In search of the giant blue agave GUADALAJARA, Mexico - It's early morning and we're traveling east of Guadalajara, uphill into the breadbasket of Mexico, the state of Jalisco. Much of the country's produce is raised in these fertile fields of red volcanic soils, which are graced with plentiful water and a warm, accommodating sun. (408 views)
Georgetown University Emerges as Top Law School in Specialty Rankings Georgetown University Law Center has emerged as the leading law school in specialty rankings based on its outstanding clinical, tax, and criminal law performance. An analysis conducted by law dean Paul L. Caron reveals that while Georgetown secured the 15th position in the overall law school rankings by U.S. News & World Report, it excelled in several specific areas,... (407 views)
Pros and Cons of Prepaid Tuition Plans On a recent Friday my husband surprised me by coming home early — and he caught me in the middle of some illicit computer activity. No, it's not what you think; I was actually looking at our state's prepaid tuition program. (406 views)
Getting spooky in Niagara Falls NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. - Creepy crawlies, ghosties and goblins, spooks and witches - it's October in Niagara and the air is alive with mystery and intrigue. The trees are heavy with apples, the fields full of pumpkins, and Halloween isn't far away. It's a perfect time for a frightful family trip to the falls and beyond. (400 views)
Amphibious Vehicles Like something straight out of a James Bond flick, the amphibious vehicle is the coolest thing to hit both water and land. (399 views)
Equine Law is Growing 03/12/07 For many attorneys in the San Francisco Bay Area, there's a new area of specialization being birthed—equine law. In an area of the state where many residents own horses, whether it's for show or for recreation, individuals are turning to attorneys schooled in the laws surrounding equestrian pursuits for their horse-related legal needs. (398 views)
Legal Layoffs Relatively Few So Far Much of the time, the legal news seems to be dominated by layoff reports, such as when a large firm like Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft lays off almost one hundred lawyers. The credit crunch and virtual collapse of the real estate transactional market have also portended poor legal employment times. Thankfully, however, the news is not all bad. (398 views)
Arizona Family Sues Over Funeral Burial Mishap In a bizarre twist of fate, grief stricken relatives of Robert Gowdy Sr. of Phoenix are suing the city of Mesa, the funeral home, cemetery workers and the casket company for a mishap that occurred during his funeral on May 10, 2008 at a city cemetery. According to the lawsuit initially filed on April 24th by Gowdy's wife, children and relatives, the casket lowering device... (397 views)
Employees Seeking Personnel Files Make Employers Nervous 08/16/07 How do you make your employer nervous? Ask to see your personnel file. More and more, employees are requesting to peruse their files. The reasons? (396 views)
Kansas Lawyer Disbarred For Stealing; Braintree Lawyer Repeatedly Disbarred On Friday, the Kansas Supreme Court disbarred an Overland Park lawyer, Michael Clay Schnittker for professional misconduct. The disbarment order mentions that Schnittker “systematically stole” more than $150,000 over a three-year period from his law firm. (393 views)
Dewey’s Ex-Chair, Steven Davis Becomes Top Adviser of Arab State Former Chair of defunct law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf, Steven Davis, has become the legal adviser to the government of a state of the United Arab Emirates. This has been explicitly mentioned in a memo signed on 8 December by Salem Ali Al Sharhan, Executive Committee Chairman of the Ras al Khaimah's Investment and Development Office (IDO). (391 views)
Colorado’s District Attorney Frank Ruybalid Faces Suspension Colorado’s third Judicial District Attorney Frank Ruybalid faces suspension on allegations of mishandling 16 criminal cases. He told the Denver Post that decreasing budgets and increasing caseloads were to be blamed. (389 views)
Watch Your Mouth! State Bar of Texas Ethics Committee Okays Recording Telephone Conversations Lawyers often advise their clients that they can avoid liability or decrease the amount of ammunition for future adversaries by training themselves to be conscious of actions or words that someday may be used against them in lawsuits. We were again reminded of this good advice with the recent release of an opinion by the Professional Ethics Committee for the State Bar of... (386 views)
Lawyer Censured and Asked to Learn from Senior Attorneys Lawyer Censured and Asked to Learn from Senior Attorneys (385 views)
9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Michael Daly Hawkins Hears Barry Bonds Case Michael Daly Hawkins was born in Winslow, Arizona on February 1945. He graduated with a B.A. from Arizona State University in 1967 and earned his J.D. from the same university in 1970. In 1998, Hawkins received his Master of Laws degree from the University of Virginia. He began his legal career in private practice from 1970 until 1973. From 1973 until 1976, Hawkins served... (380 views)
Nissan Murano Combines Refinement with Technology When it rained in San Diego recently, it snowed in the nearby mountains, and that seemed a good invitation to test a 2009 Nissan Murano with all-wheel drive. (378 views)
