Spring 2020 Exam Information
Spring 2020 Exam Schedule & Check In Procedure
The Spring 2020 exam schedule is posted here. If you do not see your course on the scheduled exam list, please check the take-home list and the free-slot exam list. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact jennifer.bretschneider@temple.edu.
Please remember that it is your responsibility to check in to the Exam Central Zoom a half hour before the time you would like to take your free slot, deferred, or Saturday exam. Please contact britt.walden@temple.edu with any questions.
Summer 2020 Schedule & Registration
Summer 2020 Course Schedule
The summer 2020 course schedule is now posted here. Registration forms are due by Wednesday, May 6, 2020 (3:00 PM) and can be found here. Summer 2020 courses begin on May 18th (for both JD and Graduate Tax courses). Click here for more information about the summer session calendar, registration information and course descriptions.
Please note that all law school courses are distance education courses this summer. There are 4 synchronous courses for JD students: Accounting for Lawyers (exam course), Renewable Energy Law, Regulation and Policy (exam course), Internet of Things (serial writing course) and Forensic Evidence, Science and Medicine (serial writing course). There are also 5 asynchronous online courses: Consumer Law, Insurance Law, National Security: Counterterrorism, Secured Transactions and Sports Law. JD students will be permitted to enroll in a maximum of six credits this summer BUT JD students may enroll in a maximum of one asynchronous online distance education course. Questions? Please email jennifer.bretschneider@temple.edu.
Virtual Events
Law Student Support Group with Tuttleman
Tuttleman Counseling Services counselors are here to support you as we navigate the pandemic and the inevitable changes to our daily lives. This is an open group for Temple Law students to come together and discuss current thoughts, feelings, and struggles related to the coronavirus and to your personal and academic lives. While this is not a therapy group, TCS counselors hope this can be a supportive and therapeutic space and we look forward to hearing how you as students have been coping while also sharing any skills or coping strategies we believe may be beneficial. Additionally, while confidentiality is not guaranteed, we ask all members joining the conversation to be in a private setting and to be respectful of those in group. Join weekly on Wednesdays at 3:00 pm via Zoom with password: 507348
Study Break Trivia
The final Study Break Trivia from the library is posted on your class Canvas Page. This is the last week! Get your answers in by Tuesday, May 5th at 6:00 pm.
Alcoholics Anonymous Open Meetings
7 am daily: Top of the Hill Group (Friends of Bill W.)
To enter with a PC, smartphone or tablet/Ipad click on the following link:
https://zoom.us/j/4621486639
If asked for a password
enter-492979.
To call in by telephone (audio only) dial: +1 929 205 6099
The meeting code is: 4621486639
The meeting will OPEN at 6:45 am and BEGIN at 7. You may join a meeting already in progress after 7am.
7:30 am daily: https://meeting.princetonwinnerscircle.org
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Winners Circle in Princeton, NJ is sponsors a parallel daily 7:30 A.M. EDT virtual meeting at: https://meeting.princetonwinnerscircle.org
Zoom meeting ID is 700 217 082.
Tuesday and Friday, 5:30 pm, 4th and Pine Happy Hour
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/59351547605935154760
Old Pine Street Presbyterian Church, Society Hill (D27 / GSO #118513)
412 Pine Street
https://www.aasepia.org/locations/location-412-pine-st-philadelphia-pa-19106-usa/meeting-412-pine-st-philadelphia-pa-19106-usa-2-173000/
Monday through Friday, 1 pm, 4th and Pine Hope Group
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/75511471319294362866755114713886991
School Designed Practicums
Fall 2020 School Designed Practicum Courses
We are pleased to announce the Fall 2020 School Designed Practicum Courses. A Practicum combines an experiential learning project with supervision and evaluation by a member of the full time faculty. There are a wealth of meaningful learning opportunities in a variety of fields including compliance, employment law, immigration, and tax. Please see each individual description to learn what material to submit, to whom you should submit the material, and the respective deadline. Questions? Contact Mai Le at mai.le@temple.edu. We look forward to seeing your applications!
Community Reminders
Celebration of Graduates – Photo Montage Submissions
The law school will be creating a photo montage as part of our digital celebration of graduates this year. In order to make sure that all of our graduates are represented, we’re asking you to share your memories of law school by submitting photos to lawphotos@temple.edu.
