I can’t believe we’re here already - the end of the road. 

We just finished our last batch of exams (and celebrated a lot, including with a glorious trip to sunny Florida)! 

The following week had our graduation week from the NYU LLM. Unfortunately, the all-University Commencement (on Wednesday) and the Law School Convocation ceremonies (the following day) took place online this year due to COVID. There were some nice touches though, like the Empire State building turning violet early in the week for graduation! 

We were delighted, however, that NYU Law recognized that an in-person event (even if much smaller than usual) would be very much appreciated. NYU scheduled a masked-up ‘celebration send-off’ event on the Friday afternoon at the Law School, with some speeches from the Dean and other faculty, photos and ‘swag bags’ of NYU merch and snacks. We all had to submit negative COVID tests before the event, which was great to make sure we were all safe!

We promptly followed this with some rooftop drinks… because we are all fully vaccinated, after all! 😃

It’s been a really wonderful year, and I truly can’t believe how quickly it flew by. I made some incredibly amazing friends and was continually inspired by the people around me - including my professors, my peers, and my supervisors at my internship. I secured a job for after the LLM in the US (my main goal!) and I am pretty happy with how I balanced my classes and socializing - even if I sometimes felt stretched too thin, and like there weren’t nearly enough hours in the day… 

I also received a Convocation Award for distinction in the Traditional LLM, which I was not expecting, but I was thrilled to receive.

In short, if you are second-guessing whether to pursue an LLM in the US (such as at NYU), but you are passionate and motivated, willing to throw yourself into all the opportunities on offer, and enthusiastic about exploring a new city, don’t hesitate to apply and take up your spot.

Thank you for bearing with me in my first foray into law school blogging this year, and I wish you all the best and every success! And please feel free reach out to me here with any questions. 😊

Sometimes you just need a place to find a little bit of peace in this crazy city - to read, have a coffee, people watch, or even just scroll on your phone… With that in mind, and as my time is wrapping up in this amazing place, here are my favorite places in the city to hide out:

1. Elizabeth St Garden

This is a quirky 1-acre community sculpture garden in the Nolita (which stands for North of Little Italy) neighborhood of Manhattan, located on Elizabeth Street between Prince and Spring Streets.

Unfortunately, it is set to be redeveloped into a senior’s village - but there is a lawsuit on foot to stop this. Get there soon, and fingers crossed the suit succeeds because this place is a true gem.

2. La Lanterna Caffe, Greenwich Village

Amazing gem of a restaurant/café right across the road from NYU Law School. It’s very non-descript from the front, but opens up to this gorgeous back patio. The perfect spot for an aperol spritz, coffee, or pasta!

3. Conservatory Garden, Central Park

And even though it’s hardly groundbreaking - just Central Park in general through the seasons! 

I saw the fall leaves in November 🍁

… the cherry blossoms in April 🌸

…and the lush summer greenery

4. Brooklyn Bridge Park 

You can walk over the Brooklyn Bridge (like I did in the picture below last August) or get the subway to Dumbo or Brooklyn Heights. There’re plenty of basketball courts in that blue structure over the water, that stellar view of the skyline, and lots of grass to kick back and read. 

5. Brooklyn Heights Promenade

Now this is one of my favorite places in the city - especially since I moved to Brooklyn Heights in March and can sit and take in this skyline view on the benches with lunch or coffee! As you can see, it’s located just above Brooklyn Bridge Park, and there are cute dogs and babies on walks all down the promenade. This is the perfect place to relax in the sun, or take a romantic sunset stroll before dinner in Dumbo. 

This was last night at around 7pm 🙌

Spring tulips along the promenade in April:

6. West Side Highway/Hudson River Park

When I lived in Soho near NYU, this was my go-to running/exercise spot. There are grassy piers and boardwalks, these cool wooden swings, wooden benches overlooking New Jersey, tennis courts, summery bars and restaurants, and even mini-golf!

Hard to complain about running in fall with this view:

…or even in December with that biting winter cold when I got to see this sunset!

7. Wandering around Cobble Hill and Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn

This is a little bit off the beaten path, but you could make a day of heading to Brooklyn Heights Promenade/Brooklyn Bridge Park and then wandering around these nearby neighborhoods. 

There are plenty of good cafes and restaurants nearby, and the well-kept brownstones and incredible care put into gardening just puts me in a good mood!

