December 2013
-
Admin, Announcements, Asians, Bar Exams, Biglaw, Bonuses, Celebrities, Divorce Train Wrecks, Law Schools, Magic Circle, Money, Partner Issues, Pro Se Litigants, Racism, Rankings, Reality TV, Sexism, Small Law Firms, U.S. News, Videos, Women's Issues, YouTube
Above the Law’s Top 10 Most Popular Posts of 2013
What were the 10 biggest stories about the legal profession in 2013, according to readers of Above the Law? -
Copyright, Movies, Non-Sequiturs, Technology
Non-Sequiturs: 12.31.13
Ed. note: Happy New Year! We will resume our normal publication schedule on January 2nd. See you next year. * A guy got pantsed twice. He then secured a six-figure judgment! And now he’s appealing that judgment!?!? God, this is exactly the kind of guy who deserves a wedgie. [Lowering the Bar] * Professor Campos takes on George Will’s claim that the team name Redskins isn’t offensive because “Oklahoma” basically translates to “Redskin” too. Hey, I could get behind banning Oklahoma. [Lawyers, Guns & Money] * A pro se inmate sues the state. The reporter tries really hard to treat the complaint seriously until the very end. [Times-Picayune] * A Las Vegas judge (and son of a former mayor) suffered head wounds indicative of an assault. When asked about why LVMPD didn’t tell marshals that a judge had been attacked, they basically said, “Why would we?” Yeah, why alert a judge’s security team about a possible, persistent threat related to his job. [Las Vegas Law Blog] * With Netflix about to purge a number of movies off its system, this is an interesting look back at a time when Hollywood tried to ban home movie rental because they generally adhere to the “cut off your nose to spite your face” business model. [Tech Crunch] * More on the phenomenon of judges speaking out publicly. I don’t know about all these critics, but we’re sure big fans of these judges. [Wall Street Journal] - Sponsored
Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
If 2023 introduced legal professionals to generative AI, then 2024 will be when law firms start adapting to utilize it. Things are moving fast, so… -
Holidays and Seasons, Law Schools, LSAT, Student Loans
Don't Let The New Year's Blues Lead You To Law School
Don't ruin your life trying to fix your life.
-
Biglaw, Career Center, Career Files, Job Searches, Job Survey, Law Students, Lawyers, Rankings
ATL’s 12 Top Rated Firms For 2013
Which Biglaw firms are the highest rated by their own employees? -
Crime, Quote of the Day, State Judges, State Judges Are Clowns, Suicide, Violence
Judge Offers 'Laughable' Criminal Defense To Choking Charges
A judge accused of choking his girlfriend claims that he was actually trying to save her life -- how, exactly? -
Biglaw, Partner Issues, Partner Profits
A Discussion About Biglaw’s Present: My Turn (Part 2)
Professor Bill Henderson interviews Anonymous Partner. What traits should law firms look for in their leaders? -
10th Circuit, Barack Obama, Biglaw, Federal Judges, Gay Marriage, George Bush, Law Schools, Morning Docket, State Judges, Texas, Trials, Utah, Violence
Morning Docket: 12.31.13
* Barack Obama is trailing George W. Bush when it comes to leaving his mark on the federal courts, but that’s probably because Senate Democrats didn’t go nuclear quickly enough. [Blog of Legal Times]
* When it comes to 2013, one thing’s for sure: it wasn’t boring. Many of this year’s movers and shakers hailed from top Am Law 100 law firms — like Ted Cruz (formerly of Morgan Lewis). [American Lawyer]
* John Ray III isn’t going to sit back and allow a jury to shut down his discrimination and retaliation case against Ropes & Gray. He filed a notice of appeal last week, and he’s pissed off. [National Law Journal]
* Utah has until the end of January to figure out how it’s going to go about defending its same-sex marriage ban before the Tenth Circuit. Just a thought: the “it’s still gay, even if the balls don’t touch” theory of law isn’t going to cut it. [Deseret News]
* A lawyer for the Texas judge accused of strangling his girlfriend is offering media outlets a superb defense story on behalf of his client. He wasn’t trying to kill her, he was trying to save her! [New York Daily News]
* Here’s some advice on how to submit your law school application on time. If you don’t know how to meet a deadline, you’re going to make a great lawyer. [Law Admissions Lowdown / U.S. News & World Report]
-
Family Law, Law Professors, Law Schools, Movies, Religion, Ridiculousness
6 Ivy League Law Classes For Spring Semester
The must-have classes for spring semester -- did your law school make the list? - Sponsored
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
In this CLE-eligible webinar, we’ll explore the most common accounting pitfalls and how to avoid them for your firm. -
3rd Circuit, Copyright, Dahlia Lithwick, Drugs, Guns / Firearms, Movies, Non-Sequiturs, War on Terror
Non-Sequiturs: 12.30.13
* You can go to jail for possession, but if you actively aid and abet drug cartels, you can walk away with a fine worth 5 weeks of your income. It also helps if instead of “poor” you’re a bank. Hooray for “Too Big To Hold Accountable For Anything!!! [Rolling Stone] * Disney has gotten fed up with “mockbusters,” films that jack the studio’s logo to confuse people into buying a different DVD. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve been itching to check out this new flick September: Osage County. [Jezebel] * Dahlia Lithwick explains that too many schools feel the cure for the trauma of school shootings is… creating more trauma. [Slate] * Chief Judge Theodore McKee of the Third Circuit rules that the government can detain you for carrying Arabic flashcards. This doesn’t even make racist profiling sense: “bad guys” would already know how to speak Arabic, right? [The Raw Story] * Defendants need to understand that getting an acquittal requires them to expend some personal effort, too. [Katz Justice] -
Job Searches, Small Law Firms, Solo Practitioners
A Tale Of Two Lawyers
What lessons can we learn from two lawyers taking different approaches to practice? Small-firm columnist Carolyn Elefant explains. -
Biglaw, Job Searches, No Offers, Quote of the Day, Summer Associates
No-Offered In A Down Market? You May Be Doomed....
