PILA Glossary of Important Terms

Pre-Law & Application Process

• 0L – A prospective or pre-law student who has not yet started law school.

• Addendum – A short, supplemental essay used to explain anomalies in your application, such as a semester of low grades, disciplinary actions, or gaps in education.

• Adcomm / Adcom – Short for “Admissions Committee” or its individual members, the people who evaluate law school applications.

• CAS (Credential Assembly Service) – LSAC’s service that gathers your transcripts, LSAT score(s), letters of recommendation, and other materials for law school applications.

• Character and Fitness – A section of both your application and bar admission that requires full disclosure of any past misconduct—criminal, academic, or professional.

• Cycle – The admissions cycle in which you apply (e.g., Fall 2024 admissions = 2023-2024 cycle).

• DS (Diversity Statement) – An optional application essay where you explain how your identity or background contributes to diversity in the law school community.

• ED (Early Decision) – A binding application process in which, if accepted, you commit to attending that school.

• Experimental Section – An unscored section on the LSAT used to test future questions. Test-takers won’t know which section it is during the test.

• GPA Addendum – A specific type of addendum explaining low undergraduate GPA due to illness, family hardship, or other factors.

• GRE (Graduate Record Exam) – A general graduate school entrance test accepted by some law schools as an alternative to the LSAT.

• KJD – "Kindergarten to JD"; a student who goes directly from undergrad to law school with no full-time work in between.

• LOCI (Letter of Continued Interest) – A letter sent to reaffirm your interest in a school after being waitlisted or deferred, often with updates.

• LOR (Letter of Recommendation) – An evaluative letter from a professor, supervisor, or mentor endorsing your qualifications.

• LSAC (Law School Admission Council) – The nonprofit organization that runs the LSAT and manages CAS.

• LSAT (Law School Admission Test) – A standardized test used for law school admissions in the U.S., focusing on logic, analytical reasoning, and reading comprehension.

• Medians – The median LSAT and undergraduate GPA of a school’s entering class, used to gauge competitiveness.

• PS (Personal Statement) – A required essay detailing your motivations for law school and your personal journey.

• Reverse Splitter – An applicant with a high GPA but a below-median LSAT score.

• Softs – Non-numerical application factors like work experience, leadership, volunteerism, or compelling life stories.

• Splitter – An applicant with a high LSAT score but a below-median GPA.

• Stats – Short for LSAT score and undergraduate GPA, the two main numerical elements of your application.

• Target Median – The GPA/LSAT number a school aims for in the current admissions cycle.

• UG / uGPA – Undergraduate and undergraduate GPA, respectively.

• Unicorn – An applicant with unique, outstanding softs (e.g., Rhodes Scholar, Olympic medalist).

• URM (Underrepresented Minority) – Refers to applicants from groups historically underrepresented in law (e.g., Black, Latino, Native American).

• Why Statement / Why X Essay – A supplemental essay explaining why you're applying to a specific school, often used for demonstrated interest.

• WL (Waitlist) – Status for applicants who aren’t admitted or denied—essentially a backup list.

• YP (Yield Protection) – A strategy where schools reject or waitlist overqualified applicants to protect their yield stats.

Law School Curriculum & Life

• 1L / 2L / 3L – First-, second-, and third-year law students, respectively.

• Bar Exam – A licensing exam required to practice law, administered by state bars. Includes the MBE, MEE, and state-specific sections.

• Bluebook – A citation guide used in legal writing. Mastery is essential for law review and legal memos.

• Case Brief – A summary of a judicial opinion, typically outlining the facts, issue, rule, application, and conclusion (IRAC).

• Clinic – A law school program where students work on real cases for real clients under attorney supervision.

• Cold Call – When a professor randomly calls on a student in class—a hallmark of the Socratic Method.

• Curve – A grading system where student performance is ranked against peers. Usually means fixed percentages of A’s, B’s, etc.

• Hornbook – A legal treatise that summarizes blackletter law in a subject area. Great for exam prep.

• IRAC – Stands for Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion. A common structure used in legal writing and exams.

• Law Review – A student-run legal journal that publishes scholarly articles. Membership is prestigious and often based on grades and writing competition.

• OCI (On-Campus Interviews) – A formal interview process through which firms and organizations recruit students.

• Outlining – The process of summarizing class notes and readings into a condensed study guide for final exams.

• Torts – A required 1L course dealing with civil wrongs like negligence and intentional harm.

Legal Practice & Profession

• ABA (American Bar Association) – The primary accrediting body for U.S. law schools and legal ethics standards.

• Amicus Curiae – “Friend of the court” brief submitted by a third party to offer expertise or perspective in a case.

• BigLaw – A term for the largest law firms, often with 250+ attorneys. Known for high salaries, long hours, and elite clients.

• Billable Hour – The standard metric for tracking client work in most firms. Lawyers must “bill” a minimum number of hours per year.

• Brief – A written argument submitted to a court in support of a motion or appeal.

• Clerkship – A post-grad job working directly for a judge, researching and drafting opinions. Highly respected.

• Deposition – Sworn, out-of-court testimony recorded for use in litigation.

• Discovery – The process in litigation where parties exchange evidence.

• Docket – The official schedule or listing of court cases.

• In-House Counsel – Lawyers who work directly for corporations or nonprofits, rather than law firms.

• Litigation – Legal disputes resolved in court through lawsuits.

• Moot Court – A simulation of appellate court proceedings, used to train students in oral advocacy.

• Of Counsel – A lawyer affiliated with a firm, often part-time or semi-retired, not on the partner or associate track.

• Partner – A senior attorney at a firm with ownership interest and profit sharing.

• Pro Bono – Legal work done for free, often to serve underserved communities.

• Solo Practitioner – A lawyer who runs an independent legal practice.

• Transactional Law – Non-litigation legal work involving contracts, mergers, real estate, and regulatory compliance.

• Westlaw / LexisNexis – Online legal research tools widely used by law students, attorneys, and judges.

Public Interest Law & Pathways

• Fellowship – A time-limited, funded position (usually 1-2 years) at a public interest organization or legal nonprofit.

• LRAP (Loan Repayment Assistance Program) – Helps public interest lawyers repay student loans by offering partial forgiveness or income-based subsidies.

• PI (Public Interest) – Legal work that serves the public good, often in civil rights, housing, immigration, or indigent defense.

• Public Defender – A government attorney who represents criminal defendants who cannot afford private counsel.

• Law Clerk – An assistant to a judge (or occasionally to a law firm), often tasked with legal research and opinion drafting.

Legal Jobs & Recruiting

• Callback – A second-round interview, usually on-site or virtual, following an initial screening interview.

• Cover Letter – A letter accompanying a resume that explains your interest in a position and qualifications.

• Summer Associate – A summer intern at a law firm; often a pipeline to a full-time offer.

• Vault Rankings – Annual rankings of law firms based on prestige, compensation, and work culture.

• V10 / V100 – Refers to the top 10 or 100 law firms in the Vault rankings.