A Law School Student's Guide to Study Aids

A Law School Student's Guide to Study Aids

By Macy Disney

Gonzaga University School of Law 2L 

and Chastek Library Reference Desk Assistant

CALI

CALI is an online source that develops and distributes legal education to law students. CALI lessons are known to be in depth and challenging, ensuring each student has a concrete understanding of the concepts. You can access CALI online at cali.org.

Barbri

Barbri provides 1L, 2L, and 3L Mastery Packages that include study materials for first-year courses and many upper level courses. Barbri has in depth, lecture style videos known for clarifying difficult course concepts. Barbri also contains practice multiple choice and essay questions. Access Barbri online at barbri.com or talk to a Barbri campus representative to get a book of commercial outlines.

Examples & Explanations

E&Es explain core legal concepts and contain practice questions at the end of each section for students to apply their knowledge. These are helpful both for learning the material and for studying when it comes to exams. E&Es can be purchased online or rented at the Chastek Reference Desk.

Hornbooks

Hornbooks are treatises written for law students that cover common law school courses. These are useful for summarizing and explaining specific areas of the law. They help students understand complex legal concepts presented in class and on law school exams. Hornbooks can be purchased online or rented at the Chastek Reference Desk.

Kaplan

Kaplan supplies a Digital 1L Success Package to first year students. This package includes video and audio lectures for first year courses along with multiple choice and essay practice questions. Kaplan is known for their well-researched practice questions on each subject. Access Kaplan online at kaptest.com or talk to a Kaplan campus representative to get a book of commercial outlines.

Nutshells

The Nutshell series consists of compact guides that provide students with a quick, thorough summary of the law. In other words, they provide legal concepts in a “nutshell.” Nutshells cover over 150 topics, making them one of the most complete sources of legal overviews available commercially. Nutshells can be purchased online or rented at the Chastek Reference Desk.

Oyez

Oyez is a multimedia archive created with the intent to make the Supreme Court of the United States accessible for everyone. This resource contains simple case briefs for all Supreme Court cases, and even contains audio recordings of Supreme Court proceedings dating back to 1955. Access online at oyez.org.

Themis

Themis provides a Law School Essentials program that includes comprehensive review materials to supplement first-year classes and many upper-level classes. Themis is known for their short, topic specific online lectures. Themis also has practice multiple choice and essay questions. Access Themis online at themisbar.com or talk to a Themis campus representative to get a book of commercial outlines.

Short and Happy Guides

Short and Happy guides are easy to read books that provide concise summaries of the law. They are great for a quick refresher on legal concepts. Short and Happy guides present the subject matter in an accessible way that is easy to remember. Short and Happy guides can be purchased online or rented at the Chastek Reference Desk.

Questions & Answers

Q&As have practice essay and multiple choice questions. They are known for having realistic example questions and provide helpful example answers to essay questions. Each book contains up to fifty essay and problem-based questions on the most commonly tested topics. Q&As can be purchased online or rented at the Chastek Reference Desk.

Quimbee

Quimbee provides case briefs, videos for select cases, outlines, flashcards, practice questions, and more. This source is most known for accessing case briefs and is helpful when you’re having trouble understanding an assigned case. Access online at quimbee.com, if you have not already made an account you can through Chastek Library.

Important Reminders for Success

1. Never rely solely on study aids.
2. What your professor says goes, regardless of what a study aid may say.
3. Try out multiple study aids to see what works best for your learning style. Not everyone will have the same favorite resource, and not every resource will be useful for each subject.