Free Speech
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9th Circuit, Alex Kozinski, Federal Judges, Free Speech, Judicial Nominations, Legal Ethics, Politics
Chief Judge Alex Kozinski Defends Free Speech for Judges
Given my prior stewardship of Underneath Their Robes, it should come as no surprise that I like my judges to exhibit some humanity. My favorite judges are those with personality, spunk, and a sense of humor, not the judicial automatons who just crank out dry opinions. Sometimes judges can be, well, all too human. They […] -
A. Raymond Randolph, Brett Kavanaugh, Federalist Society, Free Speech, Politics, Privacy, Technology
Anonymity and the First Amendment
A liveblog of an interesting panel at the 2010 National Lawyers Convention of the Federalist Society, after the jump. - Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use. -
Facebook, Free Speech, Quote of the Day, SCOTUS, Stephen Breyer, Supreme Court, Vanderbilt
Quote of the Day: Basically, Zuckerberg's a Jerk
If I’m applying the First Amendment, I have to apply it to a world where there’s an Internet, and there’s Facebook, and there are movies like … ‘The Social Network,’ which I couldn’t even understand. — Justice Stephen Breyer, in remarks made yesterday at Vanderbilt Law School (gavel bang: ABA Journal).
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Blog Wars, Blogging, Free Speech, Gay, Politics
Andrew Shirvell Is Out at the Michigan AG's Office
We mentioned this briefly last night in an update appended to Non-Sequiturs, but it’s big enough news that it merits more coverage. Michigan assistant attorney general Andrew Shirvell — whom we’ve covered extensively, for his blogging campaign against Chris Armstrong, the openly gay (and ridiculously handsome) student body president at the University of Michigan — […] -
Contempt, Free Speech, State Judges, State Judges Are Clowns
Mississippi Lawyer Jailed -- For Not Reciting Pledge of Allegiance
Man, have things changed in Mississippi. Mississippi used to be a hotbed for rebellion against the Union, and now it’s putting lawyers in jail for refusing to pledge allegiance to the flag. That’s progress, baby! (Sorry, I just wanted to see what it would look like to write a paragraph portraying Mississippi as progressive about […] -
Blog Wars, Blogging, Christopher Christie, Free Speech, Gay, Politics
Michigan Assistant AG Andrew Shirvell Goes On LeaveAnd: Should AG Mike Cox Fire Shirvell?
Today brings some updates in the ongoing saga of Andrew Shirvell, the Michigan assistant attorney general who writes Chris Armstrong Watch, a blog devoted to attacking the openly gay student body president of the University of Michigan. We’ve covered the story extensively (see here and here). First, Shirvell’s blog is now “open to invited readers […] -
Craigslist, Free Speech, Prostitution, Sex, Technology
Craigslist Loses Its Eroticism
The “censored” box that Craigslist put over the “Adult Services” section of its website may have been a last hurrah before capitulating to demands from attorneys general that the section be eliminated. Today, the censored box disappeared from the site. The “adult services” section is gone, but two new services sections appeared: “cycle” and “marine.” […] -
4th Circuit, Blogging, Daniel Solove, Eugene Volokh, Free Speech, Privacy
Fourth Circuit Decides First Amendment Trumps Social Security Number Privacy
Court clerks in Virginia may be shaking their fists at the Fourth Circuit today. In an interesting ruling on free speech, privacy, and public records, the court ruled that an angry blogger has the right to publish public officials’ and court clerks’ Social Security numbers in order to protest the fact that Virginia puts records […] - 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… -
2nd Circuit, Free Speech, Quote of the Day, Rudeness
Quote of the Day: F*** Yeah!
We agree with the Networks that the indecency policy is impermissibly vague. The first problem arises in the FCC’s determination as to which words or expressions are patently offensive. For instance, while the FCC concluded that “bullshit” in a “NYPD Blue” episode was patently offensive, it concluded that “dick” and “dickhead” were not. Other expletives […] -
Free Speech, Quote of the Day
Quote of the Day: Is Fortunetelling Protected Speech? Signs Point to Yes.