You may be able to rebound from it, but you'll always keep the "psychological damage" with you. -
Biglaw, Blank Rome, Law Firm Mergers
Blank Rome And Nixon Peabody May Be Eyeing Merger
Will they or won't they? Let's discus the details... -
Drinking, Fabulosity, Intellectual Property, Trademarks
The Greatest Response To A Cease And Desist Letter, Probably Written While Drunk
An AMAZING response to a cease and desist letter. You must read this.
Sponsored
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
Sponsored
Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
-
Biglaw, Blank Rome, Contract Attorneys, Crime, Deaths, Document Review, Federal Judges, Gay Marriage, Law Firm Mergers, Law Schools, Morning Docket, Romance and Dating, SCOTUS, Sonia Sotomayor, State Judges, Supreme Court, Texas, Violence, You Go Girl
Morning Docket: 12.30.13
* Exciting news: Justice Sonia Sotomayor will be leading the countdown on the New Year’s Eve ball drop in Times Square. She’ll be the first SCOTUS justice to perform the task. You go girl! [New York Times]
* Blank Rome and Nixon Peabody are reportedly in merger talks, but one firm’s managing partner says he “talk[s] to firms all the time,” it’s no big deal. No word on what guys from his high school do. [Reuters]
* Sorry, Quinn Emanuel, but this limited discovery thing is going to happen. Judge Ronnie Abrams recently slapped down the firm’s attempt to appeal her MTD denial in this contract attorney’s suit. [Am Law Daily]
* A state court judge from Texas stands accused of strangling his girlfriend over the balcony of his apartment and threatening to “f**king kill [her].” Romance in Texas has certainly got some of that je ne sais quoi. [Dallas Morning News]
* A legal soap opera? An ex-prosecutor whose relationship with a judge landed her lover in hot water was found dead in her home hours after a judicial misconduct ruling came down. R.I.P. [Reno Gazette-Journal]
* Take a look back at the legal profession’s year that was: from the highest of highs in gay marriages to the lowest of lows in law school enrollment, 2013 was a year for the record books. [National Law Journal]
-
Biglaw, Blog Wars, Blogging, Law Professors
Teaching Brian Leiter About The Internet
The cantankerous professor replied to our effort to set the record straight about our traffic. His reply was... not very good. -
Crime, Federal Judges, Law Schools, Movies, Non-Sequiturs, Privacy, Technology, United Kingdom / Great Britain, Wall Street
Non-Sequiturs: 12.27.13
* Judge William Pauley ruled that the NSA’s warrantless spying program is legal, noting that — if it had existed — the government could have predicted the 9/11 attacks. Good point, because intelligence agencies were in no position to figure out that there was an attack brewing without a Big Brother initiative. Oh… wait. [Huffington Post] * On a related note, a cartoon from 1994 that predicted the NSA’s controversial programs. It’s really kind of scary…. [Slate] * Britain’s clowns are furious that people are dressing up as clowns and trying to scare people. For their sake, let’s make sure they never hear about Pennywise. [Lowering the Bar] * Professor Dave Hoffman evaluates the case for flat-rate tuition. [Concurring Opinions] * The Wolf of Wall Street is about a criminal ripping off poor people. Bankers cheered at a recent showing. There is a lesson to be had there about what bankers would do if given an opportunity. [Business Insider] * “Knockout,” a game where young boys cold-cock unsuspecting victims, is a serious issue. Nah, just kidding, it’s a crypto-racist overreaction. But at least one kid was stupid enough to try it and then tell a cop about it. Seriously. [Gawker] -
Adam Liptak, Gay, Gay Marriage, Law Professors, Quote of the Day, SCOTUS, Supreme Court
How Long Until SCOTUS Finds A Constitutional Right To Same-Sex Marriage?
It could come sooner than you might think, a prominent professor predicts. -
Ask the Experts, Career Center, Career Files, Job Searches, Law Students
3 Essential Steps For Choosing A Practice Area (And Obtaining Any Legal Job)
Adam Gropper, author of "Making Partner" and founder of LegalJob.com, describes three essential steps to choosing a practice area and obtaining a job in the law. -
John Yoo, Privacy, Technology
Author Of Torture Memo Says Judges Are Too Out Of Touch To Determine If NSA Violated The 4th Amendment
Proving he still understands his proper role as above every holder of constitutional office, John Yoo weighs in on the NSA. -
Litigators, Small Law Firms, Solo Practitioners
Always Follow The Rules
Following the rules really isn't that hard -- and failing to follow them can cost your client her case.