Life at Law

To find out what life is like at law school, see what current Oregon Law students have to say at our Life at Law blog.

Kira (1L)	Maya (1L)	Caitlin (2L)
Lauren (2L)	Abigail (3L)	Kirk (3L)
Landon (3L)	Sandy (3L)	Michelle (4L)

Meet the Oregon Law bloggers. . .

Kira (1L)

Kira was born in Anchorage, Alaska. She then moved to Portland, Oregon; Warren, Ohio; Kailua, Hawai'i, and San Francisco, California. Kira earned her undergraduate degree from the University of California, Berkeley in Media Studies/Mass Communications. Kira took two years off after high school to work as at a radio station and a record company. While at Berkeley, she continued working in the music and entertainment industry. Kira is a first-year law student, and is a member of the Sports and Entertainment Law Forum and the local Eugene Inns of Court. She balances law school's workload by working out with the University of Oregon Triathlon Club and making time to spend time with her younger sister who is an undergraduate at Oregon.

http://www.law.uoregon.edu/org/self/
http://www.innsofcourt.org/
http://www.uoregon.edu/~ducktri/HOME.html

Maya (1L)

Maya grew up in Cambridge and Northfield, Massachusetts and earned her undergraduate degree at Oberlin College. She spent four years working as a biologist studying mountain lion and bighorn sheep in California, before returning to school to complete a Master's degree in Ecology at Yale University. A first year law student, Maya is a Wayne Morse Fellow and a member of Land Air Water. When she's not studying of Maya enjoys spending time with her husband, going on long trail runs with her dog, and trying to improve her bluegrass banjo skills.

Caitlin (2L)

Caitlin grew up in Boulder, Colorado and earned her undergraduate degree at Colgate University in Hamilton, New York. She spent the last four years before law school living in Vail, Colorado and working for a non-profit organization. A second-year law student, she is a member of Student Animal Legal Defense Fund, and Outlaws. Outside of school she loves playing and refereeing soccer, skiing and cooking.

Lauren (2L)

Lauren was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana and went to college at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. She went on to graduate school at Pratt Institute, a small art school, in New York City. Before moving to Eugene, Lauren did community outreach work for the City of New York for two years. Lauren made it through 1L year and this year she's as busy as ever. She is currently the regional treasurer for the Western Region of the National Black Law Students Association, serves as a conference co-director for the Public Interest Environmental Law Conference, is a member of the Moot Court Board, and volunteers at a local elementary school. She also works as the Minority Outreach Assistant for the law school's Office of Admissions. When she can pull herself away from her casebooks, she enjoys being overly maternal to her friends, cooking huge meals, swimming, and watching pro and college sports.

Abigail (3L)

Abigail Molina is a native Oregonian, born and raised in the Eugene area, with strong roots and the goal of living out the rest of her days in the beautiful Willamette valley. She is also a double duck, having completed her Bachelor of Arts in International Studies with a concentration on Latin America in 1998. Abigail is in her second year of law school and is on track to complete her studies in December of 2009. Between college and law school Abigail worked for seven years as an immigration legal assistant. Since December of 2008 she has been clerking for Shlesinger & deVilleneuve where she has gained valuable experience in personal injury law while also helping the firm to establish an immigration practice with recent UO law grad, Jennifer Doreen. Abigail is fluent in Spanish and loves working with the Latino community. In fact she sometimes wonders if she isn't truly a Latina stuck in a white woman's body! Abigail is co-director for the Latino/a Law Students Association this year and has already had a great time planning events and fundraisers and working together with other Latino and Latino-friendly students. In her free time, Abigail enjoys spending time with her husband Mark, traveling, cooking, and preparing music to present at church where she and Mark are the music directors. Abigail has 3 step-children ages 21, 18, and 16 and is also a grandmother at the ripe age of 32!

