Author: TSA Press

State-owned Air Zimbabwe’s only serviceable plane was stopped from leaving Johannesburg last week after failing to pay for airport services.

The dispute was resolved on Friday when the airline settled its debt, said South Africa’s airport management company on Monday.

“Air Zimbabwe was… able to re-commence operations from (Johannesburg’s) O. R. Tambo International Airport from Friday 25 October,” a spokesperson for Airports Company South Africa (Acsa)told AFP, adding that the company acknowledged “a receipt of a payment towards the amounts outstanding”.

Acsa declined to disclose details on the amount of money involved.

Air Zimbabwe is required to pay Acsa cash once a week to cover landing fees, parking and passenger service charges for a weekly flight into Johannesburg — its only international destination.

The airline is one of many businesses suffering from the economic downturn and hyperinflation left over from years of mismanagement under Zimbabwe’s former president Robert Mugabe.

Basics such as food, fuel and medicines are hard to come by, and Air Zimbabwe has laid off hundreds of staff over the past two years.

As an adult who’s graduated from college and has attended law school, it’s highly likely that you’ve played a round or two of “Never Have I Ever,” the drinking game where players are asked about things they’ve never done, and must take a sip of their drinks if they’ve done the thing in question. It’s a really entertaining way to get to know (and potentially embarrass) your classmates and colleagues.

In fact, law students seem to love playing “Never Have I Ever,” because BuzzFeed’s latest video about the law school experience is well on its way to going viral. As of this writing, it has almost 50,000 views, and it’s climbing higher by the second.

So, what’s the “worst” or “craziest” thing you’ve done at law school? Have you ever cheated on a test? Have you showed up to class while under the influence? Have you ever had sexual relations with a classmate or a lawyer? From wanting to quit to stressing after 1L exams to drinking excessively after finals, this video captures the some of the worst that law school has to offer in a nutshell. Check it out:

What’s your best law school “Never Have I Ever” experience? You know you have one, so feel free to email us (subject line: “Law School Never Have I Ever”) or text us (646-820-8477) and tell us all about it. We may feature some of them here in an upcoming post on Above the Law. We look forward to hearing from you.

Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

In honor of New York bar results being released last week and February bar prep on the verge of beginning, I have compiled some of the worst bar prep advice I’ve heard. Now, I am 1000 percent sure that I am going to get an email from someone saying, “But I did XYZ thing that you said was bad advice and it worked for me.” Listen, we all know that there are exceptions to every rule. But in general, the things listed below are not the best practices or things that work for most people. It is always a good idea to double-check the bar prep advice you receive from non-bar exam professionals.   

1. “Just do everything your bar prep company says and you’ll be fine.”

I’m starting with this one because, confession time, I’ve given this advice before. That is because it used to be true. However, more and more over the last few years, I am finding that it is necessary for students to get material from various sources and to modify the schedule they receive from their bar prep companies in order to be successful. This doesn’t mean that there is anything “wrong” with the materials or schedules that bar prep companies give. The reality is they are one-size-fits-all options and it will likely be necessary for you to tailor your schedule in order to reach your goals.

2. Anything that starts with “Back in 1918 when I took the bar exam, I did XYZ…” 

When the partner at your firm or, let’s be honest, any lawyer in your family, wants to give you advice based on what worked for them when they took the bar exam 30+ years ago, smile, say thank you, and then immediately cross-reference their advice with someone from your academic success department.

It is not that their advice is automatically bad, but it certainly is outdated. So, the course they tell you is the best might not be the best anymore, or there may be options out there that they aren’t even aware of. Also, the test may have changed substantially, and substantively, since they took it and some of their advice may no longer be applicable. 

3. “You should listen to MEE predictions from XYZ company.” 

Every time someone asks me what I think the topics of the MEE questions will be on the bar exam, my eyes flash red and my head spins around on my neck like in The Exorcist. When it comes to MEE predictions, the Anchorman quote “60 percent of the time it works every time” tells you everything you need to know. Thanks for that gem, Brian Fantana. 

I absolutely loathe essay predictions because on many, many occasions, I’ve watched students rely on these to their detriment by exclusively studying predicted topics in the weeks leading up to the bar exam. There is, however, a less harmful way to use MEE predictions. If you do happen to stumble upon some predictions, feel free to throw in a couple of extra essays on those topics. Just make sure that you aren’t ignoring everything else.

