(no subject)

[vicarz]

Great website which gives some details on how to get around the anti-gay VA laws until someone takes the time to win a court battle as they're flagrantly unconstitutional. http://www.gayfinancialplanner.com/ia/ia4.htm

I'm happy. I've decided what to do - not going for the ethics job. I'm not sure if I'll be litigating or doing regular ER work, but I'm looking forward to either. I know I'll be stuck with the job again while my competitor has her baby, but I'll survive. One of my fans here thinks that I should apply and force them to turn me down because they always make up for one disappointment with another reward...but he likes to fight, whereas I greatly prefer peace. I like to like the people I work with, and be for real-real. I have learned to listen all the time, but I only take advice when the behavior recommended is close to what I want to do anyway. When the behavior recommended is unnatural for me, then it's not good advice for me.

Along those lines, I think I'm picking out a direction in law - mediation. I don't like fighting, and law often puts you in the position of just being involved in stupid fight after stupid fight with people who lack conflict resolution skills. Mediation seems more like using a legal background to try and cut through the insanity to a solution that is reasonable. Maybe that's just another pipe dream.

I'm going to have to remember to ask my gov lawyer folk if they took the bar, why they did, if they're bar'd today, and why they think it is / is not a good idea for gov lawyers.

I also need to learn to change a couple of formatting things in LJ - how to lose the border on the left side on both my and f-list views, and how to make my views left page align instead of it's default of full justify. Full justify is the stupidest thing ever invented - it has been measured over and over again to take more time to read, but morons use it because at a distance it looks neat. Idiots.

Notice that the dumber the email's sender, the fancier the signature and background?

Comments

[cobwellac.livejournal.com]

As a gov't lawyer, you must take some state's bar and maintain active membership. You cannot be an atty. for the gov't w/o a law license. Usually, you have about 14 months after your hiring date to obtain bar membership (provided you come in as a first-year atty.). Mediation and dispute resolution are very hot areas of the law right now and many schools offer LLM's in the subject. I've often thought I'd like to make a career switch in that direction.

[vicar.livejournal.com]

Neat - thank you! I remember that you were 'barred.' I'm in a weird spot where I can be a litigator at the GS-14 level here without even having a law degree, and certainly the bar isn't required. I am nudging towards the idea of the bar because...well it just makes sense to finish the process and silly to handicap myself.

The next question will be which state - MD has easier req than VA. I have 2.5 years to worry about it though, well less since I can take VA classes at the school pretty easily.

[cobwellac.livejournal.com]

Wow! A litigator job and you don't even need a law degree? Too bad you got the job two years after you started law school, could have saved you some $$. Just take the MD bar; it's easier and you don't have to spend a weekend in Roanoke. Ick!

[vicar.livejournal.com]

Yeah Chris also thinks the MD bar is a better idea. It's a tad harder as the VA practice classes are easy to take while in law school, but overall a bargain and once you transfer the thing over who cares where it is. Oh, and the ELC stuff is easier in MD, cheaper fee too.

[pastor-saturn.livejournal.com]

Yay! Sounds like you're pretty content with your decisions. :) I'm happy for you!