Blog 11 - Lesson 1 Reflection

I have successfully completed my first Lesson of my Senior Project. 

1. What are you most proud of in your lesson, and why?

I am most proud of how much content I was able to teach my classmates during my presentation and the amount of real-life examples I presented as examples. I am most proud of this because I felt that it made my topic more relatable to my classmates and a bit more intriguing.

2. What assessment would you give yourself on your lesson? Explain why you earned that grade using evidence from the component contract.

I would give myself a low AE or a high P on this presentation because I did meet most of the standards outlined in the contract and I felt that I included a lot of good content that demonstrated how knowledgeable I am about my topic. My presentation was more than eight minutes long and it included information on a bit of what I did during mentorship, real-life relatable examples, I defined my topic thoroughly, and I introduced my essential questions as well as included possible solutions. I spoke loud and clear and tried to keep an even tone throughout my presentation. My hook brought up a well known topic (Britney Spears and her crazy phase, in which her parents filed a conservatorship.) I feel that I ended my presentation well with the first lesson that I learned during my first day at mentorship, and that was that the law bends not for those who are right, but those who present the best case.

3. If you could go back, what would you change about your lesson?  How can you use that knowledge to give a better Lesson 2?

If I redo my lesson, I would include a bit more information on the solutions I have in mind for my essential question. I would also include more stastics about cases and further in depth content on civil cases as a whole such as how many go to trial on average.

Blog 10 - Interview 2 Reflection

Interviewing my Mentor

Here is a link to the Interview 2 Audio: 

https://soundcloud.com/karla-milicich/interview-2

Here is a link to the Interview 2 Transcript:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/17cv7VnQcwgXuJxyfPMm73YRcZVhygj6AyH2kiDDexMY/edit?usp=sharing

1. Please explain how you are spending your mentorship time (Is it at a workplace or somewhere else?  Are you shadowing?  Are you able to do tasks that are meaningfully related to the topic?  If so, what?  Are there other people who are experts in the location?  Etc...)

I am spending my mentorship time doing tasks for my mentor that pertain to some of his cases or cases that other attorneys in the firm are working for. Some of what I do is write deposition summaries, make copies, fill out subpoenas, and organize case files. There are other experts in the law firm. There are four other attorneys in the law firm, however one three are work for Driskell & Gordon. The other attorney works for his own practice. He has three assistants. The law firm also has two paralegals and myself. My mentor introduces me as his assistant.

2.  How did you find your mentor?  How did you convince this person to help you?  

My mentor is my sister's boyfriend's uncle. I had met him once before at one of their family reunions and when I was looking for a mentor, I thought I might as well ask my sister if he could help me out and become my mentor. He said he would help me out, and I've been mentoring with him ever since. 

3. How would you rate your comfort level with your mentor at this point in your relationship?  How does this relate to the time you've spent so far at mentorship/with this person?

From a scale of one to ten, I would rate my comfort level with my mentor at an 8 at this point in our relationship. I've gotten really close to my mentor and I sometimes call him Uncle Jack. He is a really neat person and I have enjoyed mentoring with him. He is a very respected individual and very professional. If ever I had any legal issues in his expertise, I would not hesitate to contact him. 

4. What went well in this interview?  Why do you think so?  What do you still need to improve?  How do you know?  How will you go about it?

This interview started off well. My mentor likes to talk in detail so I know I learn a lot from what he said in this interview. I do however feel awful that during the last few minutes, my parents had been calling me non-stop and it did affect the audio. Aside from this, the interview did go well. Next time, I will make sure to contact my parents beforehand and let them know that I'm going to be in an interview. 

I have also become more certain about my questions and a bit more confident with asking them. I try to speak clearly and ask my questions accordingly, trying to make it seem like a casual conversation. I do still have to work on the way I phrase somethings, but other than that I am doing alright.

Blog 9 - Advisory Prep 3

 

1. State whether or not you currently have a mentor, and what the status of your interview is with that person (I have completed the interview, I have scheduled the interview, I have not scheduled the interview, etc).

I have a mentor and I completed the interview yesterday. 

2. At this point, your research is probably guiding your studies toward more specific areas within your topic.  Name the area or two you find most promising and explain your reasons.   

