Posts

You may govern or you may pray, but not both at the same time. That’s about as much direction as the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals gave on government prayers in Rowan County, North Carolina. In Voelker v. Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the appeals court said county commissioners violated the Constitution by giving prayers and inviting audiences to join in. On the other hand, the judges acknowledged the “more inclusive, ministered-oriented practice” was legal....

A Texas death row inmate won’t be able to file a successive habeas petition, the Fifth Circuit ruled on Monday. Clinton Lee Young, who was convicted of killing two men for their cars in 2001, had sought authorization to submit a second federal habeas petition based on new claims of prosecutorial misconduct and recently discovered evidence. The Fifth Circuit refused his request, however, finding that Young’s new allegations had largely already been litigated and that, further, any new evidence advanced was not convincing enough to require another habeas hearing....

Do law firms need Twitter? Not if they’re one of the most profitable firms in the nation. It seems like everyone has a Twitter account, but remember: looks can be deceiving. For example, you should note that although many small law firms have Twitter accounts and prominently post on blogs and stay connected on Facebook, virtually none of the most profitable BigLaw firms in America use Twitter. A Comprehensive List Actually, many of the more famous law firms have basically done virtually nothing on the Twitter front....

Two great things are better together, right? Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock. Green eggs and ham. Green eggs and ham and Captain Kirk. Dr. Seuss Enterprises filed their suit earlier this month in federal court in California, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The complaint argues that ComicMix LLC, the company behind “Oh, the Places You’ll Boldly Go!” has engaged in copyright and trademark infringement and unfair trade practices. A crowdsourced project, the book had raised nearly $30,000 on Kickstarter before the project was halted by Dr....

At some point in life, a mature person is supposed to stop delighting in other people’s drama, and learn to focus on the important things. Social justice. World peace. Environmental stewardship. We’re not quite there yet. We love judicial bickering, even when it’s a disagreement that litigants project upon two completely civil judges. That’s one of the many reasons why we love the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Today, we have a Fifth Circuit case pitting two district court judges’ opinions against one another....

Good news, women who get paid a fraction of what men get paid! You’re also working harder for that fraction of pay! That’s what the women’s equality movement was all about, right? A survey of four Harvard Law School alumni classes – one from each decade since the 1970s – revealed that women from the class of 1975 worked about six more hours per week than men, and women from the class of 2000 worked almost eight more hours per week....

Murphy’s Law was working overtime when David Sharfarz started talking to contractors about building an addition to his new home. Sharfarz ended up hiring Peter Goguen. The contract for the job required Goguen to pour the foundation by October 15, 2006, to obtain the necessary town permits, and to complete the project by March 15, 2007. Goguen lied to Sharfarz on multiple occasions throughout the project, (e.g. saying he applied for permits when he hadn’t, demanding — and receiving — money for a worker he never hired)....

On Monday, we posted part I of a series that takes a look at the Association of Corporate Counsel’s findings in a publication they researched called “Skills for the 21st Century General Counsel.” The ACC surveyed GCs, directors, executive recruiters and CEOs to find out what GC skills were valued, how much they were valued, and what skills will matter in the future. Part I discussed the importance of the GC as the leader of the legal department, which is perhaps the most obvious aspect of being GC....

Finding good help is always difficult, and sometimes a few bad apples can ruin things for you. But you can’t avoid the inevitable – at some point you’ll need to hire a paralegal. You just can’t do everything yourself. So here are some quick, easy tips on how to spot, and hire a great paralegal. You don’t have to wait until the interview to start quizzing potential employees – start with the application....

Our immigration courts need more resources urgently, says Karen Grisez, chair of the ABA Commission on Immigration. Grisez’ concerns will sound familiar to every immigration practitioner. Noncitizens removed from the U.S. have increased 450% in the past 12 years, from 69,680 in 1996 to 393,289 in 2009, Grisez said. “Our immigration system is in crisis, overburdened and under-resourced, leading to the frustration of those responsible for its administration and endangering due process for those who appear before it,” Grisez said in her written testimony to the U....

