CDTA

California Bar Exam Officially Scheduled For September

California Bar Exam Officially Scheduled For September

Any student engaged in online, distance learning at a progressive law school like California Desert Trial Academy College of Law, has the freedom to study whenever and wherever, at their utmost convenience. In these current troubled times, CDTA students are at an advantage based on the online resources available to them on campus and at the CDTA website. On April 27, the Supreme Court of California postponed the July California Bar Exam to September 9-10. Applicants registered for the July exam will automatically be registered for the September exam. However, applicants must still submit all eligibility documents to the State Bar. The California...

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About The Different Types Of Attorney’s Fees

About The Different Types Of Attorney’s Fees

This is a quick summary of the common types of fee arrangements used by lawyers. Any fee must be reasonable, and the client must agree to it and all other provisions of the fee arrangement. Consultation: This is a fixed or hourly fee that clients are charged for their first meeting with an attorney where the needs and goals of the clients are discussed and the attorney ascertains whether he or she can satisfy and achieve them on the client’s behalf. Many attorneys, such as bankruptcy and personal injury attorneys offer free, first-time consultations. Contingency: This fee is based on...

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About Fee Agreements And Costs

About Fee Agreements And Costs

This week's blogs feature topics related to legal fees. In April 2020, the national average cost of attorney’s fees where an hourly rate is charged is $225 per hour. The minimum cost is $100, and the maximum is $1,000. The average range is from $100 to $300. The type of fee arrangement that an attorney utilizes is often based on the type of legal issues that a client presents for resolution. Attorneys must base their fees on a clearly communicated and memorialized fee agreement negotiated at the beginning of their representation with clients. Regardless of whatever a local state bar’s rules...

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Simple, Useful Memorization Techniques For Use In Law School

Simple, Useful Memorization Techniques For Use In Law School

Of course, answering an essay question on a law school midterm or a bar exam requires applied knowledge more than rote memorization. Law students must use critical thinking and connect or apply the information they have learned to a set of facts, recognize issues, and solve problems. But before tackling the rigors of a law exam essay question, students must genuinely know the information. Here are some tips for effectively memorizing information: Record notes for later listening When I was in law school, I sat next to a former legal secretary who knew shorthand. She would take all her class notes in shorthand,...

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The Typical Life Cycle Of A Client File

The Typical Life Cycle Of A Client File

While most of us live in a computerized, digital world, the legal industry revolves primarily around information, notes, and documentation. Attorneys obtain information, then classify and organize it. A client file is how attorneys organize the information related to a client. For every client that retains an attorney or law firm, there is a file. There may even be multiple files within files that contain documentation relevant to each matter concerning the client. The longer the client has been represented by the attorney or firm, the larger the file. Law firms must typically devote a large portion of their office space...

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There are Many Paths To A Meaningful Legal Career – Human Resources and Employment

There are Many Paths To A Meaningful Legal Career – Human Resources and Employment

Law students must always remember that the unique and vast knowledge that they have gained in law school provides them many options and paths for rewarding and meaningful careers practicing law, as well as working in other traditionally non-legal areas and disciplines. The consideration of pursuing a career outside the traditional practice of law is a notion that most law students and graduates undertake at some point. However, it is not always simple to ascertain clearly how they may use their law degree in areas other than law. Those who are willing to think “outside the box” and expend the necessary time...

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Law Practice Tips: Disaster Recovery Planning

Law Practice Tips: Disaster Recovery Planning

Every business has had to adapt to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic and quarantine, including businesses that engage in the practice of law. Granted, most business owners, including attorneys, were not prepared for the effects of the coronavirus. But it was those attorneys who were prepared for the pandemic or anything like it, to any extent, that were able to more quickly adapt and keep their law practices operating. Although most attorneys possess the ability to think on their feet and react to a situation analytically in an expedient fashion, it is best to be prepared so that they...

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California Bar Exam Postponed Until September

California Bar Exam Postponed Until September

Any student engaged in online, distance learning at a progressive law school like California Desert Trial Academy College of Law, has the freedom to study whenever and wherever, at their utmost convenience. In these current troubled times, CDTA students are at an advantage based on the online resources available to them on campus and at the CDTA website. This access will prove invaluable when preparing for the bar exam. On April 27, the Supreme Court of California ordered the July California Bar Exam to be postponed to September 9-10 and directed the State Bar to expend every effort to administer the test online...

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Ten Tips For Voir Dire

Ten Tips For Voir Dire

Generally. voir dire involves the preliminary examination of a juror by counsel. Frankly, voir dire is the mechanism through which attorneys select, or perhaps more appropriately reject, certain jurors to sit and hear a case. It is also a phrase used for a variety of procedures related to jury trials. Here are ten tips for effective voir dire. Adopt the proper orientation. Questioning during voir dire should be “conversational” rather than like an interview. Tell jurors why they are there. Explain the process to jurors requesting, if not cordially demanding, their honesty and candor, while helping them acknowledge their biases. Get jurors...

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Checklist For 1st Year Law Students, Part Two

Checklist For 1st Year Law Students, Part Two

The following is the second part of a checklist for first-year law students: Consider group study. While study groups are not for every law student, they may be a productive and efficient way to learn and prepare for a course, in the short-term, i.e., classes, and long-term, i.e., final exam. Discussing legal concepts outside of class in a different environment may increase a student’s understanding and retention of course topics. If interested in a study group, seek and find those students with whom you share similar study group goals. Time spent away from class and solitary studying is most precious, do...

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