I did not enjoy Civil Procedure. I feel that I am unremarkable in that respect. It was confusing and arcane. I could never tell what was important and what was not.
Not so with Civil Pretrial Practice. This is a great class, though it is a lot of hard work. We've had to do all the practical stuff to filing a lawsuit that was more or less implied in CivPro. Last week we filed a complaint, and we had to do all the little things you don't learn about, like a Civil Cover Sheet. This week, it is an answer, counter-claim, and a memorandum to support a dismissal of a claim for failure to state a claim for which relief can be granted.
All this means is that the rules of civil procedure are actually being used. I'm learning more here than I did in two semesters of CivPro. More accurately, I will almost certainly retain this information far longer. Even if I don't practice in the civil arena, it will be a long time before I forget what a 12(b)(6) motion is.
I feel like this whole law school thing is really starting to yield some practical results.
