Two weeks ago, I received a private message from a law student about her problem with memorizing and remembering the law. Since she had shared my reply on her Facebook timeline, I guess I also have to share it with all of you. My reply:

“You’re right, no one can memorize all the law. But who needs to? The law is already written, mostly codified, and is immediately available in just one click of a button.

“Since your teachers are saying you know too much, then you must not have a problem remembering the law after all. So probably, your teacher is also right that you tend to miss what the question is all about.

“If that is the case, the problem is not about remembering what you have read, but about picking up the correct information from all that you have read.

“MY SUGGESTION IS VERY SIMPLE: YOU SHOULD NOT STUDY THE LAW MERELY FOR THE SAKE OF DOING WELL IN RECITATIONS, PASSING YOUR LAW SCHOOL EXAMS, SURVIVING LAW SCHOOL, HURDLING THE BAR, OR BECOMING A LAWYER. YOU HAVE TO STUDY THE LAW BECAUSE YOU ARE IN LOVE WITH THE STUDY OF THE LAW.

“CREATE A THEATER OF DIFFERENT HUMAN ACTIVITIES IN YOUR MIND, AND SEE THE LAW IN ACTION. VISUALIZE HOW THE LAW INTERACTS WITH PEOPLE AND THE SOCIETY, HOW IT OFFERS SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS, HOW IT FACILITATES TRANSACTIONS, HOW IT NURTURES RELATIONSHIPS, HOW IT PRESERVES ORDER, AND HOW IT AFFECTS HUMAN THOUGHT. WHEN YOU CAN DO THIS, THE LAW WILL COME TO LIFE, AND YOU WILL SEE IT EVERYWHERE, AND YOU WILL FALL IN LOVE WITH THE STUDY OF LAW.

“AND WHEN YOU FALL IN LOVE WITH THE STUDY OF LAW, YOU WILL NEVER FORGET IT AGAIN. AND THE KNOWLEDGE THAT IT GIVES, YOU CAN NO LONGER UNLEARN IT. IT WILL BE YOURS FOREVER.”