Admissions

Farah: Hi, I'm Farah and I'm going to take you through a day in my life as a 1L at UVA Law. In the mornings, I have to feed my roommate, Cleo mama, so there's her getting her breakfast. 

Heading into school for the day. I have four classes on Thursdays, so it's a pretty stacked day, and I definitely need to stop by my locker on these days just to get myself prepared. 

Here's Criminal Law with Professor Brown, one of my favorite classes so far this semester. And right after this, I head to Civ Pro.

Here's my friend Emmery and all my excited classmates to learn about Civil Procedure. We have this class with the amazing Professor Woolhandler, and it is super fun. 

And here are me and some of my classmates just taking a break between classes. Next, we have Contracts with Professor Krawiec. And finally, I have my small section class with Professor Cope, which is Torts.

And here is me and my best friend, Eva, leaving for the day. After school, I spend some time with my friends because everybody needs time to be people outside of law school. And then we end our night playing Catan.

Derek: What’s going on, everybody? My name’s Derek Collins and I’m a 3L here at UVA Law. And we’re going around on the first week of classes to ask everyone which class or clinic they’re most excited about. Let’s go! We’re here with my friend Jadie. What class are you most excited about this semester?

Jadie: I’m really excited for my biotech class with Professor Riley. I’ve had, I’ve had Health Law with her before, so I’m excited.

Derek: Go Health Law! Yeah! See, look at that!

MeiMei: I’m really excited for Energy Regulation because I’ve heard a lot of good things and the firm I’m working at this summer does a lot of energy law.

Derek: We’re here with my Section F besties. F is for friends! And they are going to tell us each what they are most excited about in terms of their classes this semester.

Student: I am really excited for my Environmental Law Clinic.

Student: I’m excited for my Seminar in Ethical Values with Professors Barzun and Bowers.

Student: I am excited for my Taking Effective Depositions class.

Student: I’m excited for Native American Law with Professor Doran.

John: I’m excited for Civil Rights Litigation with Professor Jeffries.

Carolyn: I’m Carolyn, I’m a 2L,and I’m most excited for Law of the Police with Professor Harmon.

Lucy: I’m Lucy, I’m also a 2L, and I’m most excited for Evidence with Mitchell.

Student: I’m most excited for my clinic, which is the Youth Advocacy Clinic. I’m really excited to put what I’ve learned here at UVA into practice there.

Alex: Hi, I’m Alex, 3L, and looking forward to Sports and Games.

Tony: I’m Tony, 2L, I’m looking forward to the AI Legal Lab.

Daniel: Hi, I’m Daniel, I’m a 2L. I’m looking forward to Corporations with Geis.

Derek: Same! Have fun in class, I’ll see you guys later. Good seeing you.

Sophie: I’m Sophie, I’m most excited for Fed Courts.

Student: I’m really excited to be in the Innocence Project Clinic this semester.

Student: I am most excited for Negotiations this semester.

Derek: We’re here with my favorite BLSA president, Maya.

Maya: Hi there.

Daniel: Hi, Maya. Maya, tell us what class you’re most excited about this semester?

Maya: I’m most excited for Biotechnology and the Law because I was a health services management student and I’m really excited to learn about, like, the different ethical regulations and requirements around bioethics.

Derek: We’re here with my man, Dan. Dan, what classes are you most excited for this semester?

Dan: I’m in Civil Rights Litigation with Professor Jeffries this semester. It’s going to be awesome.

Derek: Shavon, which class are you most excited about this semester?

Shavon: I’m super excited about taking Feminism in Practice and Theory with Anne Coughlin. I’ve had her before as a professor and she’s lovely, and so I’m excited to have her again as a 3L.

Derek: We love Professor Coughlin!

Arden Benitez: Hi, everyone, my name is Arden. This is my friend Quinn. He's my rock when the going gets tough, and I'm going to walk you through a week in the life at UVA Law. Every day starts with an early morning class. Today, we've got Crim Law with Professor Brown, and then I've got a meeting with the Office of Private Practice.

Kira Walmer: Arden, welcome. I can't wait to work together.

Arden: Up next is some study time before I grab a smoothie from my favorite person at the Law School. And then back to the books before grabbing dinner with LALO for Hispanic Heritage Month, where they served us some amazing tacos. Then I've got second dinner with West Coast Wahoos, where we're hosting our Brazos social.

Next morning, it's back to the library to get ahead of some of my readings for the day, because my section has a softball game against Section G. Here's some great highlights, and we came away with the win that day.

Next, we had the opportunity to see Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett speak, but I wasn't allowed to film her because of all the security measures in place. Then my friend Dom and I went to the Downtown Mall to visit Chaps, which is a local favorite ice cream parlor with an amazing atmosphere.

And then I went to my friend's place for some late night Catan, and I ended up running away with this one like I normally do.

Professor Risa Goluboff: What is a constitution? Is a constitution just a system of government? Is it the rules of the road? Is it just the structure laid out there? Is it an aspiration of how we treat each other in our political community? Is it an aspiration of values? Does it have values? Is it value-neutral? Does it just have processes? 

What is it? Who interprets it? Should the other branches also interpret it? Should Congress ask itself whether something is constitutional when it passes a law? And should it define constitutionality the same way the court does? Or should Congress have its own views of constitutionality? 

And what about outside of government? Shouldn’t all of you be interpreters of the Constitution? We, the people, aren’t we all interpreters of the Constitution? 

As lawyers, aren’t you especially interpreters of the cons — so who interprets the Constitution? What is it? Who interprets it? 

And how do we interpret it? Right? That’s a question you’re gonna spend lots of time. Every case is about how we interpret the Constitution and constitutional law.