Topic: Torts

Last Day of Classes

Last Wednesday was our final day of class for the semester, and it saw us out in fitting style. With Legal Analysis and Writing completed, the only class set to meet that day was Torts, from 10 am - 12 pm. I thought we were in for a short day, the final stop in a week that was a farewell tour of first semester classes. We filed in nonchalantly, tossing remarks back and forth about how quickly the semester had progressed, and discussing our various levels of anxiety at the upcoming finals season.

Class began simply enough, with Professor Gómez-Arostegui addressing questions emailed by students prior to our final session. Quickly, though, the mood changed, an intensity arose, as seemingly everyone in the room became extremely focussed and aware, yet still relaxed. I couldn’t help but notice a marked difference in the class’s behavior from the semester’s launch, where we were mostly working hard at staying abreast of the concepts coming at us, devoting our energies to understanding rather than synthesis. Now, this final class had the sense of competent individuals at practice, being taken through a workout that was challenging, but well within our abilities. It was exhilarating to feel that as a class, we now had the ability to play with this stuff a little bit, improv and bounce ideas back and forth. We were, dare I say, getting good at this.

At about the two-hour mark (our scheduled finishing time), Professor Gómez was kind enough to provide us pizza for lunch, which was quickly distributed (we could probably write the definitive theorem on optimal in-classroom pizza distribution at this point). Sated, we returned to our seats to continue our review.

The coda to our semester turned out to be an intense, engaged, and impassioned immersion in all things Tort. Running through hypos, testing esoteric and alternative theories, with Professor Gómez conducting, even injuring his had (twice) while rapidly gesturing and sketching diagrams on the board. Through two more hours, it was a rather relentless and fast-paced exercise, an engaging and engrossing test of our knowledge and skills gained throughout the semester. We emerged from the resolution of the last question, surprised at the endurance of our concentration, with Professor Gómez hoarse after four hours of energetic review. A round of applause erupted from the entire class, and our semester’s classes were complete.

PS - Radio Silence
For the past 48 hours, I’ve not received a single Lewis and Clark related email. The normal email chatter with classmates, professors, and study group members has just - stopped. Is it finals? I don’t think I’ve done anything this weekend to warrant spontaneous and complete unpopularity. I can’t help but have a new appreciation for the cinematic trope just before the climactic scene that it’s quiet… too quiet.

8 December 2008