FE1 Exam Thread (Mod Warning: NO ADS)

Northern Child

well folks got three out of the four- bit gutted about constitutional but I knew I ballsed it up. How did people pass that? I actually studied for it the most and its the one i ended up failing. got a 50 in company and I thought it was a tough paper!

sorchauna

Northern Child wrote: »

well folks got three out of the four- bit gutted about constitutional but I knew I ballsed it up. How did people pass that? I actually studied for it the most and its the one i ended up failing. got a 50 in company and I thought it was a tough paper!

I agree with company I thought it would be one of my best and it was my lowest!! But a pass is a pass!

sorchauna

colonel1 wrote: »

Hey that is great news:D Did it say anything about the venue? Congrats on getting your exams btw:D

No it did not, I kept looking at it but did not see it. Cant remember when/where it says the venue from last time so maybe someone else may know! And thanks!! Delighted to have my first sitting over with and the done with. Although in no rush really as have no traineeship lined up. Tho you have one left right? I say you can see very brightly the light at the end of the tunnel!

chops018

colonel1 wrote: »

Hey that is great news:D Did it say anything about the venue? Congrats on getting your exams btw:D

sorchauna wrote: »

No it did not, I kept looking at it but did not see it. Cant remember when/where it says the venue from last time so maybe someone else may know! And thanks!! Delighted to have my first sitting over with and the done with. Although in no rush really as have no traineeship lined up. Tho you have one left right? I say you can see very brightly the light at the end of the tunnel!

It doesn't say where it will be held but it does say that it will be held in Dublin only.

See the end of page one in this PDF: http://lawsociety.ie/Documents/education/hbs/FE1_Mar2013.pdf

boomtown84

Just checked...got EU but failed Const as expected. Paper just killed me. Anyway 7 down 1 to go.

colonel1

Lol, I do see the light at last, but as my last exam is constitutional I won't be counting my chickens;-). Would love a TC at the end of the tunnel too:-)

Interesting that there is no mention of a venue as yet!

rickety cricket

trueblueterry wrote: »

Has anyone ever had their Equity paper rechecked? if so do they shift much?

I got 38 but had felt like I passed after I did the exam. Am leaning towards having it rechecked as I have the other 7 passed and might be worth the gamble to have them all out of the way.

I had a mate get go from a 42 to a pass in equity last year so its possible, but as everyone says it is impossible to judge if you are going to get the bump at all. In my opinion i recheck anything from 42 & up just in case there is a chance you get it and don't have an extra in the next sitting.

itsonlybla

This isn't the Ads board

chops018

itsonlybla wrote: »

This isn't the Ads board

Agreed, I was going to link the above poster to the ads thread but they all seem to be locked, even the most recent one.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056512376&page=11

banterful

Hi all,

Hope most of you are happy with results. I got final few yesterday so delighted!

Just want to say thanks a million to everyone on this thread who's dished out advice over the last year - it's been an invaluable resource!

Good luck to all with the next sitting - may the force be with you!

Tom Young

Yes it is. The top of this thread reads No Ads.

Please remove your ad promptly. Or if I have to I'll infract you.

Tom Young

Yes it is. The top of this thread reads No Ads.

Please remove your ad promptly. Or if I have to I'll infract you.

twinkle11

Snip

chazbanger

Hey,

Iv to sit Constitutional, EU , Company and Property and wonder who has the best lecturers?

I heard Brendan Foley(City) is good for Constitutional and EU, but that Gary Fitzgerald(Independent) is also good for EU!?!

I'm having difficulties chosing Property and Company!!

Anyone have Imelda Kelly(Independent) or Patricia Cronin(City) for Property???

and for company, anyone have Anthony Thuillier(Independent) or Mark Cockerill(City) ??

Id really appreciate if anyone has had any experience! Its just a lot of money so I want to make sure I pick the best one!!

Thanks a million,
Chaz

brumbram6

most definitely brendan foley for eu and constitutional!!
not so sure about company, what college are you going for?

chazbanger

Thanks irkalein

Hogzy

irkalein wrote: »

most definitely brendan foley for eu and constitutional!!
not so sure about company, what college are you going for?

+1 on Brendan Foley, I thought he was fantastic.

I thought the GCD lecturer for Company was very good. Mind you I always loved Company Law so I wouldnt know how good she is at teaching from first principles.

chazbanger

Hogzy wrote: »

+1 on Brendan Foley, I thought he was fantastic.

I thought the GCD lecturer for Company was very good. Mind you I always loved Company Law so I wouldnt know how good she is at teaching from first principles.

Ye im leaning towards city colleges! The independent college lectures for property constitutional and company are all new this term so they might be a bit risky!

Think city are quite up to date and they have good solutions!

Griffith is too far away from me so I'm leavin them out!!

MoneyMilo

Does anyone know anything about Veronica McInerney who lectures constitutional at Independent colleges?

irinamax

does anyone know can u do any 5 questions or it should be, for example, 2 from essay block, 3 problem q?

thanks

redscan

irinamax wrote: »

does anyone know can u do any 5 questions or it should be for example 2 from essay block, 3 problem q?

thanks

Any 5. Subject of course to the examiner's instructions.

chops018

irinamax wrote: »

does anyone know can u do any 5 questions or it should be, for example, 2 from essay block, 3 problem q?

thanks

8 questions on the exam, and you can pick any 5 you like, essay or problem.

irinamax

thanks redscan, chops018!

JCJCJC

colonel1 wrote: »

Hogzy wrote: »

..