I have yet to decide on a specific area within my topic. I am currently researching the different fields within my topic, civil litigation, to understand each one and then I will decide which one I will further investigate. I have been most interested in estate planning and drafting wills and trusts, as that is what I have experienced during my mentorship. 

3. What kinds of sources do you think will help you in the next month to gain more research depth?  Where will you go to get them?


I feel that published PDF files or documentaries will help me in the next month to gain more research depth. I will have to research which are the best documentaries in the specific areas I will be researching and use the CRAP method to determine if they are reliable or not. 

4. Write down a possible EQ.  Please don't worry about wording other than ensuring that it provides the option for multiple correct answers.  At this point, the senior team is most interested in understanding your thought process.

At the moment I have an idea of an EQ and it is as follows:

"Through what means, do you believe, would be ideal for a quick and easy trial?"

Blog 8: Independent Component 1 Proposal

The scene this image was taken from was during a trial, hopefully that's enough to capture your attention!

What is my Independent Component 1 idea?  I would like my Independent Component 1 to revolve around a case that was supposed to go to trial, however it was settled before the trial date and therefore, did not go to trial. 

1.  Describe in detail what you plan to do for your 30 hours.

I had helped my mentor with preparation for the trial including being present at a deposition, writing a deposition summary, filling out court subpoenas, organizing the exhibits (evidence), and organizing the case file. I was supposed to take notes during the trial of how it was carried out, but instead I read through and took notes on a packet handed to me by my mentor by the LA Superior Court that explains the Joint Trial Statement. My mentor had also discussed with me how settlements are carried out. 

Of course, this was not enough for the requirement of 30 hours; therefore, I also wanted to include the Mock Trial we had in class as part of my independent component. I understand that whatever paper I filed or anything I worked on during the preparation and during the settlement of the case during my mentorship was confidential; therefore, I thought that anything I used during the preparation of and during the process of the Mock Trial, would be perfect for this Independent Component 1. Anything I had done during my mentorship could be applied to the Mock Trial. I came up with the idea of creating a case file for the Mock Trial and all the hours I did were documented on a spreadsheet that is linked on my blog. 

2.  Discuss how or what you will do to meet the expectation of showing 30 hours of evidence.

I have decided to create a spreadsheet in which I explain everything I did within the allotted time specified in each session I worked on the independent component. 

3.  Explain how what you will be doing will help you explore your topic in more depth.

I feel that research I will be doing alongside the Mock Trial will help me understand how trials are carried out, not necessarily that of civil, but of criminal. I was thinking of creating an essay identifying the differences between the preparations of both criminal and civil trials based on what I've experienced and the research I do to better understand my topic and how it differs from criminal litigation. 

4.  Update your Senior Project Hours log.

**Posted on Blog, under "Senior Project Hours"

PS: I would like to be advised any other ways of documentation, because I feel that spreadsheets explaining what I did on a day by day basis is not enough. I was possibly thinking of making a short film, maybe a minute or two long, demonstrating what one does during trial preparation. (However, I believe that this might be a good idea for a independent component 2.)

Blog 7-Second Interview Preparation

It's time for my second interview and this time, I'm going to interview my mentor! 

Can't wait!

1.  Who is your mentor and where do they work?  If their workplace does not reflect their expertise, what makes them an expert?

My mentor is Mr. John L. Gordon and he works at a law firm that he helped co-found named Driskell & Gordon. 

2.  What five questions will you ask them about their background?

1. What interested you in pursuing a career in law?
2. What were your goals prior to becoming a lawyer?
• Do you believe you have now accomplished those goals? 
3. Now that you have been a lawyer for some time, is there something else you would like to pursue in the field of law? Why?
4. What are some examples of your involvement in the law community, such as seminars, teaching classes, writing books, etc.?
5. Do you feel that if you could go back in time to when you first started law school, knowing what you do now, would you have still entered law school and saw it until the very end? Why? 

***Additional questions to ponder:

1. Where did you complete your undergrad? 
• What did you major in? 
• Looking back now at what you have done and knowing what you do now, would you have changed your major? 
2. What Law School did you go to? How long were you there?
• Did you enjoy studying there? Why or why not?
3. Would you recommend either school? Why or why not?
4. How did you come to the decision of starting up a law firm?

