When I brag about Jenny (which is often) I like to tell others she was not only an attorney, but a really good one. I could talk about her many accomplishments as a lawyer, but one simple credential that cuts to the chase is that she was the Managing Editor of the UCLA Law Review. As soon as I say that to others, everyone seems to understand the magnitude of her legal talent. But what does Jenny's being on Law Review really mean? I'll try to answer that question here! What follows are 15 fun facts about Jenny and UCLA Law Review.
1. Jenny's humble personality didn't permit her to describe the scope and importance of her role on Law Review. She merely said that she "was mainly charge of punctuation". Not entirely accurate. Actually, not accurate at all. Please read more below.
2. It was a goal of most ambitious UCLA law students to make a law review somewhere--whether at the law school or not. However, UCLA Law Review was the pinnacle for Bruin law students.
3. As was standard practice, Jenny applied to be on the UCLA Law Review at the end of her first year, just after finals. Notification came about two weeks afterwards. From the point, Jenny was then off and running with Law Review, which involved a two-year commitment.
4. In her application for Law Review, Jenny had to offer a critical review of a legal paper. She also needed to clearly and concisely discuss a particular legal issue. Of course, she also provided a personal statement about why she wanted to be on Law Review.
5. The vast majority of those who applied for UCLA Law Review were not accepted. The exact percentage isn't known for sure. One data-point: Of the five or six she knew who applied, she was the only one selected.
6. Jenny's first year on Law Review was her "staff year" and it was during her second year of law school.
7. To be named Managing Editor of Law Review involved yet another selection process for Jenny. It was based on her "diligence, attention to detail, demonstrated leadership abilities, and service to the Law Review during (her) staff year".
8. Jenny's responsibilities as Managing Editor included managing others on Law Review as well as making individual contributions of her own. When it came to people-managing, it was especially important to enforce deadlines and assure the highest level of academic quality.
9. While Jenny was on Law Review, she also clerked for a judge in San Diego, worked for a law firm focused on patents and trademarks and, of course, went to law school. In other words, never at any point was working for Law Review her only role.
10. UCLA Law Review was, and continues to be, entirely student-run, highlighting the importance of Jenny's role as a manager.
11. Though the Law Review certificate Jenny received for being the Managing Editor was professionally framed, Jenny's humility prevented it from ever hanging in her house.
12. Jenny was the Managing Editor of UCLA Law Review for its 44th volume for which there were six publications.
13. Jenny's roommate has memories of Jenny regularly bringing home stacks of files from Law Review in the afternoon. Jenny would close her door in her apartment and, working through dinner, would not emerge until the following morning. Jenny's Law Review responsibilities were similar to having another job on top of her being a law student. Forty-hour weeks were not uncommon.
14. Work from professors at other law schools, even from other prestigious institutions such as Yale, were regularly submitted to Law Review for publication. Jenny played a crucial role in acceptance, denial, or making the decision to return the paper to the author for edits. In using her judgement, she was mindful of the target audience, which included practicing attorneys, legislators, judges and other legal scholars.
15. Jenny's association with Law Review earned a tremendous amount of respect from her friends and classmates. However, to her husband and her kids, Jenny said virtually nothing about it--even when asked. Content for this article involved research and talking to those who went to law school with her.
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