Former Las Vegas Lawyer Who Fled the Country Sentenced to Prison On Monday, Lawrence Davidson of Las Vegas, an attorney disbarred following the famous “Operation G-Sting” in 2006, was sentenced to eight years and nine months in federal prison and ordered to pay more than $936,000 in restitution to clients he defrauded. (378 views)
Students Get in the Saddle for New Equine Law Course With the horse-racing season in full gallop, Concord Law School has launched a new law course designed to highlight a growing and little-known legal specialty: equine law. (375 views)
California's Travel Ban Law Limits Access to US Universities for Low-Income Minority Students According to education advocates, a California law protecting against discrimination negatively impacts low-income students from minority groups who wish to attend quality US universities. The law, which prohibits official travel to states considered discriminatory based on sexual orientation or gender identity, hinders tours by prospective students to historically black... (375 views)
Building Strong Relationships and Active Community Involvement Contribute to Success at Bentley Goodrich Kison Law Firm In 2011, attorneys Kevin Bruning and Morgan Bentley began establishing their law firm after departing from Williams, Parker Harrison Dietz, and Getzen. Overcoming fear and doubt, the duo has since developed the firm, now known as Bentley Goodrich Kison, and has grown from two to nearly ten lawyers. The firm's focus on commercial litigation has resulted in substantial... (374 views)
South Florida Attorney Sent Directly to Jail from Sentencing Court South Florida attorney Douglas Bates was sentenced to prison this week for his role in Scott Rothstein’s $1.4 billion Ponzi scheme. Bates seemed taken aback when the judge ordered him sent directly to prison from court after sentencing him to five years in federal prison. (373 views)
WOLI Launches Legal Nurse Consultant Program 03/20/07According to a March 12 press release, Washington Online Learning Institute (WOLI) has started a new school where registered nurses can be trained to become Legal Nurse Consultants or LNCs. (371 views)
Buffalo Lawyer Sued for Faking Mortgages and Defrauding Longtime Friend This week, Thomas J. Wojciechowski, a Southtowns judge and former partner and head of the Bouvier Partnership LLP, Buffalo, was sued by a longtime friend. Donald Miller accused Wojciechowski, who was his longtime friend, of fraud and forgery and of stealing $368,000. (370 views)
Mandatory Pro Bono Hours for New Jersey Bar? It was learned last week that Chief Justice Stuart Rabner, New Jersey, has formed a 17-member panel to review New York’s pro bono mandate and make recommendations to Rabner on creating a similar requirement in New Jersey. The committee, chaired by Judge Glenn Grant, the acting administrative director of New Jersey’s court system, also includes bar association... (369 views)
Lawsuit Draws Attention to Dangers of Wisdom Teeth Surgery While wisdom tooth surgery is certainly not a procedure that anyone wants to undergo, the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons supports the practice of wisdom tooth extraction for young adults as a means of defense against future problems. In fact, the procedure is performed on an estimated five million Americans every year. (369 views)
New York City Mayor Appoints 10 Judges to Tackle Backlog and Improve Court System Efficiency New York City Mayor Eric Adams has announced the appointment of 10 judges, with six for Family Court, three for Criminal Court, and one interim appointment to Civil Court. The works aim to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the court system, reduce the backlog of cases accumulated during the pandemic, and advance public safety and justice in the city. Chief... (367 views)
Shifting Attention: Transmission Makes a Manual seem Vintage I used to think that when I lost the thrill of shifting gears, it'd be time to throw dirt on the pine box. (363 views)
Working while Travelling at Leisure Wanted: fun-loving folks for full- and part-time positions in retirement resort and RV park. Fixer-upper projects, landscaping, light carpentry, repairs and lawn care are part of the job in a laid-back, family-oriented environment. Work 10 hours a week each for a couple, or 20 hours for an individual, in return for a site with full hookups. (363 views)
Federal Agents Raid Stafford Law Co. Linked to Aliza Sherman Federal agents raided a Cleveland law firm, Stafford & Stafford’s, later renamed as Stafford Law Co., early this week. While authorities have declined to discuss what prompted the April 22 search warrant, it is likely that the raid was either related to the March 2013 stabbing death of a divorce client, Aliza Sherman, outside the law firm’s office, or the July 2012... (362 views)
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe Announce Layoffs Late last week, another San Francisco law firm was hit by our tough economic times. It was announced Thursday, that 40 associates and counsel and 35 staff will be laid off at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe. The firm is cutting counsel and associates in the hardest hit areas of the crisis, structured finance, real estate, and corporate litigation. (361 views)