8. Vanderbilt Hall Courtyard, NYU

Last but certainly not least is NYU Law’s very own courtyard at Vanderbilt Hall. It’s pretty all year round, but especially in Spring when the magnolias, cherry blossoms and daffodils are out.

It’s a great spot to sit with a coffee and start all those readings you’re behind on, or to eat lunch with some of your LLM friends.

Here are some other places I’m hoping to get to in my last few weeks here:

Pier 35, Lower East Side

Fort Tryon, Met Cloisters

Up past the Bronx

Prospect Park, Brooklyn

Enjoy! I almost wish I could live this year and discovering these places all over again 🙌

In my last post, I wrote a little about the crazy hustle it took for me to secure a dream role in litigation in my target city - Los Angeles, California. Everything about the journey to establishing my eligibility to sit for the California Bar exam (not a well-traveled path for NYU LLMs), and to get in the (Zoom) door and start interviewing in LA was tricky. 

Ultimately, though, I really feel that my experience aligns with those of people I’d spoken to in previous years who secured a great role after the LLM, especially in NYC. In short, perseverance (even after you have almost given up), and *especially* networking (with connections from back home, people you meet here, and contacts of your professors), are critical. If you keep working at it every day, it will pay off.

I thought it might be helpful to write a little round up on the next career moves of some of my friends and peers in the NYU LLM now that we are graduating this week! This talented bunch is spreading across the globe, and I can’t wait to visit many of them once the world opens back up. Their exciting new opportunities is a testament to hard work and grit.

Bear in mind that we had a smaller group of Fall starters!

For their privacy, I have identified them by first initial and country of origin rather than their full name 😀:

1. Me (Australia): I was looking for a role in litigation in a private firm in Los Angeles - ideally a second-year role, but I was flexible about coming in as a first-year. I received two offers at firms in LA (at a boutique and a global firm) and chose to accept the second-year offer at the trial-focused boutique firm for a September start - and I’m very excited! I will sit for the California Bar exam this July.

2. U (South Korea): U secured a great OPT role at an elite litigation firm in NYC, Kobre & Kim, which focuses on international disputes and investigations. He will work in their office for 6 months-1 year before returning to Seoul to resume work at his previous firm. He is sitting the NY Bar exam this July.

3. V (UK - England): V was a younger LLM fresh out of law school in the UK (not yet qualified in the UK), and a dual English and French speaker. He was looking for a role specifically in antitrust in New York, D.C., the UK, or in continental Europe. He didn’t have previous experience in this area, but took many classes focuses on antitrust, tax, and constitutional law (an area of interest) during the LLM. Unfortunately, he didn’t have success in finding a US-based role due to his inexperience at this stage in antitrust (and he also realized how exceedingly difficult it would be to establish eligibility for the D.C. bar due to the number of credit points you need to take). However, he has accepted a fantastic role at a prestigious US-headquartered global firm in Brussels, Belgium (Skadden) where he will be working on European and US antitrust cases, and is very excited about it. He is sitting the NY Bar exam in July.

4. V (France): V had just sat for his examinations for the French Bar during the Fall, and had interned at some prestigious firms in Paris for a total of about 2 years. He was looking for a role in corporate/transactional law. He has accepted a great role at Paul Weiss in London in Corporate.

5. J (Germany): J is a fully qualified German lawyer who successfully defended his PhD back in Germany over the winter break while completing the NYU LLM (not impressive at all….!). He was looking for a role in NYC or Germany specifically in white collar criminal defense, and his classes at NYU were almost exclusively in this area. He accepted an exciting opportunity in Frankfurt, Germany at a prestigious white collar defense litigation boutique. He is sitting for the NY Bar in July.

6. K (Japan): K had a fully-paid scholarship from the Japanese Government for her LLM at NYU, and another year pursuing a Masters of Public Policy or Public Administration. She applied during her LLM for the MPP or MPA and ended up choosing to enrol at Tufts in Boston for the MPP for 2021-2022. She interned for the OECD and the US-Asia Law Institute during the semester, and secured an internship at the World Bank for summer. She will return to Japan after her year at Tufts.

7. D (South Africa): D’s background was in litigation and policy (including as a judicial clerk at South Africa’s Constitutional Court, working at a private firm, and advising the government on the constitutionality of laws). He secured a competitive summer fellowship at the UN through the NYU IFD Fellowships program, and will use that time to decide about pursuing the MPhil degree at Oxford, or exploring work opportunities in South Africa or the US.

