Reflection blog. May 4th 2014

At the beginning of this project I was very overwhelmed at all the requirements just to be able to pass. I didn't quite understand why we were being put in this position, and I felt stressed about the whole thing. At many stages throughout this project I wanted to just give up and accept the consequences. I think the only reason I continued to follow through with it was to be able to say that I finally accomplished something in life. Something that I have never been able to say is that I followed through with a task to the end of it. I thought about how accomplished I would feel when I walked across that stage knowing that I did something for myself.
I am glad to say that I have completed this project to the best of my abilities. At the beginning of this project I was a very unorganized adolescent who viewed life as an irrelevant thing. It didn't hit me that life isn't all fun and games until I began to really try hard at the project. Before this project my sole purpose in life was trying to work and get money to buy whatever I wanted education always came second. It made me realize that not everything is handed to you in life and you have to go out of your way to achieve your goals. I learned to manage my time and I also improved on my communication skills. The best part about my project was being able to work with such a great mentor. I can't thank him enough he is a very centered guy that is really into what he does. My mentor taught me a lot not only about his job, but about how to be an overall well rounded person. He also taught me how to properly format an email which I have found very beneficial in these times of technology. I can honestly say that I have changed for the better throughout this project. Being yourself can sometimes be a challenge, but trying to put yourself in another's position is extremely difficult this project taught me to be patient and persistent.
Capstone made me realize what I really wanted to do with my life and I'm very grateful for that. I will pursue my dreams not to be a lawyer but a police officer. Although both careers are fairly similar before capstone my obvious choice was always a lawyer. I was uninformed and I was probably going to pursue a career that didn't interest me. I realized that I wasn't the type of person to be sitting behind a desk reading cases for hours on end. I am someone that likes to take initiative and work in a fast paced environment, but I am also interested in the law. My choice to become a law enforcer goes about my beliefs because not only am I bringing justice under the constitution, but I am also in a less boring field of work.

Final meeting. May 2, 2014

On Friday the 2nd I met with my mentor for the last time. I was excited to finish up my hours but I was also kind of sad. Once I got there I went directly to my mentors office to get started. The first thing me and my mentor talked about was the book to kill a mockingbird. I told him what I enjoyed about the book, and also gave him a brief summary. The second thing we did was my mentor had me read over an article and write a reflection. He had me present it to him in preparation for my speech for capstone. I couldn't have asked for a better mentor he helped me a lot and made me realize what I really wanted to do in life. Overall the whole experience was great and I'm glad capstone had me do this.

Hours logged for session: 4 hrs

Total hours logged: 25 hrs

Finished the book. April 28-30, 2014.

Today I finally finished reading To Kill a Mockingbird. I found the book pretty interesting, but not very helpful for my project other than the fact that it had a trial in it. One specific point that I want to bring up to my mentor when I meet with him this friday is how even in the practice of law there was segregation. I found that very cruel, and I want to do a bit more research on that to see if in fact it was like that in those times. I am anxious to meet with my mentor not only to discuss about the book, but also to ask him more about his experience as a litigator and if its anything like it was in the book.

time logged for this session: 7 hrs

total hours logged: 21 hrs

Visit to a law school. Sunday April 27, 2014.

One day I emailed my mentor about possibly meeting up to do hours, and he thought it would be beneficial if I visited a law school. I thought it was a great idea so i planned a little visit to the Boalt law school over at the University of Berkeley. So on sunday me and my sister had a field trip to the school, and learned some pretty interesting facts. I learned a little about its history, and also about how a law students life is while attending law school. Overall it was a great experience and very beneficial to my studies. 

Time logged for this session: 5 hrs

Total hours logged: 14 hrs

Start of the book. Monday April 21st 2014.

So my mentor told me to read the book To Kill a Mockingbird. He said that I should focus on the case that goes on in the book. The book is about an african american man who gets accused of raping a white woman. No lawyer wants to represent the man because he was black except for one man Atticus Finch.  I haven't yet finished reading the book but its coming along. 

Time logged for this session: 4 hrs

Total hours logged: 9 hrs

Second visit. April 10, 2014

On thursday I visited my mentor in his office for the second time. When I arrived my mentor introduced me to one of the new lawyers. She told me about herself, and her experience so far with the company. I was surprised to hear that she had only been working there for two months. Afterwards I went to my mentors office where he had me read over a case he had been working on. I was able to experience a bit of the work he did in his office. After I was done reading over the case my mentor reviewed it with me, and asked my opinion on it. He explained to me that to be an attorney it takes reading comprehension skills because lawyers do a lot of reading. I enjoyed what he had me do because it made me get a real taste of what this career is about.

Time logged for this session: 3hrs

Total time logged: 5hrs

My first day March 13, 2014

On Thursday I met my mentor for the very first time. I was really excited because it had been the first time I had ever been to a law office.  I was very happy that I got to experience such a thing. Upon arrival my mentor had the head of the security department give me a tour of the facility. One of the very first things I noticed was how quiet and peaceful the place was.  The everyday person is used to seeing law offices on T.V. thinking that they are loud and crowded, but from my personal experience I can say it is not like that at all (at least in the case of Sheppard & Mullin LLP).  My mentor then introduced me to one of the senior partners there who told me a little about himself and what he did there.  He told me about their Pro Bono program they offered there, meaning they provide free legal services to those who are low income clients.  Another thing I was able to do during my visit to Sheppard Mullin was listen in on a conference call regarding better educational rights to those who are English language learners who have just come from another country and do not speak English properly. Overall, I would have to say it was a great learning experience, and I cant wait to do it again.

Time logged for this session: 2 hrs

Total time logged: 2 hrs