Good days and bad.

Monday was not a good day. Decisions had to be made that, unfortunately, I may pay for in the future. I had volunteered to participate in an in-house ADR tournament (i.e., a negotiations tournament), which would consume most of Wednesday, Friday and Saturday of this week. I have been on the ADR Board since its inception (last year), and I really enjoy negotiating and mediating cases, so I was quite excited about participating in our first in-house tournament . . . until I received the factual scenario last week.

I realize that with the first tournament, mistakes are going to be made by the committee. I think the first mistake was choosing a very complicated factual scenario (dealing with natural resources, IPOs, and generating capital). This tournament is open to the entire school, so it really puts the 1L class at a disadvantage. The 1L teams are so excited about the tournament; they have no idea they are going to be annihilated based on the subject matter alone.

The second disadvantage was that all teams were only given one week to work on the scenario. Once I received the scenario last week, I knew that I was over my head. Worse yet, my negotiations partner was out of town at a moot court tournament, so we couldn’t even prepare until Monday. By the time Monday morning rolled around, I realized that this was going to be a very busy week, even if I didn’t participate in the tournament; so, my partner and I bowed out, which effectively pissed off the entire tournament committee and ADR officers.

Some of these people actually confronted my partner, but no one has yet approached me. Frankly, I only feel bad about committing to the tournament and then bowing out. But, I/we didn’t ask for a refund of the entry fee, and I/we bowed out as soon as we knew we weren’t going forward. The tournament committee needs to learn some valuable lessons through all of this, like (1) have a Plan B; and (2) give teams ample time to prepare; and (3) be aware that the students who are participating in your tournament are doing so on a voluntary basis and it is possible that school work, graded assignments, or readings may actually take a priority.

Honestly, though, I do feel badly about bowing out and I know that I need to learn some valuable lessons, like it's better NOT to over commit than to over commit and then back out; and it's better NOT to over commit and then kill yourself trying to keep all those commitments. I guess all I can say is . . . I'm trying.

By March or April we will be electing a new editorial board for the law review, and I really want a seat on the editorial board because (1) it is prestigious; (2) looks good on the resume; and (3) is twice as many credit hours as simply being a "senior member" of law review. But, many of the members of the ADR Board are also on the law review nominating committee, so I may have sealed my fate for an editorial board position. Only time will tell about that, but I realize that it is a possibility. I'm going to try to pray about that matter and let it go. I do not have any control over what has been done nor is there any benefit in fretting about what will be. Time will tell, and I'll go forward from there.

Tuesday was a great day. I had a job interview with a firm that I really, really like. They are the largest firm in the region, with offices in North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. The interview went great! The attorney really loved me. Thought he was going to ask me out on a date...which would have been fine. (I really don't have any ethics when it comes to getting that first job, ya know. ;-) Anyway, then he dropped the bomb....oh, he's not on the recruiting committee, and he doesn't know if the firm will even let him hire summer associates, but he wants to, and he wanted to meet some of the bright students at the law school. Isn’t that precious? Well, concentrating on the bright side, it's a step in the right direction and I'm trying to have sufficient faith to believe that something good can come of this. I really do like the firm and thought the interview went well. He told me, "You aren't going to have any problem finding a job." From his mouth to God's ears.

So, now it’s Wednesday. My motion (due today) is in its final stages. I have to prep for three classes tomorrow (my busiest day of the week), and I have to start researching a brief that is due Monday. I’m hopeful that today will be a follow up to Tuesday. I really do prefer the good days; don’t we all.