Freedom of Speech in a Private Law School Part-III Personal Blogging and the First Amendment: In the previous part of this series we had discussed the First Amendment rights of a student with respect to public forums, blogs, and other publications controlled by the school. This article deals with a student’s First Amendment rights and freedom of speech and expression in a personal blog. (3 views)
9th Circuit: Independent Contractors within Ambit of ‘Honest Services’ Law On Tuesday, the San Francisco-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruled that being a state or federal employee is not a perquisite to being prosecuted for depriving the government of ‘honest services’. Adopting a broad interpretation of the hones-services fraud statute, the court found that the federal criminal law applies to anyone in a fiduciary... (3 views)
Supreme Court Agrees to Consider Question of Law Regarding Class-action On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to consider the constitutionality of a legal tactic that can influence the capacity of companies to defend against class-action lawsuits. The question of law raised in Standard Fire Insurance Co v. Knowles, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 11-1450 is as follows: (3 views)
Egypt to Allow Law Legalizing Sex with Dead Wives? It seems preposterous, but the internet and media is abuzz with rumors that two laws targeting women may be tabled in the Egyptian parliament, though there is still no concrete information about any member of the parliament tabling such bills. However, the issues are there. In May 2011, a Moroccan cleric publicly opined that the sexual relation between husband and wife... (3 views)
Judge Training Other Judges Removed for Ticket -Fixing On Thursday, Diane Schilling resigned from her position as director of the Office of Justice Court Support, where she was in charge of mandatory training programs for local judges. Diane has admitted to fixing speeding tickets, and we just hope it was not something she taught her students. Diane, who before Thursday, was in charge of training New York’s town and village... (3 views)
What Clerks of the Court do across the Nation Typically, most courts have a position for a clerk of the court that is usually filled by a paralegal, though in some jurisdictions, this position can only be held by attorneys. The duties and responsibilities required from clerks of the court across the nation can be grasped from this general state-wise sampling given below. (3 views)
Dr. of Law: Crib Notes Having trouble getting a good night's sleep? Strategies for slumber that don't involve counting sheep. (3 views)
Lawyers Set to Defend $35,000 per Hour Fee Award before Delaware Supreme Court On Thursday, the Delaware Supreme Court would hear a case of lawyer fees where the Delaware Chancery Court awarded a $304 million sum as fees to two law firm teams. Together, the two firms of logged 8597 hours of work, which boiled down to $35,000 per hour for work done on the case. (3 views)
State Human Rights Division Cannot Deal Complaints against Public Schools In an opinion that saw the panel sharply divided and judicial logic backed by terse comments, the Court of Appeals, New York, overruled lower court decisions and found that the Division of Human Rights lacked authority to investigate complaints against public schools. The ruling came in the process of dismissing two racial discrimination suits against school districts. (3 views)
San Diego Wildfires Force Attorneys to Leave Their Firms The San Diego wildfires have caused several law firms to close down temporarily. Many attorneys have been displaced, and some, including Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps' chief operating officer and one of the firm's partners, have even lost their homes. (3 views)
Choosing Your Time of the Day is Important for Success as an Attorney It goes without saying that the timing of important happenings and events in your work-life would mostly be beyond your control or influence. However, it is important to recognize your own preferences for timing and then try to manage things to suit those preferences. Consistent efforts to manage events to suit your own preferences for timing increase your chances of... (3 views)
Appeals Court: Negligence but No Legal Malpractice on Part of Real Estate Attorney On Tuesday, the Appellate Division, First Department, found that in case of a real estate attorney, Howard Stern, there was “strong evidence” that he had acted with negligence but he cannot be sued for malpractice. The court found on facts and evidence produced that the lawyer’s clients were unable to prove his actions caused their losses. (3 views)
Ex-Lawmaker “Asleep at the Switch” while Aides Faked Vote Petitions On Thursday, four staff members of former U.S. Representative Thaddeus McCotter were charged with forgery and election fraud for creating fake nominating petitions in his 2012 campaign. The five-term congressional representative’s brief quixotic campaign for president had to be ruled off the ballot due to problems with signatures from his election petitions.... (3 views)
New York Objects to Plaintiffs' Lawyers Seeking $8 Million Fees in FDNY Discrimination Case According to papers filed in the Brooklyn federal court on Thursday, the attorneys from Levy Ratner and Scott & Scott, and those from the nonprofit Center for Constitutional Rights, have submitted a fee application to the U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis. (3 views)