4. To someone who just failed the bar exam: “You were so close, you probably just need to study a little harder.”

If I had to pick my least favorite piece of advice on this list, this would be it. I know that it is hard to believe after my scathing review of the MEE predictions, but hear me out. If a student earned a score that is close to passing the bar exam, it is very unlikely that it was caused by a lack of work ethic. More likely than not, the person is struggling with one or more skills-based or strategy issues. So, following this advice would mean doing more of what we know did not work. This is terrible advice. A much better approach in this situation is to evaluate what worked, what didn’t, and make changes to the student’s approach to bar prep. 

5. To someone who failed the July bar exam: “Wait to take it next July because I heard February is harder.”

This little piece of folklore really grinds my gears. Do you know what I hear after EVERY bar exam? “That was the hardest test ever” to which, I smile, nod, and agree because I know that to that student it was the hardest test ever. While there may be some valid reasons to postpone taking the bar exam for a year, this isn’t one of them. In fact, this advice can do more harm than good if a student is very close to passing. Over this extended period of time, they will likely forget much of the law and will certainly lose their momentum. 

6. “Read all  the essay topics first and start with the one you feel best about.”

For many, the bar exam is a race against the clock. On the MEE, you get only 30 minutes per essay, and most students find that to be not enough time. That means every minute is precious. So if you spend the first five minutes going through and figuring out which essay you want to start with, you’ve now almost cheated yourself out of one minute per essay. I generally recommend that you take the essays in the order they come up and promptly move on every 30 minutes. 

7. “You don’t need to study for the MPT because everything you need is on the test.”

This is partially true, but misleading, advice. It is true that all of the substantive law you need to know is provided in the MPT. However, many students interpret you don’t need to “study” as you don’t need to prepare at all for the MPTs. And, that my friends, is false. Like MEEs, one of the hardest things about MPTs is completing them in the allotted 90 minutes. The only way to get faster, more accurate, and more efficient at this is to practice. Also, practicing for the MPT allows you to see a variety of formats and will limit the chance that you will have any major surprises on test day. 

8. “You shouldn’t be so nervous. If you don’t pass this time, you can pass next time.”

I appreciate the sentiment here. However, this bit of advice is very invalidating to the very real fear of failure that students face when taking the bar exam. There is a lot on the line for many students, and any advice that is dismissive of that or that encourages students to stuff their fear and stress down can be really detrimental to their ability to be successful. It is important for students to deal with their fear and anxiety along the way so that it doesn’t all manifest on exam day and prevent them from passing. 

9. “Make sure you learn all the law before you do practice questions.” 

This is probably the worst piece of bar prep advice a student could receive. There are very few things in this world I know for certain, but one of them is that doing practice questions is the best way for students to increase their chances of passing the bar exam. I haven’t performed a formal study on this, but based on my years of experience, the number one reason students fail the bar exam is a lack of active studying (meaning too much video watching and not enough practice question doing). 

Spoiler alert: You’re never going to learn “all the law.” And if you wait until you feel like you have, you will definitely run out of time to do enough practice questions to be successful. It is a much better game plan to incorporate practice questions from the beginning of bar prep because not only do they help you with your skills, but they also help you learn the law. 

10. “Focus more on the MBE because it is worth the most points.” 

While I’m never going to knock someone for doing extra MBE questions, this advice is misleading. In a UBE jurisdiction, the MBE is worth 50 percent of your score, MEE 30 percent, and MPT 20 percent. As you can see, the MEE/MPT together also equal 50 percent of your score (and that is the extent of my math skills). Yes, the MBE is important and I highly recommend you do a ton of questions (like more than 3,000 of them), but you don’t want to do them to the exclusion of practicing the written portion of the exam.  The MEE and MPTs are equally as important.  

Best of luck in your bar prep journey! 

Kerriann Stout is a millennial law school professor and founder of Vinco (a bar exam coaching company) who is generationally trapped between her students and colleagues. Kerriann has helped hundreds of students survive law school and the bar exam with less stress and more confidence. She lives, works, and writes in the northeast. You can reach her by email at info@vincoprep.com.

In the latest episode of The Jabot podcast I speak with Jessica Robinson who recently joined Casepoint as Vice President of Client Services. She didn’t start off in legal technology, and we discuss how the twists and turns of her career led her there. Along the way we tackle the impact of LA Law, management styles, the value of having an JD and MBA, and how, as a black woman, Jessica has to work extra hard to prove herself.

