University of Texas School of Law - Peregrinus Yearbook (Austin, TX)

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Fall Ex-Parte 7

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FALL EX-PARTE Following in the long tradition of annual drunken Law School parties. Fall Ex-Parte was a huge success this year. The Student Bar Association returned to a I lalloween Costume theme for the all-school bash held at a vacant club on 6th Street on Oct. 30. Tickets were $7 for a buffet and all the beer and wine you could chug. From 9 p.m. until 2 a.m. over 780 law students crowded into the club for drinking, dancing, etc. (the definition of “etc.” changed depending on how much drinking and dancing you had done.) Inside the club was a DJ. bar and buffet. Outside a band played live music to a packed dance floor. Revellers drank and danced the night away. A concentric circle, anti-gravity, sure-fire hurl machine was located outside the club which, combined with the free-flowing brew inside, could have gotten ugly. Yet, the only real harm was intoxicated first year law students mangling tort law in an attempt to access the potential liability involved. The costumes ranged from the traditional to the bizarre. You may have seen flappers, bobby soxers, sheriffs, devils, Trekkies, Little Red Riding Hood, cattle, and Lady Godiva with a bathrobe (at least she had it on early in the evening.) Also memorable were several blood dripping vampires claiming to be personal injury attorneys. Student Bar Association Marlon Doerre (third year representative). Katherine Duff (president) and Manny Kalra (treasurer planned the festivities and ran into only minor problems. A menacing forecast required that a large tent be erected at the last minute (the choice was between that and buying more kegs so no one would notice.) Also, there was the minor problem of almost having the party shut down by the I'cxas Alcoholic Beverage Commission with a possible trip to the slammer because of confusion over the necessary alcohol permits. With the threat of 800 stressed-out, thirsty law students showing up in fifteen minutes, SBA members quickly filled out temporary permits and the party went ahead as planned. Pkou hj Amnrlm SiMalnn 6 — Fall Kx-Partc

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Criminal Defense Clinic Starts 20th Year by Robert Riojas For twenty years the Criminal Defense Clinic has afforded students with an opportunity to practice firsthand the workings of the Texas criminal justice system, giving future attorneys practical courtroom experience as they consult and represent actual defendants charged with misdemeanor crimes. In addition, the Clinic serves a real-world need by providing indigent defendants free legal counsel which they could not otherwise afford. According to Professor Robert O. Dawson, director, the Criminal Defense Clinic was started to fill the gap between practical knowledge and that which was being taught in law schools. Law students were simply unskilled in terms of realistic applications of their legal knowledge. The structure of the Clinic serves to fill this gap. The Criminal Defense Clinic has two components: first, a classroom instruction taught by four supervising attorneys and second, actual representation of clients involving interviewing, investigation, negotiation. A significant bonus comes in the form of real courtroom contact. Clients are assigned to the Clinic on the recommendation of judges, primarily sitting in Travis County. Professor Dawson stresses the educational justification of the Clinic and notes that students are provided a mix of cases including DWIs, as- saults, and thefts. Students taking the Clinic in the fall or spring receive six credits; those taking the Clinic in the summer receive five. Another attractive feature of the Clinic is its grading. The course is pass-fail and there is no paper or examination. Students in the course receive a Student Bar Card which allows them to actually litigate in the courtroom. The supervising attorneys, although required to be present in adversarial proceedings, play only an observational role. The Clinic is open to all students, regardless of grades, who have completed at least 45 hours of law school and who demonstrate an interest in criminal law. 8 — Criminal Defease Clinic