So as most of you taking the bar exam are aware by now, the Examsof software and website is crashing all over the country. At present, states I’ve heard about problems from include:

Iowa
Texas
Connecticut
Utah
Illinois
Missouri
Minnesota
Colorado
California
Rhode Island
Ohio
New York
Florida

and others.

Personally, I didn’t take this exam so I haven’t gone through this problem with the rest of you. But I do have a lot of my law school year’s classmates who are currently discussing their problems and results on Facebook. In case it helps someone else, here is what we’ve gathered:

Samples of the problems being experienced:
- Website crashing
- ExamSof itself crashing during the Test
- Error Messages Appearing when takers attempt to upload their test answers.
- Conflicting emails and messages about whether or not tests have been uploaded.
- Problems with one test uploading and not another.
- Reports that some tests have actually been lost (unverified ~ this was hearsay from someone who heard someone)
- Attempts using Auto-load stop working when the option quits appearing.
- Attempts using the Manual upload stops working when the page won’t load.

People tried calling Examsof, it took hours to get through if they got past the busy signal or got an answer at all. Calling doesn’t seem to be worth the time.
They so far haven’t been responding to Emails, Chat Questions, or Technical Support calls.
The few people who got responses to Facebook comments on the ExamSof Website were told that ExamSof was working as quickly as possible to mend the situation. They also said not to worry because all the tests are stored on your computer, and can simply be uploaded later.

At this time several of my friends have finally gotten their tests to upload. Here is how they did it:

Repeated attempts over and over until something worked.
Keep attempting Auto-Upload until that option disappears. If it works, good. If the option disappears and you still haven’t uploaded, manual up-load is your only option.
Visiting: Examsoft.com/manup and signing in (repeated attempts eventually worked)
Verifying that it worked.

What I’ve taken away from what I’m hearing:

Just keep attempting to make it work. Most people who got through did because they were patient and just kept trying. Apparently letting things just keep loading instead of refreshing the page every few minutes is key.
The state bar associations are aware of the situation. So don’t panic yet, they know something is wrong.
Just leave your test answers closed and keep attempting to upload them.
Save all the emails regardless of whether they say failure or confirmation just to show you made the effort.
If you get failure emails after the confirmation emails, it appears that they did load successfully. Not positive about that, but that’s what I’m hearing. Calling ExamSof later and verifying is probably the way to go.
If it still isn’t working. Stop. Sleep. Try in the morning. Tell Exam Coordinators. Then try again in the afternoon. Before all other things, sleep and rest. Stop stressing. You have to make it through tomorrow, and it is all going to be fine.

GOOD LUCK!

Tags: Bar Exam, failure, not working, problems, website

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Categories Law School

24 Jul

Okay, I get that this is darling and fun and fan’s would love it. But as a lawyer I gotta ask, is there anything there that lets people unfamiliar with the show know that this is fake? It even has a fake phone message . . . how many people are going to call seeking real help and not realize they dialed a fake law office until it is too late? Surely there are disclaimers, I just didn’t see them in the article (Or the billboard)

‘Better Call Saul’ Billboard Unveiled in Albuquerque (Along With Saul’s Law Office Phone Number)

'Albuquerque's favorite lawyer is back in town. New Better Call Saul billboard on the south side of the AHS campus, near Mountain and I-25.' — @varago01/Instagram

Tags: Law

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Categories Humor, Law School, Life

Court: Cops can’t Stop Drivers Based on the Color of their Cars

9 Jul

Good news for the sports car drivers! My guess is that it won’t take long for this case to lead to a finding that Cops can’t stop drivers based on the make of their car either. So that Red Mustang won’t be quite as likely to get you pulled over 🙂 **DB

Court: Cops can’t Stop Drivers Based on the Color of their Cars

By Justin Hyde via “Yahoo News“

“Probable cause” has long been one of those terms that made the jump from legal jargon to household term, especially with regards to drivers who get pulled over. The struggle over what that allows on American roads — and what it doesn’t — took a new turn last week with a Florida ruling that threw out a conviction stemming from a police officer who found something wrong with the color of a car.

In 2010, a deputy in Florida’s Escambia County saw one Kendrick Van Teamer drive by in a bright green Chevrolet. The deputy ran his plates, and found the registration matched a blue Chevrolet. There were no warrants out for Teamer, no reports of stolen vehicles and no pending crimes that involved either a blue or green Chevy. Teamer also wasn’t violating any traffic laws.

But the deputy pulled Teamer over anyway, simply because of the mismatch of the car’s color. Teamer said the car had been recently painted, which was true. It also contained small amounts of cocaine, marijuana and $1,100 in cash. Teamer was charged with drug trafficking and possession, convicted and sentenced to six years in prison.

Teamer appealed, and last week as noted by The Newspaper, the Florida Supreme Court ordered him freed on a 5-2 decision, upholding a lower appeals court ruling that the deputy was wrong to stop Teamer simply becuase the color of his car didn’t match its registration. The court noted that in numerous U.S. Supreme Court rulings, justices have found police can’t pull someone over for everday behavior that’s not linked to a crime, saying Teamer’s stop was not different from those triggered by the race of the driver: . . . .

Tags: Car, Color, Law, News, Police

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Categories Events, Life, The Law

Get Excited! New Fees from the legal Basic Skills Course!

12 Jun

(For those of you unfamiliar with the process, law students in Iowa have to take a “Basic Skills” course their first year that covers everything they were just tested on for the bar exam.)

Now, on with the show.

Just received an email that started off really exciting, with lots of exclamation points:

“This Year’s Annual Meeting and Basic Skills Course are going paperless!” (Bold red font straight from the email).

Naturally, you start going Woohoo! we’re helping the environment. I’m all about this!

But then they go on. . .

“It is strongly suggested attendees print off the materials in advance of the event.” (Lack of bold red print fresh from the email).

Oh. So not helping the environment, just shifting the printing costs onto the obviously poor new lawyers that just graduated from a college degree that permits students to take no jobs. Students who paid a couple thousand dollars for a bar exam that didn’t cost that much to administer. As opposed to the bar association and supreme court that arranges and requires the multiple day event involved lots of paperwork. Organizations who have plenty of money due to us paying for a bar exam that didn’t cost that much to administer.

Now, before our first job arrives, we need to pay for:

The Event ($100+)
The Hotel ($100+)
The Transportation ($100+)
Food (min $20+)
and Printing (One document for one event ~ there are several each day of four days ~ was 80+pages.)

Sorry, this “Breaking, Exciting News” press release was an epic fail. Not seeing the excitement this message acted like it was supposed to incite.