Welcome to the start of your practice in trial court. Judges are notoriously touchy about disrespect.

Lawyers get sent to jail to contemplate their contempt of court. Here, "contempt of class" will be met with a reduced grade and a reduced likelihood of getting a favorable reference for employment. My policies and rules are intended to make my expectations clear, to put you on notice of what employers will expect from you, and therefore to make it more likely that you will impress prospective employers. Policies & Local Rules of LARAW Section D You must (1) regularly attend class, (2) do the assigned readings, (3) be prepared for class discussion, (4) actively participate in group assignments during class, (5) complete all assignments, (6) submit the assignments on time, (7) demonstrate a professional level of writing and proof-reading, (8) accurately state the law and facts, and (9) always behave as an ethical advocate. Please make every effort to notify me prior to class if you will be unable to attend. If you miss any part of class, you are responsible for obtaining notes, handouts, and assignments from a classmate. To assist in your development of professional skills, I will sometimes play the role of court clerk or judge. I will also enforce my own local rules: Local Rule 1. Proofreading. (a) No document with more than ten mechanical errors (spelling, typing, grammar, missing words, formatting, quoting, or Bluebooking) will be filed in this course. Other than the blind-graded exam, documents violating this rule will be returned to you without further feedback, for resubmission in compliance with L.R. 1. I will set a specific deadline for resubmission. (b) Purpose. The goal of L.R. 1 is to enhance the likelihood that you will be able to get a job in the legal field. Our profession is often about little details, and proofreading is evidence of your ability to pay attention to detail. Lack of proofreading also makes it hard for the reader to see the merits of the text. L.R. 1 is intended as a disincentive against carelessness. (c) Exceptions. I will try not to over-penalize students who are making progress in actively developing their proofreading skills. Therefore, if you are not fluent in English, or if you have some situation that would make compliance with L.R. 1 impossible for you, please contact me promptly, so we can make a plan for developing your skill. L.R. 1.1 Consequences and penalties for violation: (i) less time for me to give you useful feedback on your paper, (ii) less time for you to have and use feedback on your paper, (iii) a 10% loss of points after you have resubmitted an acceptable draft; (iv) in addition, any applicable penalty for late submission. See L.R. 2.1. (v) If I give you the opportunity to fix errors, then failure to submit an acceptable draft within the time specified will result in no credit for the document.

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(vi) You could lose two whole grades in the course by clicking "accept all changes" and turning in a document that includes my plaintive comments in the text -- e.g., unclear, ambiguous, what does that even mean? The first is for being lazy in accepting changes without considering them, and the second is for failing to read the document before filing it. Local Rule 2. Timeliness. (a) Deadlines are stated in the course plan (posted in chart form), and in the Summary of Deadlines (un-hyperlinked text on the Camino syllabus page). (b) Notice: The deadlines on the Camino calendar are not necessarily correct. The program does not allow multiple due dates for one assignment, and it adds a time to untimed deadlines. (c) All assignments must be turned in by the deadline specified in the course plan chart, unless: (i) I announce a change in the deadline to the class, (ii) I instruct you to remedy a Rule violation, and issue a new deadline for your compliance, (iii) you give me advance notice of a delay and I consent, or (iv) you file with me a successful motion for a specific amount of extra time, supported by a declaration showing good cause for granting more time. Good cause is something unexpected, beyond the ordinary press of modern life. Tip: It is easier to submit papers on time than to write (or win) motions to get more time. L.R. 2.1 Penalties for violation: (i) Any late paper will receive no credit unless shown to meet the requirements of L.R. 2. (ii) If I do accept a late paper pursuant to L.R. 2(c) (ii) (iii), or (iv), there may still be a penalty. Penalties will vary from none (for bona fide emergencies or delays that do not affect anyone else), to 10% of the assignments value, to a full letter grade in the whole course (for extensive or repeated delays, or for inconvenience to me or to your colleagues). Local Rule 3. Electronic filing. If the syllabus specifies that an assignment may (or must) be submitted by email, then the filename of any attached document must identify the author and the assignment. Example: Fernandez_Research_Re_Hays_Extradition.doc L.R. 3.1 Penalties for violation: (i) If I choose to accept a paper that violates L.R. 3, you will lose all points associated with rule compliance and proper formatting. Also, I will be cranky while grading it. (ii) If I return a paper for violation of L.R. 3, you risk penalties for untimely submission. See L.R. 2.1. Local Rule 4. Disruptions to class. (a) Any activities that disrupt my lessons or group work will be regarded as contempt of court. (b) When in class, you may not disturb me or your classmates with irrelevant computer or phone activities. 2 Policies & Local Rules Spring 2014 Section D (Bernstein)

(c) Examples of violations: watching videos, checking Facebook, texting, playing games, doing anything related to your phone, or walking in late yet talking loudly while getting settled. L.R. 4.1 Penalties for violation: (i) For each violation of L.R. 4, points will be deducted from the 200 "professionalism" points available this term. (That is the same value as your revised CF2 memo.) (ii) I dislike public shaming, but to encourage professional behavior, when I observe impermissible conduct I will announce a reminder about the problem. I will also note the student(s) involved, and later email notice of how many points were lost. Local Rule 5. Communication by email. I welcome your questions and comments, and email is the best way to reach me outside of office hours. (a) Any email must include a descriptive subject line, such as question about out-ofcircuit authority, time-sensitive request, or preparing for oral argument. (b) All email must be proofread and reasonably formal. Although I enjoy conversations that begin Hey, Prof, your future employers might not. Supervisors feathers can get ruffled when your email starts, Dude! or when you text them get me nec papers if u want rsrch done b4 tues. Extra tip: Assume that everything you email to opposing counsel will end up as an exhibit to a motion filed against you or your client. (c) I will usually respond to email within a day. L.R. 5.1 Penalties for violation: (i) You are less likely to get a timely response if, for example, the subject line leads me to believe that the email is simply submitting an assignment I might not open the email until I am ready to grade the attachment. Local Rule 6. Forbidden attributes in memos (a) No paragraph will even approach a page in length. This includes paragraphs that are "just" half a page on two sequential pages. (b) No text will say anything like "the other side may argue . . . " It is not your job to make predictions, or to speak for the other side. Instead, you will anticipate the best arguments for the other side, and affirmatively address why your arguments prevail. We will cover techniques in class. L.R. 6.1 Penalties for violation: (i) Paragraphs of more than 20 lines will not be read. This is because the very existence of the paragraph shows that the author did not read it first. No credit can be earned for the content of an unread paragraph. (ii) Memos that purport to say what "the opposing party will claim" will lose 50% of the available points. This is because a client or legal employer will fire a lawyer who is unclear about which side s/he is writing for. It is also because we write for the reader, and your reader has just made it clear what he wants.

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Local Rule 7. Selected ethical violations. (a) It is an ethical violation to mischaracterize law or fact to the court. [1] Strategic misstatements and sloppy errors will be penalized with breathtaking penalties, ranging from 10% to 100% of the assignment, depending on the significance of the misstatement. [2] Reasonable misinterpretation by a new advocate is not subject to this penalty. [3] Accidental misstatement during oral argument is exempt from this penalty. (b) It is an ethical violation to claim someone elses work as your own. The penalty is no course credit, plus a problem with the State Bars moral character evaluation.

Comment: My Local Rules may seem harsh or ridiculous, but they are intended to give everyone notice of some basic expectations and the consequences of not meeting them. You do not want to go into practice assuming that employers or courts will overlook the little things. One of our mottos is: Seek out all applicable rules and apply them diligently.

Policies & Local Rules Spring 2014 Section D (Bernstein)