On Monday, June 16th, 2014, Judge Oing of the New York State Supreme Court, ruled in favor of Macy’s in its legal dispute with JC Penney, over a licensing deal with Martha Stewart. The problems started in 2011, when JC Penney, under the short-lived and ill-fated tutelage of former CEO Ron Johnson, announced a deal with Martha Stewart outlining plans to create in-store Martha Stewart shops. The problem? Martha Stewart already had an exclusive deal with Macy’s to manufacture and sell her line of home goods, reports Bloomberg....

Ocmulgee Fields, Inc. v. Comm’r of Int’l. Rev., No. 09-13395, involved a petition for review of the tax court’s determination that the taxpayer’s like-kind exchange that interposed an intermediary between itself and a related party was not entitled to nonrecognition treatment. The court affirmed on the ground that the record adequately supported the tax court’s finding that the taxpayer structured its transactions to avoid the purposes of 26 U.S.C. section 1031(f)....

In plaintiffs’ constitutional challenge to the state’s removal of their child after termination proceedings and motion for injunctive relief to prevent a foster family’s adoption of the child, district court’s dismissal of their case is affirmed where: 1) the district court correctly determined that it lacked subject matter jurisdiction to review plaintiffs’ motion for injunctive relief to prevent the child’s adoption pursuant to the Rooker-Feldman doctrine; and 2) the factual issues underlying plaintiffs’ claims were addressed by the state court and are barred by issue preclusion....

Summer heat waves are hardly surprising, even if they make headlines annually. Each year, there are heart-breaking tales about children dying in cars, and elderly people suffering without air conditioners. But they’re not the only ones hurting as temperatures rise. Last week, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals noted that prisoners also bear the brunt of the summer heat. Now, taxpayers could bear the burden of cooling prisoners if a jury finds that Texas prison temperatures rise to the level of cruel and unusual punishment....

People constantly misspell my name. All three parts of it. So if I wanted to open the Robyn Hagan Cain Law Firm, I wouldn’t just buy the domain name robynhagancainlaw.com. I would probably buy domains with common variations of my name – Robin and Hagen and Kain/Cane/Kane – and redirect each of those to the primary site, robynhagancainlaw.com. Why the extra expense and effort for my hypothetical law firm? I just don’t want to waste time fighting cybersquatters in court....

Copy and paste. It’s such a common practice, it’s practically one word. Lawyers do it all the time, too. But you can’t copy other people’s words without attribution. It’s not just about copyright and plagiarism; it’s about embarrassment. More Than 1,000 Words Robert Hanlon knows what we’re talking about. According to reports, he got caught copying more than 1,000 words from two articles for a brief. Opposing counsel detected it first when they noticed a change in his writing style....

When trial lawyers and clients break for lunch, a kind of paranoia sets in. They circle around a lunch table, ever careful not to sit too close to opposing counsel or parties. In the courthouse cafeteria or elevators, they look over their shoulders and always avoid jurors. If you haven’t experienced that kind of high-stakes litigation, it gets crazy up in there. Just look at what went down in the Paul Manafort trial....

For a lot of attorneys, working in-house is an accomplishment in and of itself. But even with highly desired jobs, some places are better than others. What should be an attorneys dream in -house position? Here’s three great places that should count as many lawyer’s fantasy employers. Lawyers interested in unique work environments, where employees are both challenged and rewarded, and where the enterprise is at the top of its field, should check out:...

Lawyering is, in many ways, about writing. Sure, you’re not Faulkner, but plenty of attorneys spend their days tapping away at the keyboard, composing motions, answering emails, drafting contracts. But you can give the typing a break every now and then, even if it’s only to avoid carpal tunnel syndrome. If you want to compose a message on the run, easily get a client interview down on paper, or just like working out your ideas verbally, dictation apps are the way to go....

It wasn’t that long ago that the concept of a “virtual law office” was discussed in terms of an interesting trend for the future. But those days have passed. Virtual law offices have now become common throughout the United States. But before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s answer the question: What is a virtual law office? According to Joe Kashi, who covered the topic for the ABA law practice management session, a virtual law office has four elements:...