Habeas Chorus, an official student organization within the BYU Law School, allows students to gather once every week to sing together.
The choir’s name is a pun on the term “Habeas Corpus,” which refers to a legal process that allows the challenge or appeal of unlawful detention or imprisonment.
Before Habeas Chorus, there was a previous law school choir that had died off. It was not until third-year law student Porter Schenewark brought it back that the choir was renewed as Habeas Chorus.
"No one was excited to join the choir, so we felt like there was a need for a little bit of, we'll call it 'exciting marketing,'" Schenewark said.
Naomi Hilton, president of the Habeas Chorus, said her parents were big on attending ward choir. She attended with them growing up since she was 12 years old.
Hilton said the choir should be a fun time for students to gather and sing.
“I just really like the more casual environment of singing in a ward choir, and that's sort of what we're trying to capture with Habeas Chorus," Hilton said.
The choir’s big events include a semester concert in the Howard W. Hunter Law Library, located in the J. Reuben Clark Law School, where participants gather around a baby grand piano and perform the songs they practiced.
On Dec. 5, the choir plans to perform four songs, all Christmas-themed. Law students who play the violin, viola and cello will accompany the choir as a string quartet for two songs during the choir's December performance.
“It’s just meant to be sort of a nice stress-release activity where you can come sing, have a good time, hang out with some people in a different setting than our usual intense law school environment,” Hilton said.
Whether experienced or not, the choir welcomes all law students.
“We let anyone join — any music level — so we’ve had people who were music majors in undergrad all the way to people that don’t know how to read music and match parts with the people next to them,” Hilton said.
The choir ranges from first-year law students to third-year law students and faculty.
Abby Carr, vice president of Habeas Chorus, said student organizations are a great way to mix up the classes.
"I think it's a great way for the first-years to get to meet upperclassmen as well because, as a first-year, there's not a lot of opportunities to meet a lot of (second-year and third-year law students)," Carr said.
Lynnett Rands, assistant dean for Communications at BYU Law and advisor of Habeas Chorus, said Habeas Chorus is one of the highlights of being at the law school.
"It's always wonderful to sing with others. When you are singing together, it brings a lot of joy and you can take the endorphins where you can get them at law school," Rands said.
Rands said the choir's semester performances are among the best-attended events at the law school.
"We just fill the library with people and song, and not just the choir, but also we have students perform piano and instrumental and vocal solos; some recite poetry about the Savior," Rands said
As the assistant dean for Communications, Rands does not get to interact with students as much as she would like, but Habeas Chorus gives her the opportunity to connect with students.
"I've found that this is a wonderful way to get to know our students in a different way than just their legal studies," Rands said.
The study of law can be difficult, frustrating and time-consuming. For Schenewark, the choir is an opportunity to form a sense of community with peers and faculty that is slightly disconnected from the stress of being a law student.
"We don't talk about law when we're in choir, we don't sing about the law, it's just people getting together in a fun and stress-relieving but not necessarily time-consuming way," Schenewark said.
Rands said the choir is a gift to the law school community.
"We're all super busy, but we think it's important enough to find the time to come together to do this," Rands said.