Blog 6-Advisory Prep

The senior project hasn't been so difficult, but now I've reached a bit of a bump in the road. Hopefully, I will be able to get over it soon.

1. What has worked well for you concerning senior project this year?  What has made it a positive experience for you?  

I feel that just the organization of how I have managed my time to go to mentorship was a step in the right direction. I also feel like the fact that my mentor was going to trial, conveniently in time during my mentorship with him will help towards my independent component. I feel that overall my mentorship has been a very positive experience for me because I am being exposed to so much information and experiences that I might not have been introduced to until I actually became a lawyer myself. I feel that this will help me in the long run and I really am enjoying this project.

2. What are you finding difficult concerning senior project?  How can you adapt to make that portion work better for you?  How might the senior team help?

What I have been finding quite difficult concerning my senior project is deciding on an essential question, which I haven't decided on yet. I also feel that it will be pretty difficult for me to create a second independent component. I feel that as I progress through this mentorship process, I will be able to narrow down my essential question. However, in terms of my second independent component, I might need a little bit more help and some creativity. I hope that the senior team might give me some examples of what previous students who had a topic similar to mine did in the past, just so I can get an idea of what I could do. 

Blog 5-Interview 1 Reflection

"From a trickle to a roar!"
This has been the first interview and one of the first stages of the senior project. The first stage has begun with a trickle, literally! The rain we saw this week will only be the first in many more to come--hopefully. Of course, now we wait for the second stage and eventually...the roar. 

For the audio file of Interview 1: 
            https://soundcloud.com/karla-milicich/interview-1

For the transcript of Interview 1:
             https://docs.google.com/document/d/1soLpFMqsRItBR6yh0y2U5DMXU_i_eHcto-bRec6kk_A/edit?usp=sharing

1. What is the most important thing I learned from the interview?  Is there anything I would do differently for other interviews?

        The most important thing I learned from the interview is that English is very critical to an attorney's schooling and career. I am specifically referring to critical reading and critical thinking. Mr. Driskell, the person I interviewed, advised me to take English in college because of the advantages he saw that English majors had in law school. Lawyers need to be critical thinkers when it comes to cases; therefore, majoring in English may not be so bad. 

      There was one more important thing I learned that I must definitely change in my next interviews, and that is the fact that the first part of the interview include the asking of permission to record because, as I found out, if this is not done, you are committing a felony. I thought this was very important and should be something I should include in my next interviews. 

      I would also like to change how I asked the questions. I hope to ask more questions in the upcoming interviews and questions that really get into what I want to know. Of course, hopefully by then I will have decided on my essential question.  

2. Did I get additional resources and contacts?  What is the most useful?  Why?

     I did get additional resources for my research. Mr. Driskell had advised that I create a list of five to ten cases written by the best legal thinkers. This could serve as very helpful for my research of my senior topic and for narrowing down my essential question. 
     I was advised by Mr. Driskell to seek out lawyers from small firms that deal with defending insurance companies. I would like to look into this because my first interest for the senior project had been leaning towards this, but as I found out, Civil Litigation also included business law and personal injuries cases. I do know a personal injury attorney and plan to interview her for my next interview.
     I feel that the advise concerning the researching of the cases written by the best legal thinkers was the most useful because the information provided by those cases may give me an insight on what to decide for my essential question.

3. What makes my interviewee qualified to help me? 

      My interviewee was more than qualified to help me. He is the co-founder of the law firm in which I have my mentorship at. He has been a lawyer for more than thirty years and is well-known and liked in the legal community. He specializes in the areas of litigation, real estate, and business transactions. He has represented many large business clients, including airlines, shipping companies, and the oil industry. He graduated from Loyola Law School in 1976 and has been a lawyer ever since. 

For more information on Mr. Driskell visit: http://www.driskellgordon.com/?page_id=67

Blog 4 - House Advisory Prep

 Write a short explanation of what you are hoping to accomplish through your senior project topic.  You will be sharing out on what you've written here with your house advisory and classmates on Friday, 9/11.

