coconut goodness! I loved how the
coconut flakes added more texture to the
gooeyness of the inside of the toast. The fresh
fruit on top of the toast was so sweet, I wish I
almost – ALMOST didn’t add any syrup.
The eggs benny was unreal. The
hollandaise was creamy but not oily and the
eggs were perfectly poached. This benedict
was not your normal benny with Canadian
bacon and an English muffin. I’m a fan of
normalcy but Plum’s did such a great job
making exceptions. The ham was peppered
and juicy. The baguette gave an extra crunch
and added heartiness to it. Plum’s isn’t for the
weak.
The potatoes and peppered bacon as
one of the many sides they offer really boost
the meal. Throw on a bit of their special
ketchup and your belly will be one happy
camper.
TICKETS ON SALE NOW
"Since finals this past semester, I have been
meeting with professors for critique on my
exams, and I have been reviewing notes more
frequently."
-Christy Garcia
surveyed by
Tiffany Larson, 1L and Christy Garcia, 1L
"I started taken more notes this semester, and I
make sure to review them at least once before
the next class."
-Ani Grigoryan
"Now that I have taken my first law school
finals, I have a better understanding of how to
attack an exam. My preparation will be focused
on taking practice tests weekly and starting my
outlines much earlier. I will still keep my oneday at a time approach, as I realize that law
school is not a sprint, but a marathon."
-Jimmy Applegate
"I'm starting on my outlines now instead of
waiting for dead week. Also I'm making flash
cards to memorize the specific rules of law that
the professors want us to know."
-Luis Sandoval
"After the first semester, I realized the need for
outlining earlier in the semester. If not just to
avoid a ton of work at once, it helps to organize
material in a meaning way. I will also be hitting
the practice tests earlier this time around."
-Robert Greenhall
“Now that I know my professors better I know
how to approach reading assignments and
practice exams. I am definitely doing outlines a
lot earlier than last minute this semester!"
-Isha Kakkar
"Study, grill professor after class, and practice
with prior exams with Prof. McDonald!"
-Kenroy Cherrington
“I have somewhat of a different approach to this
semester. I know more of what the professors
are looking for from exams, from class
participation, from office hours etc. First
semester was a great learning tool. The tough
thing about spring semester is that we were on
break for four weeks and it has been hard to
get back into the groove of law school. After
completing finals in December I can say that I
am more confident in my abilities and know that
this is definitely something I can handle even
though it will continue to take a considerable
amount of work.”
-Andrew Cobb
february
UPCOMING EVENTS
3
Voir Dire
6 PM - Courtroom
4
Coffee with Dean Pritikin
9:30 AM
4
Grad Fair (3Ls & 4Ls)
12 PM - Lower Concourse
8
UCLA Public Interest Career Day
UCLA School of Law, 385 Charles E. Young Dr. E., 1242 Law Building,
Los Angeles, CA 90095
10-13
APALSA Valentine’s Day Gram
Lower Concourse
10-13
WLSA Women’s Professional Clothing Drive
Drop off box at Lower Concourse
13
WLSA Valentine’s Day Gram
Lower Concourse
12
Inns of Court
5 PM Room 1
18
20
Pizzas & Pointer: Business & Tax Law
12 PM - Room 2
Spirit Day
4 PM - Quad
20-23
National Trial Advocacy Competition
Courtroom
24-28
Spring Break
Lower Concourse
Zealous Advocate is a publication voicing
the voices of Whittier Law School students
and local community members. The
content in each article reflects only of the
opinions of the authors, and not
necessarily that of Zealous Advocate,
Student Bar Association or the Editorial
Board.
Questions, comments or concerns?
email Claire Chang at [email protected]