8. S (Singapore): S attended NYU for the LLM as part of her degree at NUS. She has not worked extensively yet, but is returning to Singapore to attend the mandatory classes for the Singapore Bar. She will work at Baker McKenzie in Singapore after that.

9. P (France): P graduated from the Sorbonne in Paris. He will be pursuing a UN Internship over the summer in NYC and sitting for the NY Bar, and is looking for opportunities in NYC or D.C.

10. H (UK - England): H is returning to a pupillage at a fantastic barristers’ chambers in London to pursue her stellar career in human rights law. She is genuinely the next Amal Clooney (an NYU LLM grad, by the way!).

11. L (Canada): L is a recent graduate of McGill, and hails from Montréal. He is particularly interested in arbitration and litigation, and locked down a fantastic role at a Montréal-based French firm called DS Avocats as an articling student on his way to being admitted to the Canadian Bar. He is also sitting for the NY Bar in July.

12. E (UK): E had been an intern at some prestigious firms in London and had a mini–pupillage under his belt, but was looking for a long-term role in M&A in a New York BigLaw firm. He did an internship at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the Spring semester for NYU credit. He started the job search later, as he started the LLM remotely from London, but found his ideal job as an Associate at Davis Polk & Wardwell in NYC in M&A, starting in October this year. He is also sitting for the NY Bar.

13. Z (US): Z had graduated from a Top 25 Law School in the US (not Top 14) and wanted to focus more on his areas of interest - Art Law, Media Law, and Fashion Law. He secured a role as an Associate at Latham & Watkins in NYC starting in October 2021.

14. M (UK): Formerly based in Singapore, M secured a fellowship at the International Law and Development Foundation and is still based in NY. He is also sitting for the NY Bar.

15. H (Australia): H formerly was a lawyer at Baker McKenzie in Sydney and wanted to shift to a focus on cyber law and privacy, and was not looking for jobs in a law firm. She is staying on in NYC to be a Research Fellow at the Guarini Center in Global Law & Technology, and then will consider whether she wants to return to Australia or stay on in NYC. She is also sitting for the NY Bar.

16. M (Italy): M is from Sardinia, and had been working as a foreign associate in NYC for an Italian law firm for a few years before the LLM, working on cross-border M&A. She secured an Associate role at Fried Frank in NYC focusing on corporate finance.

17. G (Italy): G had been practising in Milan, focusing on Intellectual Property Litigation, and wanted to work for a year or so in NYC before returning home. She secured a role as a Foreign Associate at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton in NYC in IP on the transactional side, and is really enjoying it so far.

18. D (India): D wanted to find a role in NYC or London in Corporate/Transactional law. She is now working Ropes & Gray in London in the High Yield team.

A few more LLMs (including from Greece and India) have opportunities back home but are still looking for roles while they study for the NY Bar exam. I have no doubt they will be successful.

I hope this was helpful!

I know that many of you would ideally love to live out the Suits dream and find a role in the US (likely in NYC) after your LLM - whether it be in a public interest fellowship, as an OPT year (as a foreign associate at a law firm), or in a more permanent capacity after being admitted to the New York (or other state) bars. 

The question for many people (including me) at the start of this year was - how do I it? There are a million other little questions too, like:

• How do I even begin to research all the firms in the US city I’m interested in?
• What states can I sit for the bar exam in? (spoiler - it will likely be NY, California, Texas, and maybe D.C. - but D.C. has trickier requirements than most)
• How do I pursue OPT opportunities?
• Will I be able to get a job through official LLM/Career Services Office channels, like the ISIP Job Fair, or will I need to go it alone?

I thought it might be helpful to set out what my goals were, and how I achieved them and secured a permanent role in the US.

Apologies in advance for the long post! It was a long slog, and I really want to try and be as specific as possible, because I know these posts were helpful for me.

My background

First, I think it’s really important that I tell you a little bit about my background. I am Australian-trained, and admitted to practice in my state of NSW. I had about 18 months of full-time experience in a large law firm, and 1 year of experience clerking for a judge in Sydney at the Supreme Court in my state. 

