The Best Highlighters for Law School

Before I begin, let me say that I realize how absurd it is that I'm about to write an entire page over highlighters (haha get it?). But by now you've probably heard about how law school is the place where highlighters go to die, so if you're an incoming 1L you might be stressing about them like I did. The truth is, what highlighters you'll need depends on your own personality.

IRAC-er

Keeping up with 10 highlighters not your style? Not in the mood to color-coordinate every. single. fact? That's fine, lots of people are like you too. I'd suggest getting see through highlighters. If I didn't go so overboard, this is what I'd get because I think being able to see where to stop highlighting would be a great feature. But, alas, I need a rainbow and these only come with 4 colors (which coincidentally gives you one color for each part of your IRAC). 

Forgetful

If you lose things easily, I have two suggestions for you. One is to buy two packs of regular highlighters. These are cheap so if you lose one, it's nbd to replace. Or you can get click highlighters if you're really bad at losing the lids, because a dried out highlighter is useless. 

There's also gel highlighters out there which I like because they can't dry out and are twisting. But I would only recommend using these on computer paper, because in my experience law books have a glossy coating on the pages which makes these rub off easily. 

OCD

If you're over the top like me, a multiple color pack is the way to go. I personally prefer this so that when you're called on to talk about a case, you can know the answer to your professor's questions just by looking at the case. My professor asks what the plaintiff argued, I know to scan for the pink and there's my answer. I'm currently obsessed with these highlighters because the colors are so vivid and pretty!

Lazy

Look, you know how you study and you know what you will and won't actually use. Get something like this writing essentials pack, and you're all set. On top of coming with every pen and pencil you'll need this fall, it also comes with 6 highlighters so you're basically done shopping for all of your writing utensils. 

Clumsy

Erasable highlighters are another that I would seriously contend if it came in more colors.  No lie, there's been lots of times when I accidentally highlight the wrong thing and have to write JK! in the margins so I know to ignore the coloring. So when I saw my Moot Court partner do the same thing and then erase the highlighter, I freaked out! These rub off the highlighter and don't even smear!

Trendy

If you've ever seen an Insta-worthy photo of someone's study space, chances are you've seen these chunky highlighters laying on the table. Because I've seen everyone and their dog posting pictures with these, I'm assuming that they must be pretty good, so I'm considering trying them out. 

Eco-friendly

One new thing I've recently learned about are pencil highlighters which are really cool because they're made of wood instead of plastic so  are they eco-friendly. You just use up your highlighter until it's sharpened into oblivion instead of having a big chunky plastic body to throw away when it's out. These also are a lot easier on your book than liquid highlighters.

Indecisive

If you read through all this and you're still not sure what you'll want, then start out with this highlighter set. It comes with 6 narrow highlighters, 2 wide highlighters, 6 gel highlighters, 2 pencil highlighters, and highlighter tape! This way you can try out different types of highlighters (plus have 16 highlighters to start with) and see what you like.

#Broke

There's nothing fancy to say here, but if you are already feeling the weight of student loans on your shoulder, then just go really really cheap with some basic highlighters so you can afford toilet paper and bread this month. 

Final Thoughts

Whatever highlighter you end up using, just remember to use it as an aid and don't go overboard! If you're highlighting the text in between cases, it really shouldn't be more than about 2 sentences worth when combined per page. A good way to check yourself is to ask yourself if this is important enough to go in your outline—if not, then leave it alone! Another thing to keep in mind is try to come up with a system (like that ^) and stay consistent throughout your book and your other classes. 

Related: How to Highlight Efficiently

How many highlighters can I have? The limit doesn't exist!

let's be friends!

bloglovin' | instagram | facebook | twitter | pinterest

Favorite Law TV Shows

Hello lovelies! Now that it's after Memorial Day, the summer has unofficially started. If you're anything like me, this means that you're about to start a summer-long Netflix binge (or at least have several lazy days). Since a lot of you are eagerly waiting to be 1Ls this fall, I thought I'd give you a little list of my favorite law TV shows to get you excited for law school! Pro tip: invest $40 and get an Amazon Fire TV Stick and then you can watch all of these on your TV because this comes with Netflix and Amazon Prime.

The People vs OJ

I'm putting this first because my Criminal Law professor actually emailed the class and recommended that we watch it and we talked about it in class just because it's such great lawyering. Even if you know that you have no interest in being a criminal lawyer or a prosecutor, it's got some legendary lawyering in it. The law nerd in me seriously got so excited when a side would come up with an out-of-the-box argument that it definitely will get you pumped to start your law career.

Making a Murderer

This is also a great series to get you nerdy-excited about the law. It starts off slow but I promise you there will be points when you're in awe at the lawyering skills. When Steven's lawyer would come up with a unique way to gather evidence, I was seriously inspired. Because this is a documentary, you begin to see just how valuable a lawyer can be.

Better Caul Saul

If you liked Breaking Bad and you like the law, then you'll love this series. My favorite part about it is how it portrays the honest side of what it's like having to hustle to get work as a lawyer. It also is very real about how people perceive law school rankings. If you're thinking of maybe starting your own firm after law school or even working at a tiny firm, it shows the dedication and work ethic that you'll need to be successful.

Suits

(it's not on Netflix but is on Amazon Prime Video)

I'm actually watching this right now, thanks to a recommendation by one of my friends. So far, I like how it makes you want to get good grades so that you can be a powerful lawyer who's not only a playmaker, but also a badass. It has some great business profession attire inspiration and also some great quotes about being a lawyer. The only downside is that it's a tad ridiculous because most people work in those big corporate law offices for years before getting a junior associate title or an office, so if you go this route just expect to be stuck in the bullpen. 

How to Get Away With Murder

I'll start right off and say that this show isn't really all that realistic. Don't expect your 1L year to be you jumping right in on how to defend a client. You gotta ease in to it and first learn the basics, like the difference between the levels of murder and manslaughter for example. But I like how this does showcase some of the pressures that you're under when you have outlines and readings to do on everyday. And again, you need to be able to think on your feet to be a killer lawyer.

Drop Dead Diva

This show is more about this girl's life than it is about lawyering, but I still like it. Again, just watching people fighting zealously for their clients can really get you pumped about wanting to be a lawyer and help people. I also like it because it has a little bit of Legally Blonde attitude in it because she breaks the mold of what a typical lawyer is presumed to be. 

The Good Wife

Ok, confession—I haven't watched this yet, but it's at the top of my list to watch because another one of my friends told me that I'd love it. It's supposed to be loosely based on the Bill Clinton scandal, but the main character is also a lawyer so I'm betting that it will be pretty great. 

Have a favorite law show that I missed? Comment below and let me know! I'm always looking for a new show to watch and geek out on! And if you're more in a movie mood, I have some suggestions for law movies to watch too :) 

SaveSave