        Through my senior project topic, I hope to learn more about a career I hope to pursue in the near future. I want to learn all the basics of civil litigation and all types of legal proceedings that fall under this category. I wish to become a successful and trustworthy attorney and I feel that the ideas I have for my essential question will help me become this. I have yet  to decide on an essential question, but I have in mind several that pertain to having a good relationship with my clients, a good relationship with my opposing council, and creating a welcoming environment for my clients. 
         I feel that through my senior project I will have the opportunity to hone in on my presentation and reading comprehension skills because as an attorney, this is not only recommended, but a requisite. Of course, iPoly has already taught me how to present well in front of large crowds; however, there are still times where I become nervous. I hope that through my senior project, I will be able to get rid of those nerves and look more calm, confident, and collected when I present. I also wish to better my reading comprehension skills. Reading is part of becoming an attorney due to the amount of paperwork an attorney has to deal with. My mentor is already helping me with this, as I have been writing several deposition summaries for him and other attorneys at the law firm I've been mentoring at. 
        I have presented several goals that I wish to attain throughout the course of my senior project. These goals, I would like to say, are all specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time based. As you may have noticed, these are all mentioned in the image above. I have made SMART goals that I know I can achieve by the end of my senior project! 

Blog 3 - First Interview Preparation

1.  Who do you plan to interview?  Why?

I plan to interview a attorney in the firm that I am mentoring at. I decided to not interview my mentor because I feel that I need someone else's perspective in regards to the type of questions that I am going to ask.

2.  Five questions will be assigned to all seniors to ask.  What additional questions do you plan to ask?  Ask open-ended questions. 

• What inspired you to become an attorney? or Why did you decide to become an attorney?
• What are your specialties?
• What kind of environment do you think should a law firm have?
• How should attorneys be towards their clients?
• What do you believe to be the most important factor to maintaining a good relationship with your clients?
• Have you ever had bad experiences concerning your relationship with a client? (You don't have to tell me the details of what happened. This could be a generalization and does not have to pertain to specific clients.)
• What, in your opinion, would lead to a fast and easy decision on a case?
• Would you say that a good relationship with the opposing counsel would be better for your case? Why?

Blog 2 - Summer Mentorship

This is the law firm that I have been doing my mentorship at. My mentor is one of the owners of the establishment. If you look closely, you can see me walking to the entrance. 

1. List the contact name, phone number, and organization of the person with whom you volunteered.

    Mentor:               John L. Gordon

    Occupation:         Attorney

    Law Firm:           Driskell and Gordon -- Attorneys at Law

    Location:             180 N Glendora Ave.
                              Glendora, CA 91741

    Office Number:   (626) 914-7809

    For more information visit: http://www.driskellgordon.com/
 
2. What qualified this person as an expert in your topic choice?

   Mr. Gordon, I feel, is more than qualified to be my mentor. He is great at what he does. He completed his undergraduate studies at Azusa Pacific University and received a Juris Doctor at the College of Law at the University of La Verne. He specializes in conservatorships, guardianships, and civil and business litigation. He is frequently appointed by the court to advise and serve as a PVP in cases concerning conservatorships and guardianships.  He also has conducted several seminars on Special Needs Trusts for the mentally disabled and has drafted many (and I mean many) such Trusts. Aside from this, he has been an instructor of Business Law at Citrus College.

  My mentor is a respected individual and is well known in the Los Angeles County. He is known for his integrity and compassion. As aforementioned, he is great at what he does and I am glad I chose him as my mentor.

3. List three questions for further exploration now that you've completed your summer hours.

• What is the best possible way to create an inviting and hospitable environment for your clients?

• On the first day of my mentorship, my mentor shared with me that it is very important to be compassionate towards your clients because in many cases, they are dealing with outside problems that may not pertain to the matters at hand. He also told me that this is the very reason that when a client enters the door, the attorneys, secretary, and para legals try their best to make the clients feel welcome and have their meeting be quick and easy. 

• How does an attorney maintain a good relationship with their clients?

• For an attorney to excel in a case, he or she must have a good relationship with their clients. An important factor of a good relationship between attorney and client is communication. There may be instances where clients do not comply with what the attorneys advise them to do and in other instances, the attorney may be lazy and not do what is required of him or her.  

