Now The Day Is Over (A Letter To A Law School Student Just Before The Bar Finals)

Dear Law School Student, In primary school, I remember singing the song ‘Now the day is over, night is drawing near’. We sang it when the school day was over, and it was time to go home. You, my friend, may just be singing the same thing now. Yet this song means different things for different people. For some, it means soon they will write their exams and be out of this ‘prison’, free to go home and never read even a signboard for the rest of the year. For others time is gone, far spent, and there is nothing they can do any more that will mean anything; no more text they can read, no more past questions they can solve. Again, for another set, it may literally mean their lives are over, coming face to face eventually with the Grand master of them all, the one they heard about since their undergrad, the ultimate Bar Finals. Yet, whichever it is, one thing holds true- it is not yet over.  No, not until the finish line. So here are a few things I’d like you to keep in mind:

1. It is not yet over: It definitely is not, so do not throw in the towel. Don’t lose hope. The fact that the exam looms so close does not spell your fate for you. Learn one more principle, read one more case, solve one more past question. You still got some time, maybe little, but still, it is time. Do not waste it. Use every free moment you have now to study; while eating, while in the bus or taxi, even on the toilet bowl(yes, you heard that right). Every second matters. Do away with time-wasting activities. Get busy. Don’t call it quits until the very day you write the last paper. Do not stop!
2. Keep pushing: Frankly guys, this is the most tiring period of law school. Back then, during this period, I felt like a merry-go round; living the humdrum life of read, eat, read again, read some more, read a lot more, eat, then sleep a little, and over again. The shirts I came into law school with as body-fitted now had me swimming in them, and everything else was a blur. Yet, I kept telling myself the finish line was close, so I just had to push one more week, one more day, one more hour. I’m telling you the same today. Keep pushing, guys. Do not stop. Wake up energized and motivated, tell yourself you cannot let yourself down. Keep forging ahead, make those sacrifices, because in a few weeks, you can’t make them again. In a few weeks it will all be history, and in a few years when you’re reaping its benefits, it will be something to laugh about over drinks with friends.
3. Drain yourself of fear: And yes, I mean every drop. Fear paralyses. It imprisons. It causes brain freeze. And this happens to a lot of people. Look, fear is your biggest enemy at the Bar finals. The tension in the air on your MCQ day and on each of the Bar finals days would be palpable, you would almost be able to cut through it with a knife. Refuse to partake in the fear feast. Fear would easily make a person read a question he would ordinarily answer in five seconds for five minutes, sweating and reading it, and yet not grasping. So drain yourself of it. As a Christian, I always recommend scripture. There are no truer, more inspiring words than the ones God said Himself about you. And there is nothing more fear-repelling than having the Holy Spirit by your side.
4. At the point of entering the hall, you have done enough: In my first point, I told you it’s not over yet, but hey, at the point of entering that hall to write, tell yourself for that course/MCQ, you have done enough, pat yourself on the back (or ask your friend to help you) and walk into that hall with your head high. Be confident. Norman Vincent Peale said that every form of human success requires a bit of belief, faith and confidence of a person in himself/herself. So, have a little faith.
5. Pay attention to detail: You know what they say about a certain devil being in the details, well, every part of the Bar finals is about the details. In preparing for MCQ and the main exams, pay attention to those fine details that are easily overlooked or confused, for instance, I was overly excited during my exams that I answered ‘Stay of execution’ for a question whose answer was clearly ‘Injunction’. The relief was a declaratory relief, and I didn’t pay attention to that. So details, guys, details. Be as finicky as they come. This applies in following instructions too. Listen to and read all your instructions in every exam. Do not assume an instruction because a practicing lawyer 10 years post-call told you they used it in his time. Read it carefully, but quickly. And follow the instructions. Panic and fear can also make one to miss obvious instructions. So remember, dispel fear, and do all housekeeping (writing exam number etc) at the start of the paper, so you don’t miss it out when general panic sets in towards the end
6. Attempt every question: After all said and done, there are questions you might not know the answers or not be sure of the answers. Well, do not leave that hall without shading/writing something. There is no negative marking. You are not at a loss if you write something. Do not leave a question for drafting blank. At most, put the preliminary details. But by all means, attempt the question.
7. Team up: There was no time in my life as a law school student that I needed a team more than a few weeks to the exams. In study and in prayers (well in workout too, because I did go to the gym). So team up. Set up group discussions, answer MCQ questions in groups, guided by a timer, have a team that can motivate and inspire you, that can call you to wake up at midnight even when your whole being feels like doing nothing but sleeping, that can remind you not to forget certain principles as you all walk to the exam hall, that can agree with you in prayers for a dream grade. Get a team that believes in you and you believe in. And y’all should go be as fiery as the Avengers (errr…you won’t work as a team in the exam hall though).
8. Cases are cute, but principles are key. The principles should always be your key concern. They take precedence over cases. You need them to even make your cases make sense to you. So focus on your principles, make sure they stick. Then let your cases latch on.
9. Mind-drafting is no drafting: Hey, you wanna ace this thing. Put your pen to paper and draft and stop drafting everywhere else but on a paper. Drafts are keys to gaining marks at the Bar finals. And everyone knows what to do with keys.

10 Cut yourself some slack: Stop beating yourself up for too many things, stop blaming yourself, stop punishing yourself, stop hating yourself. Law school is hard enough. Don’t worsen it. Cut yourself some slack. Say good words to yourself. Don’t entertain self-defeating thoughts. Have a little faith in yourself. And hey, if you need to talk, I’m here. To end this, I like the second stanza of the Hymn/Poem I started with earlier and it is my prayer for you: “Jesus, give the weary Calm and sweet repose; With Thy tend’rest blessing May mine eyelids close.” Guys, the day is not over. So keep pushing! All the very best. I can’t wait to welcome you to the Bar! Yours sincerely, Caleb Adebayo (NLS Lagos Campus student 2015/2016) Associate S.P.A Ajibade & Co. DO WELL TO SHARE. INSPIRE SOMEONE.]]>