Page 302 - WhyAsInY

Why (as in yaverbaum)
statutory law, explored how doctrines evolve in a universe where prec- edent governs or is supposed to govern, and taught library techniques (yes, there were books of cases; no, computers were not then used), how to structure a legal memorandum, and how to cite cases. Civil Proce- dure taught you the rules applicable to litigating in the federal courts (you would have to wait for bar-exam prep courses to learn about your state’s procedural rules, which can differ). This was because Columbia was a “national” law school. Contracts and Torts covered contracts and torts (personal injury, libel, and the like), and DLI was useful if you wished to obtain a writ from the Chancery Court in England in 1430. As background courses, all but DLI were of some value.
In subsequent semesters, Tax and Corporations were also of value. Constitutional Law, in which Professor Wechsler spent one-half of one semester on Marbury v. Madison, which basically empowered the Supreme Court in the constitutional realm; Criminal Law (Wechsler again; similar story: Fain v. Commonwealth, nine weeks); and Administra- tive Law (regulations, regulations, regulations) were more useful to me as a citizen than as an attorney. Evidence had its intellectually interest- ing aspects and would be helpful if you were to try a case some day. Conflicts of Laws (if party X, from Connecticut, sideswipes party Y, from New York, while they are driving in Massachusetts, how do you decide which state’s law applies?) was of next to no subsequent utility. And (ironically?) I doubt that Real Estate taught me anything at all that prepared me for my ultimate practice. I liked Curtis Berger’s Real Estate class but was very frustrated when I put my hand up in a lecture course for the first time in my entire stay at Columbia and he did not call on me. For the record, I do not recall receiving anything more than a mid- dling grade in Real Estate. Twenty-five years later, when I was in charge of real estate (on the legal side) at the Resolution Trust Corporation (the “RTC”) in Washington, D.C., I was the featured speaker at the annual gathering of the American College of Real Estate Lawyers in Chicago, of which I was a member. Professor Berger also spoke, in the course of which he, without any experience to justify what he said, referred to me as one of his most brilliant students.
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