• What is the best way to maintain a good relationship with the opposing council in a case?

• My mentor is very-well known and is greeted by many attorneys at court. This is because in many instances the attorneys that greet him are attorneys that been on the opposing side, or council, of a case he had. He maintains good relationships with many of them and as I've witnessed, a good relationship with the opposing council ensures an easier and a more pleasant ending to a case. 

4. What is the most important thing you gained from this experience? Why?

   The most important thing that I have learned from this experience is that those who win cases are not those who are necessarily right, but those who can present the best and are the most convincing. My mentor and I had a talk one day about this. I feel that this was one of the most important things that he taught me and I feel that it essentially applies to everything in life, because the prettiest and the most appealing is what catches your eye. Unfortunately, in many cases, those who are right don't win and both the attorneys and clients have to deal with these things.

5. What is your senior project topic going to be? How did mentorship help you make your decision? Please explain.

    At first, I was keen on making my topic "business law" and I had many ideas, but as my mentorship began, I noticed that my mentor didn't get a lot of cases concerning business litigation. He received a lot of cases concerning civil litigation. I feel that if I change my topic to "civil litigation" (also known as civil disputes that do not include criminal action) I will have more information available because I will have more exposure to civil dispute cases than business litigation cases.

    I have decided to change my senior topic to "civil litigation".

Blog 1 – Senior Final Lesson/Interview Reflection

 1.  What three lessons were most helpful for you to see, and why?

    The first lesson I saw that helped me better understand the senior project was the lesson on Business Administration by Karla Vanessa Rodriguez. This lesson was one of the first lesson that I witnessed where the presenter had placed certain items concerning her topic around the room. I learned that by placing items related to your topic around the room will help your audience have a better focus on your topic. This way, if an audience member becomes “bored”, they have something to look at that will help them visualize what your topic might be about. 
    The second lesson I saw that helped me better understand the senior project was the presentation on Primary Care by Joseph Garcia. From this presentation, I learned that an interesting video on a topic that most find not very interesting, would be a great idea for a hook. I also learned that providing a snack before the presentation will keep your audience occupied as they pay attention. Food is very helpful because most people can’t fall asleep or become “bored” while they are eating; therefore, if the audience members are munching on something as you example your topic, your audience will become a lot more attentive.
    The third and last lesson I saw that helped me better understand the senior project was the presentation on Early Childhood Development by Patty Arellano. What Patty had done was, she had us all pay attention to her presentation and by the end of the presentation if we had not dozed off or gone into “outer space” we would receive a treat. This motivation to stay awake really helped and I noticed that most of the audience members paid attention to Patty’s presentation. She had also included several personal experiences she encountered during her mentorship that were humorous. I noticed that the audience really paid attention to what she had to say because when the activity came around, mostly everyone understood what she had presented and were ready for the activity. 

2. List one thing that you learned about the senior project in interviews that will help you get off to a good start?

    One thing I learned about the senior project from the interviews that will help me get off to a good start for next year was to stay on task and not to procrastinate. Understandably, most people at Ipoly procrastinate, but senior year is unlike any other year. It requires a lot of work and effort, not to mention time management and prioritizing your time efficiently. A specific example I was given by the seniors that I interviews was to check the senior blog constantly because as Ingrid had stated “the blog will be [my] Bible” for next year.

3. What topic(s) are you considering, and why?

    I have been considering the topic of business law because I want to become a business lawyer in the future. I feel that a mentorship in business law will provide me with a unique experience that will help me in the future when I am looking for a job as a business lawyer. 

4. What EQ do you think might be interesting to consider in guiding a project like this? (Please don’t worry about any sort of formula…we want this question to come from your genuine interest).

    I was considering an EQ along the lines of “What is the importance of law in a business setting?” but I feel that it might be too vague. I was also considering “What might a business lawyer need to become successful?” but that also seems too vague. 

5. What are some ideas you have about finding summer mentorship? 

    I actually already found a mentor. He is a business and litigation lawyer who has his own law firm in Glendora. If I were to still be in need of a mentor, I would have possibly thought of going online and searched for law firms close by that deal with business or corporate law, which are basically the same thing.