• Please include the names of the people in the photos.
• Please do not submit photos with alcohol or anything that would be deemed illegal/inappropriate in the background.
• Please submit your photos by May 4th at 5 PM.
If you would not like to be included in the photo montage, please let Alex Peachey (avp@temple.edu) know by May 4th.
Summer Work Study
The deadline to apply for Summer Work Study has been extended to May 15th. If you need Summer Work Study please go here for information on how to apply.
Pennsylvania Absentee Mail-In Ballot
Remember to request a mail-in ballot by May 26th! https://www.pavoterservices.pa.gov/OnlineAbsenteeApplication/#/OnlineAbsenteeBegin
Book Rentals & Returns
Book refunds are only done during the first week of classes. For book rental returns, students can log on to their account on the website or follow the link in their most recent email regarding rentals. When you log on, you can use your order number and print a UPS label.
JD Spring Semester Abroad Program in Japan
For over 26 years, Temple University’s international law program in Japan has offered law students a unique opportunity to study in Tokyo for an entire spring semester. The law program in Japan is designed to educate the next generation of lawyers to practice in the global marketplace and to provide aspiring lawyers with the opportunity to become intimately familiar with the international practice of law and legal community. The program also provides participants with an invaluable chance to experience Asia and an opportunity to become distinguished in a competitive legal market. The Spring 2021 application is due October 15, 2020. You may find details here.
Virtual Office Hours with Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers
LCL continues to remain available for virtual student hours via Zoom or FaceTime. You are welcome to contact Ms. Laurie Besden directly at laurie@lclpa.org. Please also refer to LCL’s law student brochure, which outlines LCL’s safe, free, confidential, and supportive services.
Law Library – Virtual
As a reminder, virtual library service is available Monday through Thursday 8 am to 6 pm and Fridays 8 am to 5 pm. During this time you can contact us via Zoom at https://temple.zoom.us/j/921213209. We are closed on the weekends, but you can still email us a request on a weekend day.
Additionally, Interlibrary Loan (ILL) will not be available during this time. You can still put in requests for purchases of physical materials during this time, but we will not be able to get them to you until operations resume to normal. Please contact us to see if we can find an electronic version of any resource you may need during this time.
Information on resources available from other Temple Libraries during this closure is available here.
Wolters Kluwer Casebooks & Study Aids – Electronic Access
In partnership with VitalSource, Wolters Kluwer is providing free digital e-textbooks for students who lost access to their purchased book or library resources due to a shift from in-person to online classes. For more information regarding the VitalSource Helps Program, please read the full press release.
1. To get started, students should visit bookshelf.vitalsource.com and log-in or create a Bookshelf account with their institution-provided email address.
2. Here are instructions on creating a Bookshelf account for both students and instructors.
3. Once students create an account with an institution-provided email address, they should log in and click on the “Explore” tab in the upper left corner of the screen. This tab provides access to the freely available e-textbooks.
For a complete list of VitalSource frequently asked questions regarding access to the VitalSource Helps Program, please visit their site to learn more. Please note that at this time, student downloads are limited to 7 titles and trial access will expire on Monday, May 25th, 2020.
For courses where a Connected Casebook has been adopted, we will also provide students access to the e-book, learning tools, and study center for their textbook on CasebookConnect.com. Student access will include:
• Digital e-textbooks with search, highlighting, and note-taking capabilities
• Additional learning materials and practice questions from leading study aids such as Examples & Explanations and Glannon Guides, including: Video explanations, Flashcards, Multiple choice, Hypothetical short answer, Essays, Issue-spotting exercises
• Outlining and Case-briefing tools to help students work more efficiently
An online study aid library is also available through mid May and includes Examples & Explanations, Glannon Guides, videos on fundamental legal concepts, and more. Contact the library (tulawlib@temple.edu) for a user name and password. Then register a personal account to add and save notes, highlights, and bookmarks. Read ebooks online or download an app to download materials for off-line reading. This video walks through the features of the site.
Campus Resources
- Student Emergency Aid Fund (application and information)
- Student Health Services
- Tuttleman Counseling Services: Closed for in person meetings but continuing to offer remote services
- Cherry Pantry: Moving to the Temple Police substation in Morgan Hall South on Broad Street near Oxford – the service will be open twice a week on Tuesdays from 10 am to 12 pm and Fridays from 3 pm to 5 pm, and students will be given a bag of food after showing their ID
Please note that campus recreation is closed until further notice.