One thing about me that is different to most foreign LLMs is that I have dual US-Australian citizenship. Australian lawyers have an advantage in securing US roles, because they have a specific visa category in the US and can stay almost indefinitely as long as they are sponsored by a law firm. In my case, because I am a US citizen (through my mother), I could sell myself as permanently relocating to the US with no visa hurdles. While I think this definitely helped, this is by no means definitive and many firms (especially in NYC) are very familiar with and open to hiring foreign lawyers with more limited visas. 

What I was looking for

First, I was looking for a role in litigation. There’s no way around this fact - it’s much harder to find medium and long-term litigation roles than it would be for those looking for corporate or finance (transactional) roles in law firms, or short-term public interest fellowships. This is because it’s a more jurisdiction-specific area of law, and firms are often looking for key indicators that we LLMs don’t really have under our belts - Law Review membership (LLMs are not eligible for this), mooting experience and accolades, and similar. 

I also think it’s fair to say that US lawyers are a little bit US-centric in their thinking, and rightly or wrongly think that foreign lawyers will have trouble adapting to US procedure and substantive law. This just means you have to work a little bit harder to convince them that you’re a fit!

The other thing I was looking for was unusual - a job in Los Angeles, California - not New York.

This was for personal reasons - my partner is American, and his career is based in LA. It was also for professional reasons - LA and California more broadly is actually one of the busiest litigation hubs in the US, and I was interested in tackling a broad array of matters, ranging from business litigation in traditional business and tech, to media law (defamation, privacy, Section 230, First Amendment issues, and so on), to white collar defense. 

In fact, I actually did not apply to any New York firms. This is definitely atypical, and it meant for me that I could not rely on official channels like the NYU ISIP (International Student Interview Program) job fair (no LA firms seek students through those fairs). I had to go it alone with my networking and applications.

Federal Court for the Central District of California court complex.

What role did I eventually accept?

After talking to a number of people at a range of firms in downtown and the west side of LA, and formally interviewing at two firms (a global firm and a litigation boutique), I eventually accepted the litigation boutique role as a second-year associate. 

As a side note - American interviewing processes are long!! I had 9 interviews (9 x 30 min interviews with individual lawyers) at my new firm, and multiple days of interviews at another firm.

I am very excited about the opportunities at this firm, which has great lawyers and incredible clients, and they were very generous in their benefits offered (including bar and bar prep cost reimbursement, a study stipend while I’m studying for the bar, relocation expenses, and so on). 

I’m grateful and excited to start with the firm in September after the California Bar exam in July.

How did I do it? My general approach

In short - I hustled really hard.

Before I left Australia, I made all the connections I could with people I knew, and friends of friends, who were working in the US. Not many of these connections were in LA, but they were a start.

I kept these efforts up by email, phone, and Zoom over the Fall semester, and tapped further into my network to have ‘informational interviews’ over Zoom (basically just informal introductory chats). NYU has great resources to guide this process, including this handbook and frequent talks and seminars with the Office of Career Services (OCS). You can also make individual appointments with the great team at OCS whenever you want to check your approach and practice mock interviews.

I spent Fall really just digging into the LA market, because I didn’t know much about it. I researched on Benchmark, Vault, Legal 500, Law.com, and other resources, and built up a picture of the market and my goal firms. I also took note of what people I spoke to told me about firms to avoid and great firms.

When Spring came around and I had my grades, I reached back out to people I had spoken to at firms to send through my transcript and reiterated my interest in pursuing opportunities with them. 

Crucially, I also asked professors if they would be comfortable connecting me with any of their peers or friends. A number of the most fruitful conversations I had were from these contacts, and this was ultimately how I secured my role. A prominent professor vouching for you will go MUCH further than a ‘cold’ email with no introduction.

I tried to stay organized and made a big spreadsheet - with one sheet listing every person I knew or knew of in LA and New York, their roles and firms, and their contact details, and one sheet listing all the firms I was at least a little bit interested in (at one stage, it was over 40 firms!!). Every time I received a ‘no’ from a firm because they didn’t have the business need, or because my experience/background wasn’t what they were looking for, I kept track of this and crossed out the firm. I also kept track of when I had last contacted my contact at the firm.

Hurdles I experienced

There were…. a few. In short, LA was a really tough market to break into. Almost every firm I spoke to told me they had never hired an LLM before. They said there was no reason why they wouldn’t, but they just hadn’t. This made things tricky, because I really had to convince them of my value and worth to them.

