A 1L wrote me yesterday, at the end of her first week of law school:

"When doing all these readings, I find myself unable to really comprehend what I'm reading, even after a few rereads and taking hours upon hours for just one class. Do you have any tips for improving comprehension while not taking forever to get through all this material?"

Here is the letter I wrote back—

It’s for her, and for every new law student who is spending hours and hours reading and worrying that everyone else somehow "gets it."

⬇️

Hi __, and it’s so lovely to hear from you. The reading is definitely totally different from what you’re used to. I promise you will get faster, and the reading will go more quickly, starting soon.

But I do recommend a change in your approach:

1️⃣ Instead of reading a case like it’s a chapter in a textbook with each fact mattering equally, try reading it to answer these questions:

1-What happened?
2-What did the plaintiff want?
3-What legal question was the court tasked to answer?
4-What legal rule did the court apply or announce?
5-What outcome did the court reach, and why? (what facts seemed to matter most?)

If you can answer in plain English, you have done the important work, and you will be able to follow along in the class, where things often get clarified.

2️⃣ Second, most 1Ls swear by reading a summary of each case BEFORE tackling the case itself, so I definitely recommend checking out Quimbee if you haven’t already.

3️⃣ Third, I strongly urge you to impose a time limit. If at the end, something still does not make sense, flag it with a question mark, and move on. A total of 90 min for each class session is a good standard to shoot for. But in these early days, if you don’t impose a hard stop, you can end up reading all night.

👉 Never forget Parkinson’s Law: Work expands to fill the time allotted to complete it.

Rereading endlessly also has diminishing returns, and getting enough sleep so you’re at your best for class is far more important than having perfect understanding of every sentence in advance.

4️⃣ Fourth, if you still are unclear about something after class, turn to a supplement. Seeing how someone else explains the same concept should help clarify. Ask around, but I think most say Glannon’s books are best.

5️⃣ Finally, please be kind to yourself this month. You have been dropped into a new environment with a strange language and new way of thinking—all at once. Your job right now should be just to take things one class, one day at a time, to get through these first few tough weeks.

Thank you again for reaching out, and I will be sending you brainwaves and positive thoughts for your reading this weekend!

💌 Amanda

#Dear1L

P.S. What else would help 1Ls struggling to get through their reading?