The Jabot podcast is an offshoot of the Above the Law brand focused on the challenges women, people of color, LGBTQIA, and other diverse populations face in the legal industry. Our name comes from none other than the Notorious Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the jabot (decorative collar) she wears when delivering dissents from the bench. It’s a reminder that even when we aren’t winning, we’re still a powerful force to be reckoned with.

Happy listening!

Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, and host of The Jabot podcast. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

Eighteen-year-olds are a special breed of adolescent.  They’re neither kids nor adults. Some are embarking on college careers; others have never graduated high school.  Some still have a foot in childhood, while others live independently or earn money to help support their families.  Most would choose to hang out with peers and not worry about things like cooking, cleaning, and earning a living.  Many are focused on just having fun — sex, drugs, and music.  Because of the still-developing nature of their brains, it’s tough for them to think five minutes ahead, no less 20 years.

Some are floundering.  Stuck in the abyss between adulthood and juvenility.  They’re no longer allowed to act like children, but neither are they treated nor expected to behave like adults. It’s a time of naïve expectations and dreams — becoming a famous rapper, basketball player, reality media star.  Few have the bandwidth to think of much more than their immediate needs and interests.  They think they’ll live forever and thus aren’t afraid of dying.

Now picture that combination of bravado, naivety, and egocentrism intersecting with a life sentence for a crime that, in your mind, you didn’t really commit.

You’re sitting in prison surrounded by men mostly twice your age and life experience and have just been sentenced to 25 to life.  That means the earliest you’ll get out (and this is unlikely because parole never lets any convicted murderer out on his first board) is when you’re 43, the age of your father. You still desperately want to be with your boys on the cell block, but if they’re gang members, you know that could extend your time in prison. You want to talk to your mom every night by phone but showing weakness or admitting that you feel scared is dangerous.

You look to your lawyer for a sign of hope that the case will be overturned on appeal and retried.  You need to count on a way out of the nightmare.  But generally, there isn’t.

As the lawyer, how do you prepare your client for this reality? You see him now at age 18, vulnerable, cocky, hungry for experience, unable to see past next week. But in your mind’s eye, you see all he’ll be confronting the next 25-plus years dealing with freedom cut short, the atrocities of prison life, the sheer boredom, the disconnect from family.

Do you look him in the eye and be honest when he asks when he’ll get out, or do you ignore reality and buoy his hopes for reversal on appeal to boost his morale until that appeal is denied?

Criminal defense attorneys have all lived moments like this and there’s no easy way to comfort the client.

In the medical field, where care providers often have to relay bad news, tips for how to do it include sitting the person down in a quiet, private space (impossible when seeing a client in jail).  Making sure he has a supporting friend or relative with him to share the news (also impossible in prison).  Encouraging the person to seek social outlets, take a personal day at work, commune with nature (not a chance in jail).

Another recommendation is not to tell him the whole truth.  Just tell him as much as you think he can take and offer words of encouragement like, “You’ll get through this.”

Problem is in jail, there’s so few choices and so much random violence, words of encouragement often ring hollow.

Advice I’ve picked up along the way:  Don’t lie.  It might make the client feel better in the short run, but in the long run it’s devastating.  While appeals generally don’t succeed, you don’t need to say, “Forget it. You’re here for life,” but rather, “You’ll have the best appeal possible.  There’s always a chance, no matter how small, that something could get reversed.”

Most important, is to just be there.  Generally, when a defendant is sentenced and an appeal filed, that’s the end of the attorney’s involvement.  But especially when you’ve built a rapport with a client over years and his sentence is now huge, it’s important to be there after the sentence also. Visit, if possible.  Show him he’s not just been cut off and forgotten — the fear most people have when they go away for long prison terms.  Write letters and answer his, even if they come two years down the road.  Send a book (if permitted) now and then.  Wish him well.  Let him know he’s not alone.

It may not do much, but it’s a start.

Toni Messina has tried over 100 cases and has been practicing criminal law and immigration since 1990. You can follow her on Twitter: @tonitamess.

HARARE, Zimbabwe

Hunched on seats at Rode Port cross border bus terminal in the Zimbabwean capital, 45-year-old Timothy Mundonda chats in excitement with his wife and three teen children as they wait to board a bus to Johannesburg.

Mundonda is filled with hope as he takes the journey with his family, heading to a land where he lived a decade ago.
Nostalgia for 2009

In 2009, he said, Zimbabwe saw positive changes with the formation of a unity government with the country’s opposition to stabilize the national economy.