While we recognize that some fortunetellers may make fraudulent statements, just as some lawyers or journalists may, we see nothing in the record to suggest that fortunetelling always involves fraudulent statements. — Judge Clayton Greene Jr., writing for the Maryland Court of Appeals in Nefedro v. Montgomery County, which struck down a ban on paid […] -
American Constitution Society (ACS), Free Speech, Politics, SCOTUS, Supreme Court
Citizens United v. FEC: The Decision, Its Implications, and the Road Ahead
A liveblog of a panel about Citizens United at the ACS National Convention, after the jump. -
Free Speech, Law Professors
Law Professor Peter Erlinder Is Denied Bail in Rwanda
Law professor Peter Erlinder’s summer break continues to suck. Last week, we told you about the William Mitchell College of Law professor, who traveled to Rwanda to help with the defense of a political leader running against the incumbent president. He was arrested soon after his arrival because of his “genocidal ideology.” He allegedly violated […] -
Free Speech, Law Professors
'Genocide-Denying' Law Professor Peter Erlinder Imprisoned in Rwanda
A law professor from Minnesota is not having a very good start to his summer break. As we previously mentioned in the Memorial Day Docket, a William Mitchell College of Law professor, Peter Erlinder, 62, traveled to Rwanda last month to help with the legal defense of Victoire Ingabire, an opposition leader running against current-President […]
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Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use.
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Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
The rise of remote work has dramatically reshaped the relationship between Lawyers and Law Firms, see how Scale LLP has taken the steps to get…
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ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms.
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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…
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Conferences / Symposia, Election Law, Floyd Abrams, Free Speech, Law Professors, Politics, SCOTUS, Supreme Court
Why Citizens United Is Not the End of the World
This morning I attended a very interesting panel discussion sponsored by the Yale Law School Center for the Study of Corporate Law, Citizens United: Mountain or Mole Hill? Because the talk was sponsored by my rather left-leaning alma mater, I expected the answer to the question presented to be “Mountain” — and not just any […] -
Colbert Report, Free Speech, Law Professors, Quote of the Day, Rudeness
Quote of the Day: Giving the Finger
If somebody is mildly angry, they might just give the middle finger. If they’re very angry, they might give it with some sort of words or facial expression that shows anger. And if they’re off-the-charts angry, they may give a double. — Professor Ira P. Robbins — author of Digitus Impudicus: The Middle Finger and […] -
Free Speech, Gay, Law Schools, Minority Issues
Young Americans for Freedom Distance Themselves from Toledo 1L
On Friday, we told you about Toledo College of Law 1L Kyle Bristow. While an undergraduate at Michigan State University, Bristow was the chairman of the school’s chapter of Young Americans For Freedom (YAF). The Southern Poverty Law Center labeled the Michigan State chapter of YAF a “hate group.” We reported that Bristow was no […] -
Free Speech, Gay, Law Schools, Minority Issues
From Alleged 'Hate Group' Chairman to Toledo College of Law 1L
A first-year law student at the University of Toledo College of Law is apparently causing concern among some of his fellow students — not because of anything he has done on campus, but because of his past. Before he was a 1L at the University of Toledo College of Law, Kyle Bristow was the chairman […] -
ACLU, Education / Schools, Free Speech, Gay, Lesbians
You Can Dance If You Want To (Unless You're a Lesbian)Judge declines to order school to hold prom.
Don’t be misled by the photo — this isn’t another post about Snooki. It’s about Constance McMillen (pictured), a lesbian high schooler who wanted to bring her girlfriend to the high school prom. (Query from Elie: Is “lesbian high schooler” the politically correct way to say “girls’ hockey team”?) The Clarion-Ledger reports: Both sides are […] -
Boalt Hall, Free Speech, John Yoo, Law Schools, Rudeness
John Yoo's 'Secret Class': The Professor Responds
Berkeley law professor John Yoo, author of the so-called “torture memos” — as well as a new book on executive power, Crisis and Command, which has been getting very good reviews (even from such outlets as the New York Times and the Washington Post) — once again finds himself in the hot seat. And we’re […] -
Free Speech, Politics, SCOTUS, Supreme Court
Breaking: SCOTUS Expands Free Speech in Politics By Liberalizing Campaign Finance Rules
This morning the Supreme Court handed down its eagerly awaited decision in Citizens United v. FEC (PDF). The ruling will allow both corporations and labor unions to participate more fully in the political process. The opinion was written, not surprisingly, by Justice Kennedy. More after the jump.