Rudeness

U. Chicago Law School Listserv War: ‘How Embarrassing’ for Everyone Involved

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Chicago is an incredible city. But sometimes the weather, the grime, the southside violence, and the politics can be a little overwhelming. Add the intensity of studying law at a school like the University of Chicago, and you have a recipe for stress and some fiery tempers.

When it all gets to be too much, and you just need to scream at someone for no reason, what can you do?

Jump on your law school listserv, of course….

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Pennsylvania Judge Allows Facebook Fishing in Sucker Punch Lawsuit

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At this point, there is a plethora of viable excuses in litigation to gain access to your opponents’ Facebook pages. Divorce, workplace discrimination, you name it, you can probably gain access somehow.

That said, most often it is defendants asking for social media access, not plaintiffs.

So we were intrigued to hear about a recent decision that allowed a plaintiff unsupervised access to the Facebook account of the man he sued for punching him in the face during a soccer game gone wrong. Why did he get access? Just for the heck of it….

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Internet Commenter to Facebook Attorneys: What We Have Here Is a Failure to Communicate

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Over the last several months, we have spent a lot of digital ink covering Paul Ceglia’s goofy lawsuit claiming 50 percent ownership of Facebook. In that case, we tend to believe Facebook is in the right.

But now it appears that the social media behemoth has caught its own case of silly litigation fever.

Facebook has taken legal action against the makers of a web-browsing widget that allegedly violates its terms of service. And its Biglaw attorneys may have caught an innocent internet commenter in the crossfire….

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House Rules: Leverage Abuse

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By the time I made the switch to in-house work, I was burned out on litigating. Some of my friends and colleagues live for the fight, or as Wallerstein recently said, “have a fire in their belly.” In my case, I just couldn’t draft yet another motion to compel, interrogatory, etc. I had been doing it so long that it had become mundane. Appearing in court was always a kick, and depositions could be entertaining, but the day to day fun had dissipated.

Due to the economy and firm billing practices, I found myself at times resorting to noting “.1s” on my time sheets. So, when my bio says I don’t miss litigation, I really don’t. And what I don’t miss most of all is the bluster of the powerful down to the less leveraged.

In litigation, bluster can begin as soon as the adversary reads your bio and decides that you are not quite a peer. This inappropriate elitism only worsens when one side gains the upper hand for whatever reason; the bluster ends, and the bludgeoning begins….

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Quote of the Day: Sorry I’m Not Sorry

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NJ Governor Chris Christie

He acted like an idiot. He’s an idiot. I don’t have any regret about it at all.

– New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, defending remarks he made to a Rutgers Law – Camden student at a town hall meeting last week. If you recall from our prior coverage, Christie called the student, a former Navy SEAL, an “idiot.”

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Inside Straight: If Law Don’t Get No Respect

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I recently heard a horror story from an in-house lawyer at another corporation. This may not sound like a horror story to someone who works at a law firm, but if you reflect for a minute, you’ll see the birds gathering on the monkey bars in the background.

Three people — one from finance; one from a business unit; and our hero, the lawyer — were speaking on a panel to a couple hundred people in a business unit. The business-unit panelist said something outrageous and brazenly illegal to the assembled group. Assume it was something like, “As you know, we simply ignore that law,” or, “It’s easier to raise prices if we just conspire with the competition.” You get my drift.

Our hero, the lawyer, involuntarily gasped into his (or her) microphone, “My God, Smith, you can’t say that! How many times do I have to tell you?”

Smith looked over, thought for a minute, and said to the assembled crowd: “That’s just Legal.”

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New Jersey Governor Chris Christie Calls Law Student an ‘Idiot’

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New Jersey Governor Chris Christie

Much to the dismay of students, faculty, and alumni, the Camden campus of Rutgers University School of Law will soon be merging with Rowan University — and doing away with the Rutgers name. Up until now, our coverage of the pending merger has been limited to Morning Docket entries. But last night, during a town hall meeting held by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, the debate got interesting.

In what is being referred to as “the most-heated town hall clash of the year,” Christie reportedly got into a shouting match with a current Rutgers Law – Camden student. Harsh words were exchanged, and the scene ended with the law student being escorted from the meeting by police.

Who is this law student, and what was said? Let’s delve into the details….

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A Quinn Emanuel Partner’s Lecherous ‘Reply All’

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Last night, David Lat reported that Quinn Emanuel will be rolling out a new approach to on-campus recruiting later this year. Maybe Quinn should also consider a new approach to getting old partners in touch with young secretaries eager to party? Because the current method of accidentally sending reply-all messages referencing the secretaries’ physical attributes might not be the best strategy.

I don’t mean to be cryptic. A Quinn Emanuel partner not only emailed something inappropriate last night, but he accidentally hit “reply all” while he was doing it.

It’s gonna be easy and most likely appropriate to kill the guy. But on the chance that my wife is not reading today, I’m going to offer a defense of this leering partner. Just hear me out…

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Is There A Facebook Snitch In Your Class?

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I hope they're reading Above the Law.

Usually, it’s law professors who spend time bitching about students using Facebook and Gchatting in class. Boring, old, can’t hold an audience unless it’s captive, law professors. For the most part, I let those professorial concerns go in one ear and out the other. You’re making six figures as a law professor and you have to teach a couple of times a week. If your lecture isn’t more interesting than Minecraft, it’s your own damn fault. If you try, they will listen.

Yesterday we got something that we don’t see a lot: a letter from a law student complaining about the way her classmates use Facebook and Gchat. Yeah, apparently there is some law school out there that forces students to look at other students’ Facebook pages during class. Can you believe it… oh, wait; I’m getting new information over the wire that suggests the complaining student is just an incredible busybody who thinks she’s been elected police commissioner of other people’s in-class behavior.

Let’s delve into the mind of a person who wants to be the boss of you….

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Quote of the Day: You’s a Ho!

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What does it say about the college co-ed Susan Fluke [sic] who goes before a congressional committee and essentially says that she must be paid to have sex — what does that make her? It makes her a slut, right? It makes her a prostitute.

– Rush Limbaugh, criticizing Georgetown 3L Sandra Fluke, who went before a Congressional committee last week to lament the high cost of contraception.

People are getting pretty hot and bothered about Fluke’s testimony and Limbaugh’s comments. But before you pass judgment in the matter, watch an informative video appeal from some experts in women’s health….

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