Kirk (3L)

Kirk is a third-year student at the University of Oregon School of Law. His law school activities include working as Associate Editor for the Oregon Law Review and Managing Editor for The Legality. Kirk works for United States Attorney's Office full time during the summer and part time during school. This year Kirk will also participate in the Civil Practice Clinic and Small Business Clinic. A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Kirk received his undergraduate degree from The Ohio State University. After earning a B.A. in history and political science, Kirk worked in Washington, D.C., for the National Security Council focusing on counterterrorism issues. Kirk is married with a pair of dogs and just welcomed his first child to the world in August. He spends his free time playing basketball in the law school morning league, playing softball with law school friends, and hiking and camping.

Landon (3L)

Landon is a third-year student at the University of Oregon School of Law. He and his wife Heather have been married for four years and have a very active 2 year-old son named Dallin (and another one on the way). They love spending time in the Oregon outdoors, especially biking around Eugene and walking along the beach. Landon considers Utah home but spent most of his growing up years in Ohio and Texas. As an undergraduate, he attended Brigham Young University. Landon graduated with a degree in Business Management in 2007, and consequently is now interested in business law. His law school activities include being the Business Editor for the Journal of Environmental Law and Litigation, participation in moot court competitions, membership in the Federalist Society, and playing in the Legal Ballers Association. Landon spent his summer as a summer associate in the business practice group of a law firm based in Salt Lake City.

Sandy (3L)

Sandy, a third-year student at the University of Oregon School of Law is a native of St. Louis, Missouri. He spent his second summer in law school in New York working as a fellow for a nonprofit organization. He spent his first summer in Fairbanks, Alaska where he spent the summer working for Alaska Legal Services and exploring The Last Frontier. He graduated from Syracuse University with a dual degree in Newspaper Journalism and Political Science. In college, Sandy hosted a sports talk radio show, covered sports and news of the school newspaper, and served as a representative and tour guide for the Department of Admissions. After graduation, Sandy moved to Columbus, Ohio, where he directed the Jewish Experiences for Teens program at the Columbus Jewish Community Center. He then moved back home to St. Louis, working as a staff member for the Missouri Valley Conference, a college sports league, where he assisted in hosting the 2007 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. Sandy also has six years of experience working at summer camps as a counselor and trip leader. He has led teenagers on outdoor and cultural experiences in Israel, Colorado and throughout Oregon. At law school, Sandy serves as the Student Bar Association President, and he is on the board for PIPS (Public Interest Public Service), LRAP (Loan Repayment Assistance Program), The Sports and Entertainment Law Forum and the Dean's Student Advisory Committee. He also participates in Juvenile Street law, and participated in a 4-day mediation training through the school's Alternative Dispute Resolution Center. He also serves on the Intercollegiate Athletic Committee and works as a Hearings Officer for the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards for the University of Oregon, and can often be found at Autzen Stadium and Mac Court cheering on the Ducks. Sandy is interested in public service law, public policy, and alternative dispute resolution.

Michelle (4L)

Michelle is enrolled in the joint JD/MA in international studies program at the University of Oregon School of Law. She is in her fourth year of the four-year program. In order to complete both degrees by Spring 2010, Michelle will be taking a mix of law courses, master's courses, and will be writing her thesis this year. Michelle grew up in Savannah, GA and received her BA from Bowdoin College in Brunswick, MA. Between college and law school, Michelle lived in Boston, where she worked in public health research and volunteered in the fields of immigration and asylum law. While at Oregon, Michelle has primarily focused her course work on environmental law and has worked two summers as a law clerk for public interest environmental law firms. She has been involved with the Oregon Review of International Law for the past two years as an Associate Editor and then the Managing Editor. Besides being a student, Michelle is also a graduate teaching fellow for the Office of Student Life and a fellow for the ENR Program. Outside of school, Michelle spends much time pampering her border collie mix and is also an outdoor enthusiast, enjoying the amazing cycling, hiking, and rafting Oregon has to offer. This summer, she married her partner at a lodge along the McKenzie River outside of Eugene.