Jessie Zaylía's Law (and Law School) Blog

Most people fail the Bar on the written aspects, so teaching people  how  to attack and perform the written portions of the Bar is precisely what I address in this blog.  I've done all that I can to put everything out here for you and without any ads because I care. This might seem cheesy, but it's how I truly feel inside. This blog is a gift to my former self. It's the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow that I tried to find (but without any luck) while I was studying for the Bar.  Sadly, all I uncovered were tutors whose only accolade was passing on the first try (which I don't think is an accolade for teaching others since those people never saw their scores, so they don't know how they did on the writing at all). And, more frustratingly, these people wanted THOUSANDS of dollars.   Plus, so many of these tutors did precisely what this blog is meant to fight. They talk about the "whats" without addressing the "hows."  It was infuriating. I ha...

It's good to be back with another update: tomorrow will be my last day as a partner at my firm. I'm leaving it so that I can do... well... I'd rather do anything else. Being a partner and, in fact, being on the traditional track to whatever success is supposed to be is a sure-fire way to surrender yourself to the machine. No more. I have learned a lot while being at my firm. I have learned, for instance, how people should  not  be managed, how partners should  not  be spun to by other partners, and how money should  not  be spent. I've learned that you'll never please 100% of the people 100% of the time. I've learned that many law partners are absolutely shitty business partners with no sense of what it takes to be successful or what is required to move collectively in a positive direction. I've learned that many leaders of average or below-average organizations haven't the ability or the intellectual wherewithal to listen. I have also learned a great ...

Tonight, I was voted in by the partnership of my firm to be a partner. I wanted to share my joy with all of you. I also want you to know that, if you fail the Bar, your life is not over. I failed twice, passed the third time, and am now the Office Managing Partner of the Los Angeles office of my firm. This has been an incredible experience.

At this time every year, my blog tends to be on fire. My readers are nervous. You don't know whether the Friday before Thanksgiving is going to ruin your life or fulfill your dreams.  I get it. I know that bar examiners will fret constantly until the time arrives when you check your results. The fact is that about half of you will pass and the other half will not. For those of you who do not pass, I need to impress upon you that, although failing the bar totally sucks , it is not the end. Trust me. I've been there. It is very, very possible to pass the California Bar after failing it. I failed twice and passed it on my third shot. One professor (whom I love dearly) told me that I was an anomaly because (1) she thought there was no way that I would have failed to begin with (thank you) and (2) it is very difficult to pass on the third try or beyond. The key for me, though, was to finally figure out precisely how to write for the bar. Most people fail on the writing, not ...

No one is ever going to believe this. So, some of you know that I made up my last name many years ago. But, as it didn't exist before then, I decided that I had the right to create the meaning of this word. So, I went to a few baby name sites and told the owners that Zaylia means "female independence and empowerment." Now, there is a line of cosmetics out of Australia called "Zaylia Cosmetics," and on the website's "about us" page, it provides, "Zaylia was chosen as the name for this modern new line of cosmetics as it is an ancient greek word meaning: female, independence, empowerment, zeal and envy." HAHAHAHA!!! I AM IMMORTAL!!! ;D ... I don't know how anyone thought it was Greek, but whatever. http://www.zayliacosmetics.com.au/About

I have had multiple requests to tutor some of the visitors to this blog. Mostly, this has regarded preparation for the California Bar Exam (CBX for short), especially the written portions.   Back when I was taking the Bar, I was soooo frustrated that I couldn't find any good, substantive information about how to take the CBX without having to pay $5,000 - $10,000 for a full bar course!  It sucked. I mean, I knew that I had to know the law, but there is so much more to the "how" of taking the Bar than learning the elements of a ton of legal issues. This fits in with the general theme of this blog in that I like to address the "hows" of law school, the Bar, and other things because, frankly, this information is absent (at least, for the most part, and if existent at all, you usually have to pay a premium in the hopes of getting the "how" that should be taught in the first place!).   I also remember feeling so frustrated as a Bar-taker that I c...