Am delighted to hear that Hogzy:D Still sad that JCJCJC has left the thread!


....

Well, it's nice to be missed, XXXXX!!! I do drop in to see how y'all are doing, thrilled to see Hogzy cantering over the line, I had lunch with him recently and we had a celebratory ham sandwich, even. Guys, the training contract situation is appalling. Small law practises are really on the rocks. I'm getting the same answer everywhere, there's no work that needs to be done, and if there is, they can take an unemployed fully-qualified solicitor off the dole for fifty a week, why should they take a trainee then at the national minimum wage, when a solicitor is going to be more productive? There's a debate on that on the Law Society group on linkedin, and they have no answers there either - and there are a few hundred Irish solicitors on that group. Stories I've heard include an 8-man practise down to one-man now, practises on 3-day weeks, wage reductions, moves to smaller offices, even one or two who can't afford the practising certificate, ie insurance/compensation fund. It's a horrible time for us to be looking for TC's. I can't honestly see how or why a small practise could afford to keep paying a trainee's wages for the duration of the Blackhall Place courses, and I'm wondering if it's reasonable to expect them to do that. I think we're back to the days when only solicitors' kids and favourite nephews and nieces will get TCs.

Sorry to sound a note of gloom, but you'll run into it when you have those FE1s passed...

doing

JCJCJC wrote: »

Well, it's nice to be missed, XXXXX!!! I do drop in to see how y'all are doing, thrilled to see Hogzy cantering over the line, I had lunch with him recently and we had a celebratory ham sandwich, even. Guys, the training contract situation is appalling. Small law practises are really on the rocks. I'm getting the same answer everywhere, there's no work that needs to be done, and if there is, they can take an unemployed fully-qualified solicitor off the dole for fifty a week, why should they take a trainee then at the national minimum wage, when a solicitor is going to be more productive? There's a debate on that on the Law Society group on linkedin, and they have no answers there either - and there are a few hundred Irish solicitors on that group. Stories I've heard include an 8-man practise down to one-man now, practises on 3-day weeks, wage reductions, moves to smaller offices, even one or two who can't afford the practising certificate, ie insurance/compensation fund. It's a horrible time for us to be looking for TC's. I can't honestly see how or why a small practise could afford to keep paying a trainee's wages for the duration of the Blackhall Place courses, and I'm wondering if it's reasonable to expect them to do that. I think we're back to the days when only solicitors' kids and favourite nephews and nieces will get TCs.

Sorry to sound a note of gloom, but you'll run into it when you have those FE1s passed...

Were those days ever gone?

So what are the options as far as taking your qualifications abroad? I think there's a conversion course in England? Aren't there some states in America where you can become a lawyer in a year or two like New York?

sorchauna

doing wrote: »

Were those days ever gone?

So what are the options as far as taking your qualifications abroad? I think there's a conversion course in England? Aren't there some states in America where you can become a lawyer in a year or two like New York?

You can do the New York bar (and then generally if you go to a different state you may have to sit the bar exams of that State)but its very hard to get into a law firm in the US, remember you have people from Ivy League colleges and its very tough. Also the workload is crazy, and its all about billable hours. And their climate is not as great. Uk is abit more study, usually you do the GLP which is the conversion course when you have a non-law degree (which includes any law degree from Ireland, Scotland and Northern Ireland). Then you do LPC course while you do your apprenticeship.

I'd be tempted for Australia!!

Strawberry Fields

doing wrote: »

Were those days ever gone?

So what are the options as far as taking your qualifications abroad? I think there's a conversion course in England? Aren't there some states in America where you can become a lawyer in a year or two like New York?

Without having done a training contract in England it's another year in college full time or two years part time. Different story if you had the apprenticeship done. :mad:

Strawberry Fields

sorchauna wrote: »

I'd be tempted for Australia!!

Forgive me if I'm wrong but my understanding of Australia was that again it was further study similar to UK, whole different areas of law going on there, but if you were qualified after the traineeship it's more straightforward.

sorchauna

godeas16 wrote: »

Forgive me if I'm wrong but my understanding of Australia was that again it was further study similar to UK, whole different areas of law going on there, but if you were qualified after the traineeship it's more straightforward.

Yes after a traineeship it is easier. All you do is a conversion course.

Sorry I was talking about those who maybe would be thinking of trying to get a traineeship aboard. Like UK and US, competition is higher since the ratio of solicitors to the public would be higher. When you go abroad with law being different in every country, its best to try get a job in the firm in legal support and then work your way up. But Australia would have a lower ratio so therefore it is slightly easier to get work there. But what I have heard is with Australia they prefer you to be already be living in the country when applying. UK firms can be more flexible. Irish colleges rank highly there, whereas US does not really think of Irish colleges as highly because of their own standards of colleges.

JCJCJC

Well, going abroad isn't an option for me, I need a traineeship somewhere between Killarney and Nenagh, Ennis and Mallow. I didn't bust my ass on EU and Constitutional Law to take it to Australia and the kanga-shaggin'-roos. ;-) When I did an LLB in UL, we did a module on English Civil Liberties law, which we were told was a prerequisite to become a solicitor in England, anyone thinking of going over the water might need to check that out fully. It was an easy topic, I got an easy A in it.
There's another thing that's puzzling me. I get the bailii updates every few days by email - lists of the High Court and Supreme Court judgments published on bailii.org. For the past year or two, the volume of them has been staggering - you couldn't keep up with the reading, you'd have to be full-time at it. I'm wondering where are the law offices that are involved in all that action?