New students welcomed

USC Law welcomed more than 300 new first-year, transfer, and LL.M. students at Orientation Day on Friday, Aug. 18.

1Ls mingle at USC Law Orientation Day

About 6,000 applicants competed for one of 220 spots in the J.D. Class of 2009, according to Associate Dean Chloe Reid. Most are recent graduates of institutions located across the country and the globe, but their backgrounds are quite varied. Forty percent identify themselves as belonging to an ethnic minority; 47 percent are women.

Several new students are entrepreneurs and a number have been educators, including one student who taught philosophy to fifth graders. A handful worked in law firms; several have founded websites; one was a special assistant to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger; another was a Thai classical dancer. As undergrads, students competed on athletics teams including soccer, baseball, crew and ultimate Frisbee. They are fluent in a number of different languages and have lived in dozens of foreign countries.

“We know that many of you had lots of choices for where you were going to spend the next two to three years of your law school careers, and we are honored and privileged that you decided to join USC,” Dean Reid told the new students during a welcome brunch.

Joining the first-year J.D. students were transfer students and several exchange students from the London School of Economics. Also entering USC Law are 97 Master of Laws (LL.M.), Visiting International Program for Lawyers (VIP) and Master of Comparative Law (MCL) students hailing from 20 countries, including China, Japan, Taiwan, El Salvador, France, Germany and Denmark. This year marks the LL.M. program’s fifth anniversary at USC Law.

Dean Edward McCaffery

USC Law Dean Edward McCaffery welcomed the new students and offered them three pieces of advice:

- Have a life outside law school. “Relax and have some fun,” he said. “Have balance and perspective in life.”

- Take advantage of all the support systems that USC Law has to offer. “We have many, many resources here, beginning with your classmates. They’re smart, they’re talented, and they’ll help you through this experience. They’ll keep it real,” he said. He also encouraged new students to lean on second- and third-year students, faculty, and staff.

- Be an ambassador for the law school. “Tell people about the law school. Help the school improve: Tell us if you see something that could be done better.”

As the new dean, McCaffery — who was named to the position on an interim basis in July — said he wants to improve USC Law’s visibility across the country.

“This is a great law school, and hopefully you know that already,” he said. “We’re going to keep getting better, and one day you’re going to wake up and be a graduate of a top 5 law

Professor Susan Estrich

school. So let’s go out and kick some butt.”

During a luncheon held at USC Town & Gown, Susan Estrich, the Robert Kingsley Professor of Law and Political Science, extended a personal welcome to the new students and told them to expect to find a special atmosphere at USC Law.

“Going to law school here is a positive experience,” she said. “The attitude among students is, you’re supposed to help each other. The attitude here is: ‘We’re all in this together.’ ”