Creating a Legal Resume (from the University of Georgia Law)

Your resume is usually the first information about you that an employer will see.  Be sure it represents your qualifications in a relevant, updated, accurate and precise manner.  You should carefully review your resume for each job application and, if necessary, customize it for that job and employer.

 

Top Ten Starting Points:

1. “Objective” and “Summary of Qualifications” sections are not traditions on legal resumes, but may be used if you are applying outside the legal field (for example, using your J.D. degree in a non-Bar licensed job).
2. Most commonly, organize information in reverse chronological order within each category.
3. Using color and graphics is strongly discouraged on a legal resume.  Avoid multiple fonts or those that are difficult to read.  Keep it simple.  Focus on content.
4. Target different employers with different resumes.  Highlight experiences, leadership roles, coursework, student activities, clinical/externships, etc. by category organization and page placement.  Customize for the job and the employer.
5. “Computer Skills” are likely not relevant to the job unless specifically requested by the employer.  If you include “Language Skills” be accurate.  Include hobbies or other information as space allows; be ready to discuss and include items that are interesting but not odd.
6. Placement on the page: the eye reads from left to right – get important information on the left margin.  Information on the top third of the page gets the most attention.  Lead the eye down the page with clear headings and bullets for rapid scanning.
7. Wording:  Use active voice.  The first-person subject “I” is understood, so don’t use pronouns in your descriptions.  Try and remove any unnecessary words; be concise.
8. Length: The default is one page, unless you are applying for a public interest or government position.  For government and public interest, stick to two pages or less.
9. Save your resume in pdf form before sending, and test e-mail it to yourself (and a friend) to be sure it retains its format through transmittal.
10. Do the “10 Second Test” – hand a printed version of your final resume to a friend for 10 seconds.  Take it back, ask them to recite what they remember, quickly.  See if you are making the quick first impression you want to make.

 

Click on this link to read entire article, plus advice on grade resumes and samples.

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San Diego Law Library Celebrates Law Week

The San Diego Law Library is joining California County Law Libraries throughout the state in celebrating Law Week, April 28-May 2. In honor of Law Week we are hosting a series of events designed to increase access to justice.

See more at: http://sandiegolawlibrary.org/join-us/law-day-2014/#sthash.fQf7TRru.e1Cp4Y5H.dpuf

Design Patents: Law Without Design by Peter Lee & Madhavi Sunder

Design patents have recently burst onto the intellectual property stage, but they are surprisingly underdeveloped for a body of law that is more than a century and a half old. Design patents are, quite simply, a body of law without design: there is little coherent theoretical underpinning for this long overlooked form of intellectual property. Now, as design patents are poised to assume greater prominence in the legal and economic realms, the time is ripe for examining myriad justifications for exclusive rights in design in order to develop a richer theoretical foundation for this body of law.

continue reading: http://journals.law.stanford.edu/stanford-technology-law-review/online/design-patents-law-without-design

TODAY IS EARTH DAY!

For updated environmental news, visit: http://www.earthday.org or http://www.epa.gov/

In related news, The Justice Department announced the biggest environmental cash settlement in history, securing a $5.15 billion deal with Anadarko Petroleum to clean up dozens of sites across the country and compensate more than 7,000 people living with the effects of the contamination. Continue reading: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/04/business/energy-environment/anadarko-petroleum-to-pay-5-1-billion-to-settle-pollution-case.html?_r=0

The realities of bullying and how lawyers can help

-280,000 students are attacked monthly in high school.
-15 to 30 percent of students are bullies or victims.
-9 in 10 gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students have been bullied.
-Victims of bullying are up to nine times more likely to think about suicide.
-Only 36 percent of bullying incidents are reported.
-3.7 million sixth- to 10th-graders will engage in bullying every year.
-Bullying is linked to 75 percent of shootings.

to read the entire article: http://www.americanbar.org/news/abanews/aba-news-archives/2014/04/the_realities_ofbul.html

National Library Week is April 13-19, 2014

In the mid 1950’s, worried that Americans were spending less on books and more on televisions, the American Library Association (ALA) and its sponsors decided to annually observe National Library Week. The ALA believed “that once people were motivated to read, they would support and use libraries.” Each April since 1958, the ALA and libraries across the country have observed and participated in National Library week.

Next week, celebrate the contributions of your library! Join TJSL Library on the week-long full of fun, including: prizes for the most creative excuses for an overdue library book, cake, and a chance to win an Apple iPod Shuffle! Keep an eye out for an email with more details.