''Sandusky'' Cover-up Charges: Schultz Wants a Separate Trial from Curley On Monday, one of the two Pennsylvania State University administrators charged with failing to report suspected child abuse and for perjury in the Sandusky scandal, filed a motion to have separate trials for the pair. The rationale for wanting a separate trial is interesting and may be of use to some. (3 views)
Tips on Doing the Best in Final Law Examinations You are fortunate to be attending law school today. You were probably not greeted at orientation with the ominous warning; "Look at the person on your left. Look at the person on your right. Next semester one of you will be gone." (3 views)
Lawyer Wants Hush Money Back from Man Told to Have Sex with Judge On Tuesday, Alex Chapman appeared before Canada’s Manitoba Court of Appeal to fight a court order requiring him to return the $25,000 he received as hush money from his former lawyer, Jack King, to have sex with the lawyer’s wife, Associate Chief Justice Lori Douglas. However, both King and Douglas have said that Douglas was unaware of King’s involvement. (3 views)
Court Prevents California Ban on Gay Therapy from Immediate Implementation The California ban on controversial gay conversion therapy that was scheduled to come into effect from January 1, 2013, has hit a roadblock. The law was signed by California’s Democrat Governor Jerry Brown in September. However, the constitutionality of the law was challenged, and even though the lower court had sided with the state, on appeal, on Friday, the 9th U.S.... (3 views)
What is Labor Law? Labor law developed as a vital area of legal specialization through ef¬forts to clarify the rights, duties, and obligations of employers and em¬ployees. Labor attorneys have attempted to establish and maintain an equitable balance of power between these two factions from the earliest interactions of labor and management. These efforts have been guided by (1) the... (3 views)
The Impact of Summer Abroad Programs on a Legal Career Dear Lawcrossing, I'm a 1L. There are tons of posters up at school advertising summer abroad programs. They all tend to imply that this is a smart career move. But because I am in law school I am learning to be a skeptic, so I'm curious. Is a summer abroad something that law firms really like to see on a resume? (3 views)
Getting Justice without Adjudicators When we hear the word "trial," most of us imagine a courtroom with a judge sitting on the bench and twelve jurors sitting in the box deciding who will win the case. (3 views)
Steps to Take Before Beginning Law School Get started as early as possible. Four weeks is not too much time to give yourself as there is a lot to do. If you are not going to be living in a dorm, get yourself the best accommodations you can afford. It may be unrealistic to expect anyone to move in a month in advance, but it would be prudent to make your arrangements as early as possible before the crowd gets there.... (3 views)
Ian Thompson Enjoys Helping to Plan and Execute Strategy as General Counsel for SeaMobile, Inc. When Ian Thompson joined SeaMobile as general counsel last year, he had an extensive and variegated work history. In addition to practicing law at several different firms, he had also worked as a paralegal/legislative analyst and as a sales representative and assistant winemaker for a winery. (3 views)
How to Manage Your Image as an Attorney Professionally The sum of all client perceptions constitutes an attorney's image. The image, whether accurate or not, affects virtually every activity in which the attorney and the firm engages. Successful marketing results when attorneys understand what factors affect image and respond accordingly- correcting the bad ones and improving the good ones. (3 views)
Achieving Attorney Success: Making a Coordinated Effort Attorneys in larger firms frequently say "Well, I know what I’m doing, but I have no idea what the folks down the hall do." It's said in jest, but the statement rings true all too often. (3 views)
Addressing in the Language of Your Audience Attorneys write for a living, but they must shift gears when writing for business-development purposes. Promotional materials must be written from the reader's viewpoint, emphasizing significance of the facts and benefits to the audience. (3 views)
How To Buy Law Textbooks Economically? As it is law school is expensive and many students are burdened with debt and on a tight budget. Hence it makes sense to buy legal textbooks, which can be prohibitively expensive, in a manner that it does not seriously dilute or impact the students already curtailed budget. (3 views)
Documentation Techniques for Law Interns The simplest of all documentation techniques, an hourly log's only challenge may be in ensuring its accuracy. To be certain your hours are reported honestly and fully, use the following strategies: (3 views)
Take the Elevator to Success Ed Bobrow's company specializes in marketing and marketing management to such clients as Honeywell, Dow Corning, Gillette and Norelco. (3 views)
The Elevator to Success Ed Bobrow's company specializes in marketing and marketing management to such clients as Honeywell, Dow Corning, Gillette and Norelco. Additionally, Ed is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at New York University. He lectures extensively to businesses, trade associations and universities. He has written 5 books and over 100 articles on sales and marketing. (3 views)