juris doctor

It's official ... Jason graduated on Friday and now holds the degree of Juris Doctor.



As I sat in the theater at Madison Square Garden and watched Jason and all of his friends march past I couldn't help but get a little emotional. I was so proud to see him in his purple gown, knowing what an accomplishment it was to be graduating from one of the top law schools in the country. The convocation started with a procession of the graduates marching down the isles through the audience down to the front where they were seated and I was lucky enough to have an isle seat on the second row and got to see each graduate as they passed. Jason has made so many great friends at NYU and it was a little sad to think that they would now be scattered across the country.

The speakers did great but my favorite was the hooding ceremony, where each graduate walked across the stage as their name was read as one of their professors then placed a purple velvet hood around their neck, patted them on the back and crowned them juris doctors (or at least that's how it felt to me).



I know it's blurry but doesn't he look so happy?


I loved their purple "doctor's" gowns. They were so much better than the bachlor gowns. First, the fact that they were purple was my favorite, it just made them look like royalty, which in my eyes(after all his hard work) he should be. On the sleeves were three black velvet stripes and the front was faced with black velvet strips with what resembled a crest with the NYU torch and the year 1835 on the chest and then of course the black velvet cap and purple velvet hood.



After the hooding of most of the graduates they then had the hooding of those who's family members were alumni of NYU law and it was so fun to see fathers and mothers hood their children, grandparents hood their grandchildren, siblings hood each other and even husbands, wives and fiances hooding each other. I couldn't help but secretly hope that perhaps someday Jason will be able to hood one of our children/grandchildren.

I am so proud of Jason for graduating from law school; however, I feel like law grads kind of get the shaft in the title department. I mean, if they get the doctor degree then how come the title doesn't come with it? I would prefer seeing Dr. Jason Larkin to Jason Larkin, Esq. and when do you ever see someone placing the suffix with their name? In my eyes I think they are just as important so I am just going to call him My Juris Doctor.

It was such an honor to be the wife of a graduate and I was touched when people congradulated me as well, I was truly proud of Jason. He has worked harder over the last three years than anyone I have ever known. I have never seen anyone as dedicated to their studies as he was and I feel like it has finally paid off. He continues to thank me for helping him through it but I am the one that needs to thank him. So thank you, Jason, for moving me to this amazing city; for learning what law school is all about; for always working so hard; for the stressful interview process and landing a job that alows us to stay in the city; and for still remembering to make time for me while you did it all. I love you!

Jason's family came to town to celebrate his big day




Some of Jason's law school buddies




Around the law school



**Fun Fact: Jason is the first USU alum to graduate from NYU Law**