South Texas College of Law, Annotations (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 7, No. 1, July, 1978 Page: 3 of 13
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Pag* 2 — Annotations — July 1978
Dean Walker
STCL Student
Tops Bar
deal, some files more than others.
Some have detailed resumes of
their accomplishments and of
course, I feel like this is a plus,
since the majority only have their
file. The person who has his
resume, whether or not it is
required, shows he is more
perceptive with what he takes to
do things. Little things like this is
what makes the difference. Now it
doesn't matter for someone who
has an outstanding LSAT and
grade point average. They are
going to make it on their own. But
it does make a difference to
someone who is borderline or
maybe below borderline. Then
there are a few cases where I have
accepted a person when we have
had better students, where I
thought he needed, very badly, a
new direction in his life.
So you've given
Yes, and they've indicated
candidate for South Texas?
I think it's a hodgepodge. I
would hot necessarily say that it
was the highest LSAT and grade
point average. I think it takes a
well-rounded individual. The
highest LSAT and grade point
individual may not be well-
rounded. Yet, he may be. But I
wouldn't think of just that. I think
you need somebody who is alert.
Alert to what's going on in the
world. Not just to himself, but
what is going on generally. He
should have reasonably good
grade point averages and LSAT,
superior if possible. I like to see a
person with a great deal of
eagerness and determination to
be a lawyer. I'd like him to have
some feeling for others, not just
himself. I don't think there's
anything wrong with making
money as long as you're not
determined to run over other
people to accomplish this.
should ask the graduates or ask
Mrs. Welsh.
Do they crane back to yon?
Oh, yes, they come in, drop in
all the time. Ask Mrs. Welsh who
has contact with the alumni
because she deals with them.
Many of the students feel that
since this Is a night school
basically, that many of the
offices likewise
during the night.
Is this a problem?
No, because the administration
offices are open during the entire
day and the majority of our
students are full-time students.
Therefore, they have no trouble
coming down here. If a part-time
student has a real problem
coming down here, or taking care
of his administrative situation,
usually arrangements can be
made to see the student. Most of
them can get off during the
daytime hours. Since this is a
"I like to see a person with a great deal of
eagerness and determination to be a lawyer.
I'd like him to have some feeling for others, not
just himself."
almost a desperation for someone
to lift them up a little bit. Now
those people come in regularly
and let me know how they've
done in law school. Ihad 19 one
semester that came in. I did not
have any of the 19, when the
grades came oat, that had under a
72.1 had one with an average in
the 90 s. There were several 86's,
I did not have a single student in
that group in trouble. I had one
student that wrote, I thought,
almost a desperate letter. Not
begging, but telling me the
factual situation and I called him
to tell him that I was going to take
him, that I was going to change
his life, in fact he is here now.
He's daing a geod Job?
Yes.
Can .
or fathers in behalf of stadeata?
Yes, I don't pay much attention
to that sort of letter. I've never
gotten a bad letter about anyone.
I have taken a student because his
father was dying of cancer and
was quite desperate to see his son
established.
wfl és to got ta *e scfceel, that
JMMCUl?
Yes, we have, but I just can't
think of those right now.
Whet is year Mea of
stadeat who yon gave this chance
to who later transfers to a college
that he coold not have gotten into
business organization as well as a
school, we have to deal with other
organizations that keep regular
I don't own the student, I
realize that. I don't like to lose a
student, ever. I don't like for
them to transfer, I don't like for
them to flunk out. I don't like for
them to leave because of financial
problems. We work with students
to try to keep them in school. I've
even loaned them money myself.
The business office will loan
money to students. There is
hardly ever a student who has to
leave this school because of
financial problems. Now we don't
always have that money, but we
are very lenient. There is a point
beyond which we can't go. The
same filing is true academically. I
try to do what I can. If a person
wants to come in and talk to me
about how to better his grades,
I'll try to spend all the time I can
to make suggestions. I don't want
him to fail, but again, there is a
point beyond which I cannot go. I
owe an obligation to the school to
keep the standards up.
What type of rapport do yon
I have a good
You
Theie is a great percentage of
I think in some respects it's
coincidental because we happen-
ed to get some Florida people ear-
ly, about 20 years ago. Possibly
by accident, I don't know. They
came here and did very well.
They were satisfied with ~ the
school and started sending their
friends here. This was at a time
when it was not particularly
difficult to get in law school
anywhere. Then as it became
more difficult to get in a law
school, these people would send
us applicants. Then, coupled with
the fact that we have always done
extremely well on the Florida bar
examination, we are getting
more and more applicants. I
possibly could fill the school up
with Florida applicants, if I
wanted to.
No, I don't think it's needed.
By Rudy de la Garza
Staff Writer
"Start studying from the day
that you enter law school, that is
the secret of passing the bar
exam," according to James
Kopp, a January graduate of
South Texas College of Law, who
led the field of applicants on the
February bar exam with the score
of 89.84.
Kopp explained that you have
to plan your law school career
from the first day. Most courses
taken at the law school should be
bar courses.
In his case, he took all bar
courses except Agency and Part-
nership and Conflict of Laws.
Kopp coupled this approach with
long hours of study and prepara-
tion, both for his coursework and
the bar exam. He achieved the
Dean's List every semester and
graduated number two in his
graduating class. While at South
Texas, he served on the Law
Journal, rising to the position of
Special Projects Editor.
Despite his solid background in
school courses aimed at the bar
exam, Kopp did take a bar review
course. He said that one uses the
bar exam to clarify one's think-
ing — "to bring it all together."
Besides, it brings up matters one
may not be aware of, such as
recent decisions, and the in-
structors can give hints on taking
the bar questions, especially for
the Multistate.
Kopp emphasized that the
main study vehicle for the Texas
portion of the exam should be
one's classnotes. "These are
more valuable than the bar review
notes in courses where you can
get good notes out of a class. The
student is already familiar with
his classnotes — they are in his
own words and need only to
refresh his memory."
The need to prepare and save
these classnotes is but one
example of preparing for the bar
exam from the first law school
class, he explained.
James Kopp
To make a well-rounded at-
torney, Kopp suggested, the
student needs to take more than
just the school hours designated
as bar courses. He recommended
Administrative Law and a trial
advocacy class because of the
Immense help that those courses
render to a practicing attorney. In
addition, he stresses that there
are two important things to get
from the law school career,
though they are not part of the
formal education. These are the
ability to write a legal memoran-
dum in proper form and the
ability to handle advocacy
competition. Moot court (or mock
trial) forces you to make the legal
decisions you make in real life —
"it takes the equivocation out of
the student."
Kopp worked as a stockbroker
at Merrill Lynch while attending
STLC. Since graduation, he has
worked in the legal department at
Gulf Oil. Becuase his work is only
blocks away from South Texas, he
plans on speaking at his alma
mater on the topic of preparing
for the bar exam. This talk will be
from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., Tuesday,
July 11.
sa pace 3
5'
t
Tríete
A STCL TRADITION
Hear Ye!
Hear Ye!
Be it known that the
management has
declared a
SPECIAL
STUDENT SUBSIDY
BEERS... Fifty Cants
Highballs. j. One Dollar
7
a
the
corner
1211 FANNIN 652-3*48
t
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Dies, David & Bettman, Gerald S. South Texas College of Law, Annotations (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 7, No. 1, July, 1978, newspaper, July 1978; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth144377/m1/3/: accessed April 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting South Texas College of Law.