I think there were a few things that helped here: I emphasized that I (1) had no visa issues, (2) came from a common law and English speaking background, (3) had significantly more experience in litigation and in firms than the average JD, and (4) was flexible about the ‘level of designation’ I received (ie whether I would start as a first-year associate or second-year). I was willing to take the ‘cut’ in years because American attorneys are exponentially better paid than lawyers from most, if not all, other countries, including Australia, and I knew the work would probably be substantive and meaningful anyway.

Many firms told me they didn’t have a hiring need (because of COVID, or because they had just hired people, or because they don’t hire juniors at my level) or told me they were looking for something different (e.g. US judicial clerks). 

Also - I didn’t have any success with getting interviews through job postings on Linkedin or elsewhere - it was all about the networking. Professors and other contacts are absolutely worth their weight in gold here.

Key take aways

1. Use your network as much as possible. At least four of my NYU professors had connections in LA, and both my job offers came from this route. Specifically, my clinic professor put me in touch with a former colleague who used to be a federal prosecutor in LA, and he spoke to me and then put me in touch with partners at private firms who he used to work with at the US Attorney’s Office. It goes without saying that you need to make an effort to connect with your professors for this to work well - speak up in class, do good work, and attend office hours to introduce yourself.

2. You need to be resilient, and keep persevering. You will probably be used to being ‘front of the pack’ in your home country, with no issues securing a great job. The US is a different and pretty ruthless and insular market. If you don’t succeed through one route, find another door to push on and keep going. I was exhausted and a little demoralized by March in the Spring semester, but then I had my job by April because all the interviews happened quickly after making the right connections.

3. Try to be organized and systematic. Set aside a certain amount of time every weekend, or even for 15 minutes a day, to pursue different avenues or email people on your list. Keep a spreadsheet like I set out above.

4. Consider taking classes that show you are serious about staying in the US, if relevant. I took substantive classes like Evidence, Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Professional Responsibility etc for the bar, but also to show that I was interested in building a US career. This helped interviewers to see that I had a decent grounding in US law. I also took classes in trial advocacy to show that I had gained an understanding of US-style court advocacy.

5. Be polite, but sell yourself. Point to impressive achievements (Research Assistantships at NYU and top grades achieved, great internships), connect your experience with what their firm excels in, and ask for a short period of their time to connect. In doing this, try to ‘Americanize’ yourself. All I mean by this is to explain your connections to the market, show your achievements in an American context (US law schools, US internships), and point out clients you serviced back home that they would recognize.

6. Polish up your resume. It must be *1 page* (this was hard for me!) and set out exactly in the format set out in the handbook I linked above. Your Office of Career Services can help with this! Try to set out items in a specific and concrete way that conveys your achievements:

e.g. “Defended X Company against shareholder claims in expedited four-week trial concerning $200M takeover. Drafted successful motion for separate preliminary hearing on proper construction of the shareholders’ agreement; assisted in preparing Managing Director and a senior Director for trial; formulated cross-examination strategy.”

7. If you have a great writing sample after your Fall semester (drawing on US law), this might also be helpful in showing your writing competency and grasp of US principles. Check with the Office of Career Services if you aren’t sure, but this helped me. I submitted a paper I wrote about constitutional law.

You will get there with time, patience, good humor, and hard work. 

Please reach out with any questions! 😃 and good luck!

I write this from the beautiful NYU Law Vanderbilt Hall courtyard, in my second last week on this amazing campus.

I start my exams in 4 days (!!!) and I finished classes last week. It’s hard to believe! 

A lot has happened since I last posted. I finished my classes and my externship, got vaccinated, made many more LLM friends who started in the spring and JD friends, and I was interviewing at a few firms in the US. I’m very happy to report that I got an associate role at a firm last week! More on that in my next post, because I know many of you are probably looking for positions in the US after your LLM. 

I went to my first baseball game - Yankees vs Orioles at Yankee Studium, and I had a lot of lunches and coffees in the sun at Washington Square Park with LLM and JD friends. 

I took about 1 million photos of tulips and other flowers around the city…

And I was also able to meet with a few of my professors for coffee and drinks (yay for the US’s roll-out of vaccinations!). This might seem trivial, but it’s been so nice to be able to meet professors and my work supervisors at the DA’s office in person for final drinks - it feels like the world is semi-normal again in NY. 🌞 

On that note, I just want to take a moment and say that I know that many of you in your home countries (especially India and Brazil) are really struggling right now. Many of the students here have had family and friends that have contracted COVID, and if this is the position you are in, I am truly sorry. My thoughts are with you, and I hope you will still be able to travel to the US to undertake your LLM later this year if that is still your goal. 

