Weekend Warrior - Richard Gruters

You serve as an Associate Editor for the Seton Hall Law Review. What has been your most rewarding experience working on the journal so far, and how has it shaped your legal writing and analytical skills?

Working as an Associate Editor for the Seton Hall Law Review has been deeply rewarding in two ways. First, the process of Comment writing forces you to refine your approach to legal research. Not only do you have to become efficient at finding, processing, and contextualizing sources, but you also have to determine what questions to ask to shape your topic. Learning how to better formulate the right questions has certainly helped make me a better scholar.

Second, collaborating with other students to create a published product is extremely exciting! It has been an excellent opportunity to learn from my peers about legal writing, editing, and research. I am incredibly grateful for all that my talented colleagues have taught me so far.

What strategies or habits have helped you excel academically in law school?

I don’t know if I have anything terribly unique to say here, but I believe the most important lesson is to heed advice. If a professor or a peer you respect tells you that a certain strategy or approach works best for a given task, adopt it—and thank them.

The best example I have of this is my love of task lists. A peer once told me that maintaining a task list was more helpful than simply marking due dates on a calendar, so I ran with it. I create lists for every class on the day I receive my syllabi. Every day after work, I exercise first, then review my upcoming tasks over dinner. This habit allows me to see everything I need to accomplish in a given night, week, or month with a clear head before diving in.

You earned the Daniel Crofts Outstanding Senior Thesis Award during your undergraduate studies in History. How did writing your senior thesis prepare you for the research and writing demands of law school?

My thesis project remains the longest academic writing project I have undertaken. (If my Comment exceeds its length, I’m fairly certain my Comment Editor and faculty advisor will hate me.) One of the most valuable lessons it taught me was how to manage large research and writing projects without becoming overwhelmed. I learned to break projects into sections at every stage and focus on completing each section while maintaining perspective on the big picture.

More importantly, my thesis experience taught me how to accept criticism. I entered that process thinking I was a strong writer, only to receive more in-depth critiques than I had ever encountered. That experience drastically improved my writing. Learning to accept and apply feedback was especially invaluable during my 1L year in Intro to Lawyering, where I had to become comfortable receiving drafts marked with extensive revisions. No matter how much you refine your work, there is always room for improvement, and others are often best at identifying those areas.

You were the captain of The College of New Jersey’s Men’s Cross Country, Indoor, and Outdoor Track and Field Teams. How has your experience as a student-athlete and leader influenced your approach to collaboration and discipline in law school?

Competing as a long-distance runner was particularly beneficial. The key to improving in distance running (besides constant training) is getting comfortable with discomfort. You can only run farther or faster if you accept that much of the process will be difficult and, at times, uncomfortable. That mentality has been invaluable in law school, where there are many late nights when you question why you’re putting yourself through this.

Serving in a leadership role also taught me accountability. Whether it’s a group project, studying for an exam, or even completing individual assignments, law school is easier when you hold yourself accountable to those who rely on you. It’s also important to recognize when you need to admit your shortcomings and ask for help.

Finally, just as in athletics, it’s easy to view law school as a competition. But I’ve learned that setting aside competitiveness to collaborate with my peers makes the experience far more enjoyable and ultimately makes me a better student.

Your work as a Violations Clerk for multiple municipal courts involved implementing case-flow management systems for virtual sessions. What challenges did you face transitioning court processes online, and what did you learn from that experience?

I learned—paraphrasing our judge—that scheduling municipal court matters is like trying to herd cats! At our courts, we developed a system for scheduling virtual court sessions in half-hour increments based on the expected adjudication time for each matter. Since municipal courts primarily handle traffic violations, disorderly persons offenses, and petty disorderly persons offenses, I spent untold hours learning which cases were “easy” and which would require significant argumentation or motion practice.

The other major challenge was technical. I had to automate various steps in our case management process and ensure that all parties received the necessary information for their court appearances. While a niche skill, I became highly proficient in Microsoft Excel, Outlook, and Word, especially in using templates and automated scripts.

At the Bedminster Township Municipal Court, you assist users in navigating court services. How has this role shaped your perspective on accessibility and efficiency in the justice system?

Municipal court is often the first—and sometimes only—experience the average person has with the judiciary. In this sense, we in municipal courts serve as ambassadors for the legal system. The biggest challenge is explaining court procedures, and sometimes the procedures of related agencies, to individuals with no legal background. This requires patience and a willingness to listen, especially when people are upset, frustrated, or scared.

I cannot emphasize enough how grateful I am for this experience. It has made me much better at diffusing tense situations with strangers and communicating effectively with people from diverse backgrounds.

The judiciary is continually working to improve accessibility, and I’ve seen firsthand how technology has bolstered these efforts. Public-facing e-filing systems, virtual court appearances, and translation services have made a significant impact. There is still more work to be done, but I’ve been proud to witness and contribute to these improvements.

As a long-distance runner and hiking enthusiast, how do these activities help you maintain balance while managing the rigors of law school?

With the demands of law school, especially as a weekend student, I don’t hike as much as I’d like during the semester, but I run nearly every day. I know running sounds miserable to some people, but for me, it’s meditative.

As law students, particularly weekend students, we constantly live mentally two weeks or more in the future. Running gives me a chance to step out of that. For the duration of a run, I’m not planning or fixating on a reading—I’m focused on my breathing, cadence, and the scenery. It’s a valuable mental reset.

You’ve worked at River Horse Brewing Company in production and packaging. What lessons did you take from that experience, and how has it influenced your approach to teamwork or problem-solving in your legal career?

That remains one of the most demanding jobs I’ve had—several months of 11- to 12-hour night shifts! I learned that no matter how exhausted you are, if the job needs to get done, you can always find the energy to push through.

It also reinforced the importance of strong relationships with coworkers. When it’s just three of you in the room at 2 a.m., you need to be able to trust and rely on each other. That lesson applies equally in law: having a reliable support network makes a difference.

With your background in History and municipal court experience, do you see yourself pursuing a particular area of law, such as municipal or administrative law?

I struggle with this question, and my answer seems to change every time I’m asked! That said, I’m eager to fit administrative law courses into my schedule next year. Having worked on the administrative side of municipal courts, I enjoy seeing the interplay between judicial rules, policy, case law, and statutes.

I could also see myself working in municipal law. Municipal courts handle an incredibly diverse range of issues, and I would love to use my experience to help individuals navigate the system.

Where do you see yourself in five years, and what impact do you hope to make in the legal field?

Regardless of the practice area I ultimately settle in, I hope to carry forward the care, precision, and dedication I’ve learned from the outstanding lawyers and students I’ve had the privilege of working with. Ultimately, I want to use my legal education to support and protect those who need it most.