But the honeymoon was “short-lived,” he added.

“Remember the stolen 2013 polls, also remember the stolen elections of 2018, things have never been the same,” Mundonda told Anadolu Agency.

“And even worse this year in terms of economic hardship, I have to head back to South Africa for my family.”

Not far from Mundonda and his family, a group of raucous young people stood, some hanging their jackets on their shoulders, others carrying small backpacks, debating Zimbabwe’s deteriorating situation as they are also set to leave for South Africa.

“We have nothing to stay for here,” 27-year-old Mike Matimbe told Anadolu Agency.

“I personally have never worked since I graduated from university five years ago, and I think it’s better to go toil in South Africa for as long as I would be able to feed myself.”

Left with no choice

Every day Zimbabwean migrants like Mundonda, Matimbe, and hordes of others head to countries like South Africa, unable to bear staying in the country any longer, according to human rights activists.

“People were shot at and some killed last year after elections because they demanded the release of results for the presidential polls,” said Claris Madhuku, director of the Platform for Youth Development, a democracy lobbying group in Zimbabwe.

“People were shot at and killed, some abducted in their homes and beaten by soldiers early this year, even as they battled to survive in this harsh economy, and most now have nothing to wait for, they just have to head out anywhere,” she added.

As such, there is a renewed exodus of Zimbabweans like Mundonda and Mutimbe fleeing an imploding economy and deteriorating human rights situation in the Southern African nation.

In 2000-2008, more than 2 million Zimbabweans migrated to its neighboring giant South Africa, most as economic refugees fell into a deep economic crisis, with inflation shooting up to a mind-boggling 231 million percent.

Over almost two decades, South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, and Mozambique have been destinations for Zimbabwean economic refugees.

Even to this day, according to media experts like Mlondolozi Ndlovu, “the trend of migration from Zimbabwe is on the rise again as people flee a dying economy in a post-Mugabe government,” referring to Robert Mugabe, the country’s late strongman ruler.

Soaring of inflation

Owing to that, Zimbabweans like Mundonda and Mutimbe, apparently taking to their heels, have reeled under the country’s soaring inflation.

Many have no choice, they say, because back home, according to Mundonda, “we face hunger, we face perpetual economic crisis under our government.”

To female migrants like 19-year-old Mucharipa Kazingizi, also heading to South Africa, life in Zimbabwe has become unbearable.

Due to financial challenges, Kazingizi dropped out of college during her first year, where she was pursuing a diploma in marketing.

“It’s tough here,” she said.

“I tried everything, from working as a housemaid to working as a shop assistant, still nothing has changed for me because the money here can’t buy [anything], with its value eroding daily.”

Growing tide of migrants

According to the Zimbabwe Cross Border Association, a group that represents the rights and concerns of cross-border traders, since last September — in the wake of July’s general elections — over 460,000 Zimbabweans left the country to neighboring South Africa and Botswana in search of greener pastures.

In Beitbridge, a Zimbabwean town bordering South Africa, an immigration officer on the South African side said: “The number of Zimbabweans crossing into South Africa has doubled since your country had elections last year.”

“About two months after the 2018 elections in Zimbabwe, we started recording over 800 Zimbabweans crossing into South Africa daily via the border; before, the figure of migrants from Zimbabwe was about 400 every day,” said the officer, speaking on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media

Company closures triggering migration

Indigenous Zimbabwean industrialists like Maynard Marembo, whose company recycles plastics, blame the renewed exodus on failing industries.

“Many people have lost their jobs owing to industries that have continued to shut down as they face perpetual operational challenges, and people losing their jobs are leaving the country in search of opportunities elsewhere,” Marembo told Anadolu Agency.

An immigration official at the Beitbridge border post, this time from the Zimbabwean side, speaking on condition of anonymity, rebuffed reports of a renewed exodus.

“We do not inquire from travelers where they are going to or from,” said the official.

“We cannot reveal how many people have left the country because there has been a continuous movement of people in and outside Zimbabwe.”

Up and until the 1990s, Zimbabwe was one of the wealthiest countries in sub-Saharan Africa, but over a decade later it became one of the world’s worst.

That has sent many Zimbabweans packing, according to human rights activists.

“Zimbabweans are anxious about the political and economic meltdown, with no answers from their leaders, which therefore is leading to the fresh exodus to neighboring countries as people seek better opportunities,” Okay Machisa, director of the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights), told Anadolu Agency.