It’s so strange knowing that my time here is nearly up. I’ve loved this year, but it really has gone by so quickly. And even though I’m so glad I came to start the LLM in the Fall Semester, and I made very firm friends with the small group that started with me, it’s sad leaving our new Spring starter friends behind knowing most of them have a whole semester to go! At least I know I will come visit them, as I’ll still be in the US next semester.

Even the quad has changed so rapidly - from the beautiful magnolia buds above in March, to this equally beautiful summer green of the moment in late April:

Our graduation is coming up in May, and *very* sadly, it won’t be in person. However, you had better believe I will still be getting photos in my cap, tassel, and gown! And we LL.M.s have planned some informal celebrations, especially as we will all be fully vaccinated by then.

I now am going to drag myself into the library instead of procrastinating, but look out for my upcoming posts:

1. How I got a law firm position in the US (in litigation), and what my other LL.M. friends are doing for jobs post-graduation;

2. Making the most of your LL.M. (there’s a million ways to do it, but this will be some tips from my perspective); and

3. Some of my favorite places to relax and decompress in NYC from my year here. 💃

Now that we’re in late March, the snow has thawed and the feel of spring is in the air! Everywhere I go, I see beautiful spring blooms - daffodils, cherry blossoms, pansies, and petunias - and we’ve had some beautiful warm days recently. As in 27 degrees Celsius this past Friday 🤩🌸

I’ve been able to enjoy long walks and runs by the water in my new neighborhood of Brooklyn Heights, sunny outdoor lunches with a few LLMs, and nice picnics, like one in McCarren Park in Williamsburg (Brooklyn). It feels like everyone is out and about. With the increased vaccinations across the city and this gradual warming up, good vibes are high!

I know many of you are about to choose your law school for your LL.M., so here are some spring pictures to make you fall in love with NYC!

McCarren Park 

NYU Vanderbilt Hall terrace in the sun 🌞

Wildflowers on the Promenade in Brooklyn Heights.

I also recently took a trip with a few friends to a home in the woods a few hours upstate, complete with a campfire (and toasted marshmellows, of course), hot tub, lots of hiking, and exploring some of the cute towns in the Hudson Valley. I highly recommend Cold Spring and Beacon!

We still have a few weeks before things get busy with studying for finals, but I’m sitting the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (MPRE) this coming Tuesday (a component of all state bar exams, including NY and California). Fingers crossed!

Hi all! I have had some questions from readers about what classes are like at NYU.

I thought I might procrastinate a little bit on my readings for my next class, and write up a post going a little more in-depth on two of the classes I have enjoyed the most while at NYU - one that was held during the Fall 2020 semester (Mass Media Law), and one from this current semester, Spring 2021 (Advanced Trial Simulation). For me, these classes are both representative of the incredibly diverse range of classes at NYU taught by adjunct professors, the close relationship NYU has with the broader legal community in New York City, and the practical orientation/style of many of the law school classes.

Mass Media Law 

This was taught by the wonderful Prof. David McCraw, the Senior Vice President and Deputy General Counsel (and lead newsroom lawyer) of The New York Times - who teaches in alternating semesters at NYU Law and Harvard Law. We examined how the First Amendment, in combination with tort law, statutes, and common-law principles, shaped the rights and limitations for media publishers. We covered topics like defamation/libel, protection of confidential sources, prior restraints on publication, invasion of privacy by publication, criminal liability for publishing classified information, legal limits on newsgathering, and access to information. 

Advanced Trial Simulation

ATS is designed to give students practical trial experience. At the outset of the class, the professors taught us basic trial skills (rules of evidence, do’s and don’ts of opening statements, closing arguments, and witness examination, etc) in a lecture format. 

The class was then divided into trial teams of four students each—with two plaintiff’s counsel and two defense counsel. The semester then had 4 simulated trials with different fact patterns - e.g. I had a wrongful death suit based on an allegedly defective drug. Students either had to deliver an opening statement or closing argument, and were required to run one direct examination of a witness and one cross-examination of an opposing witness (the witnesses were played by pre-law students from NYU’s undergrad programs, and you had to prepare them). Pre-law students also act as a jury and deliberate on a verdict, and then, unlike in real life, the ‘lawyers’ and the rest of the class are able to view the deliberations and hear the jury’s thought processes. 