And as always, please feel free to reach out to Student Affairs with any concerns.
Bar Exam & MPRE Information
Bar Exam Tips – Week 18
You can see here the jurisdictions that have made announcements concerning changes to the administration of the July 2020 bar examination.
The Pennsylvania Board of Law Examiners has announced that the exam will be rescheduled to September 9-10, according to an April 28th press release. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued an order authorizing a limited license for July 2020 bar exam applicants.
Keep a look out for bar tips delivered to you each week this semester in the Post!
New York Bar Exam
The New York Court of Appeals announced that the exam will be rescheduled to September 9-10. Due to limits expected on the number of large venues the Board typically uses to administer the exam, the Board will not be able to test all candidates typically applying to take a July exam; it will prioritize groups of candidates and expects to announce a staggered schedule for and necessary limits on applications. The Board additionally encourages candidates to consider sitting for the UBE at a later date or in other jurisdictions.
JD students should feel free to email Dean Bretschneider and Professor Shellenberger in a single email (jennifer.bretschneider@temple.edu and jshell@temple.edu) to set up a Zoom meeting to discuss potential alternative UBE states if interested. LL.M students should feel free to email Dean Smagula (john.smagula@temple.edu).
Important Changes to the 2020 MPRE
There are some important changes to the 2020 MPRE that all students should know about.
- August and October are the next available MPRE administrations. The MPRE is no longer administered during a single two-hour period on Saturday. Instead, students will select one of several two-hour appointment times on one of the two weekday test dates.
- The test will be administered on a computer at a Pearson VUE testing center. This is a new location compared to past administrations. Students will select a testing center when they schedule their test appointment.
- There is no late registration deadline. The earlier students register with NCBE and schedule their appointment with Pearson VUE, the more likely they will be to get an appointment with their desired location, date, and test time.
- If students plan to seek accommodations under the ADA, they should apply for accommodations as soon as possible to allow NCBE time to review their application. Those applying for accommodations should check their NCBE File Cabinets frequently for updates on their accommodations applications.
Any questions should be directed to NCBE at 608.280.8550 or by email to mpreregistration@ncbex.org (for questions about registration) or mpre.ada@ncbex.org (for questions about accommodations). You may visit their website here.
Scholarships & Writing Competitions
$500 Intellectual Property Writing Contest
The PBA Intellectual Property Law Section is offering $500 to the law student winner of the section’s 2020 writing contest. This is an opportunity for law students attending any law school in the United States who intend to sit for the Pennsylvania bar exam, to express in writing their insight and knowledge in the areas of patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets or trade dress. In addition to the cash award, the winning entry will be published in the section newsletter and on the section page of the PBA website. Applicants are asked to submit a statement describing your plans after graduating from law school. Read more about the contest and the submission process here. For additional information and to view past winning entries, visit the section’s webpage here. Entry Deadline Extended to May 4th.
ABA Real Property & Trust & Estate Law – Writing Contest
The goal of the Real Property and Trust and Estate Law Writing Contest is to encourage and reward law student writing on the subjects of real property or trust and estate law. Articles submitted for judging are encouraged to be of timely topics and have not been previously published. This contest is open to all law and LL.M students currently attending an ABA-accredited law school. The first-place winner will receive a number of awards including $2,500. A second and third place winner will also be selected. The contest deadline is May 31, 2020.
Alternative Dispute Resolution – Law Student Writing Competition
$10,000 prize! The purpose of this competition is to heighten interest in, and competence related to, student writing on the subject of Alternate Dispute Resolution. Aside from the $10,000
cash grand prize, and $1,000 prize for best NY paper, winning entries may be published in NYSBA’s New York Dispute Resolution Lawyer publication and/or the American Journal of Mediation. Papers initially prepared for class, journals, etc. are eligible for submission. There aren’t strict page count guidelines, however 15-30 pages, double-spaced is recommended. Email papers to:
nysbaacctmjournalcontest@gmail.com (any questions and inquiries can be sent here as well.) Submission Deadline: June 1, 2020.