Similarities 

There are a few similarities between these classes:

• Credits: Both classes are 2 credits, meaning they each have 2 teaching hours (in 1 class) per week. This means they are both technically seminars, and aren’t on the same grading curve as the 4-credit core or substantive classes.
• Adjunct Professors: They were also both taught at night because both were taught by incredible adjunct professors with full-time day jobs outside NYU. Mass Media Law was taught by the wonderful Prof. David McCraw, the Senior Vice President and Deputy General Counsel (and lead newsroom lawyer) of The New York Times - who teaches in alternating semesters at NYU Law and Harvard Law - while Advanced Trial Simulation is co-taught by Cravath, Swain & Moore Chairman and leading trial attorney Evan Chesler, and the also-brilliant Cravath litigation partner David Marriott.
• No expensive textbooks required: For Mass Media Law, we had about 6 case extracts to read before class that we could download from the NYU Classes portal. For Advanced Trial Simulation, there was just a small course pack to read, that contained no cases - just the mock fact patterns, witness outlines, exhibits, and depositions we would use in our simulations. 

Differences

However, the classes differed in a few key ways:

• In-person vs. Online: Mass Media Law was taught in a hybrid model - so while most students chose to attend online, I attended in-person each Tuesday night and was taught by Professor McCraw in person. He drove in from Connecticut every week! Advanced Trial Simulation is solely online.
• Style of the Class (Lecture-Style vs. Simulation): Mass Media Law was taught in a somewhat traditional lecture-style, case-based model (with lots of slides that brought the cases to life, and a very engaging lecturing style from the professor!). Towards the end of semester, we had very interesting visiting lecturers come and speak to us - more on that below. In contrast, Advanced Trial Simulation dedicated the first 4 lectures to teaching us about the most critical rules of evidence for trial lawyers, and strategy/dos and don’ts for opening statements, direct examinations, cross-examinations, and closing statements (with video clips and other slides), followed by mock trials for the rest of the semester run by the students, with the professors acting as judges.
• Manner of Assessment: Mass Media Law was assessed via an exam at the end of the semester, with a boost for class participation, whereas Trial Simulation was assessed on the basis of performance in a mock trial that ran over 2 weeks for each trial, with a boost for class participation. 

Overall Thoughts

I’ve found both classes to be really helpful and fascinating. Advanced Trial Simulation enabled me to immerse myself in trial strategy with my co-counsel, and I loved practically applying the lessons I learned in Evidence in Fall 2020 (e.g. impeaching a witness for inconsistent statements; objecting on the basis of hearsay). Hearing Professor Chesler and Professor Marriott’s tips based on their own stellar trial practice is an incredible opportunity.

Mass Media Law is probably my favorite class overall. Professor McCraw was so kind and engaging, and took the time to send us wrap-ups of the key takeaways from each class, and primers on the cases we would discuss next class. He cold-called, but you knew which case you would be called upon to discuss, so it wasn’t intimidating. He has also stayed in touch with me, and even put me in touch with people he knew in a city that I’m looking at for job opportunities.

The speakers we had in that class were also hard to beat, and included people like:

• Ted Boutros - a leading media and entertainment litigation partner at Gibson Dunn, who spoke to us about his work acting for journalists who had had their White House press passes confiscated during the Trump Administration - Brian Karem of Playboy and Jim Acosta of CNN;
• Mike Schmidt - the Times journalist and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner who wrote #MeToo stories uncovering the sexual misconduct of Bill O’Reilly and Harvey Weinstein; and
• Susanne Craig - the Times investigative journalist who covered all of the reporting on Trump’s taxes.

We discussed topics ranging from:

In the context of the tort of intrusions to privacy and the First Amendment - The artist Arne Svenson’s art exhibition, ‘The Neighbors’ - photos taken of unsuspecting people in a building next to his in NYC. 

Julian Assange’s indictment:

And Section 230 and the proposals to amend or repeal it:

Let me know if you have any questions about either of these classes - happy to discuss further!

I am blatantly stealing this idea from my fellow LLM Guide blogger at Berkeley, Nathaniel - but thought it might be helpful for those wanting to see what a day is like here in New York at NYU! This is a Thursday.

Morning

8:00am - wake up, lay around for a bit and feel deathly dehydrated from the built-in radiators in my building 😅There’s a blue sky today, but it is very deceptive - it’s cold!!

8:30am - make breakfast, usually a smoothie, cereal or avocado toast with a fried egg. Make my bed to feel minimally productive as well.

9:00am - Finish off my Constitutional Law readings before my 11am class and make my case briefs (with the facts, holding, dissents, etc for each case). I am very on top of readings for this particular class because my (excellent) professor, Melissa Murray, has a cold-calling system where she calls on people for detailed case-specific questions and hypotheticals without any advance notice. It’s a lot of work, and it probably takes me at least 3 hours to prepare for each of my 2 weekly Con Law classes - but it’s such a great subject taught by a fabulous professor, and I like being challenged to keep up.

10:00am - do an online core workout class through Zoom on the NYU Recreation website - I am much more motivated to do a scheduled class than to fit in a Youtube video, although I miss going to a real gym! A lot of my friends have started going to a cheap gym nearby, Blink, so I might join too.

11:00-1:00pm: Con Law class online with 110 other students. I don’t get called on, but I did volunteer at one point 😃At the moment, we are learning about fundamental rights protection under the Due Process Clause and Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment (protecting individual rights from undue interference by the States). We have just started on the right to procreate and the right to abortion before fetal viability - so the famous Roe v. Wade and other related cases, like Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992) were the topics of conversation today. It’s all very fascinating.

Afternoon

1:10pm: Go pick up a coffee (latte) nearby from one of my favorite local spots, like Banter, Citizens of Bleecker, Third Rail or About Coffee. It’s not cheap here, but it’s my daily treat! Make sure to keep an eye out for Cuomo….

1:30pm: Make lunch with whatever I have. If I’m feeling fancy, I’ll make some pasta with chicken, or maybe just avocado toast with eggs. I often go for lunch with another NYU LLM friend too and grab some ramen or sushi.

This was a little cherry tomato, basil and chicken fettucine I made 🤤

Here’s a chicken, kale, roast veg, avocado and feta salad I made the other week for lunch as well. I try to eat sort of healthy at home so I can eat allllll the cheesecakes and pizza when I go out.

2:00-2:30pm: Scheduled 1-on-1 check-in with my Government Anti-Corruption Clinic professor. She is fantastic, and we chat about how the class is going, my internship at the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office Public Integrity Bureau, and my plans after the LLM. She gives me some great job search ideas.

2:30pm-3:30pm: Try to jam in some last minute reading before my Introduction to Civil Procedure Class on Zoom. This is all LLMs and I usually don’t finish the readings before this class, but there is no cold-calling. Sometimes we get to see our professor’s Welsh Terrier, Monty!

On days when I have less class, like Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays, I will often go to the library to motivate myself. I’m studying for the MPRE at the end of March (Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam, a component of the NY and California Bar exams), so I need all the motivation I can get!

When I go on campus, I have to complete one of these daily Covid screeners on my phone, and check my temperature with an NYU-provided themometer. Also, don’t forget your student card!

Night

5:30-6:00pm: Zoom call with a Litigation Attorney from my country as a bit of networking. I have a lot of these, and hopefully one will pay off in the form of a job opportunity! She was lovely - I found her through a bit of old-fashioned LinkedIn stalking. Send her my updated resume, and she sends me an email back and some study notes for the bar exam.

6:00-7:00pm: I have a witness preparation session with my ‘co-counsel’ student partner, Jessica (a JD student), and two undergrad pre-law students from NYU for my upcoming simulated trial for my Advanced Trial Simulation class, starting this coming Monday (spanning over two weeks). We run them through the direct examination questions we have drafted as they are playing the role of our lay witness and expert cardiologist witness, as well as cross-examination prep, and our case theory generally. I have a lot of work to do before I am ready to give our opening statement on Monday night, but it’s coming together!

7:00pm-8:30pm: Grocery shopping at a cute grocery store nearby. I love looking at all the freshly made pastas! I made a burnt butter ravioli with walnuts, pumpkin, spinach and sage, but forgot to take a photo of it - so here is all the fresh pasta and then some salmon I made the other week!

9:00pm- too late: Finish off some small tasks and face-time my good friend back home. She’s just moved to the beach, and I’m very jealous. Plan out my day for tomorrow, waste time on social media, hang out with my boyfriend after he finishes work for the day, and then relax before bed!

Let me know what you would like to see here next!