Paramount

Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 03.15.16

* A harrowing tale of regret from a former juror who sentenced a man to death for his crimes. [The Marshall Project] * I guess tears and apologies weren't enough: Michael Eakin has resigned from the Pennsylvania bench for sending racy emails on the job. [Penn Live] * Disappointing news for proponents of cameras in the courtroom. The Judicial Conference of the U.S. voted against expanding the pilot program testing cameras in federal courts. [Fix the Court] * Breaking news: student debt causes stress in law students. Film at 11. [Chronicle of Higher Education] * The latest filing in the Paramount/Star Trek fan film copyright case is a treasure trove of all the Trekkie trivia anyone could possibly ask for. [Slate] * As much as liberals may dream about this, actually prosecuting a case against Donald Trump for inciting a riot would be legally difficult to prove. [Law Newz] * The struggles is real! It is hard to do things that we know are good for us, especially amid the crazy schedule most lawyers keep. [Forbes] * Jane Sanders tweeted about the horrific condition found in the jail tent city created by Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio. I guess she wasn't broken up when Sheriff Joe endorsed someone other than her husband for president. [The Slot]

By Kathryn Rubino
8th Circuit

Morning Docket: 04.08.14

* The Eighth Circuit axed a $900K jury award after a lawyer recounted her tale of sexual harassment by a law professor at Drake University Law during closing arguments. Well, that sucks, but we’d really love to know which professor this was. [ABA Journal] * If flat is the new up, then mergers must be the new growth. The new year is upon us, and law firms are on track to either meet or break the merger record set in 2013. Thus far, 22 firms have announced mergers or acquisitions in 2014. [Washington Post] * A lawyer in Minnesota who’s been in trouble with the bar quite a few times was recently charged with setting his girlfriend on fire. Yikes, someone’s way too excited about the Fargo mini-series. [Star-Tribune] * Oscar Pistorius took the stand in his murder trial yesterday, revealing that when he killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, he was really trying to protect her. This case gives us the sads. :( [New York Times] * Sorry we’re not sorry about the toupee: Paramount wants this Wolf of Wall Street suit dismissed since it’s undeniable the plaintiff was part of “bizarre travesty that was Stratton Oakmont.” [Hollywood Reporter]

By Staci Zaretsky
Law Schools

Non-Sequiturs: 11.22.13

* Paramount is flexing its legal muscles to stop producers from making a sequel to It’s a Wonderful Life. Wait, Hollywood is trying to stop a mindless and unnecessary sequel? Where was this Paramount when they greenlit Kingdom of the Crystal Skull? [Indiewire] * Are you a “young, outgoing lawyer[] and recent law school grad[]” looking for your big break? Because it looks like a TV show may want to talk to you. [Get Entry Level Attorney Jobs] * Remember the woman who accused the Duke Lacrosse team of rape? She was convicted of second degree murder today. Yikes. [The Expert Institute] * This is an awesome program: a number of lawyers are helping first responders prepare wills for free. [KEZI] * Overzealous IT guy who tried to keep everyone at work locked out of the system because “he was the only person capable of running the network” is going to jail. If you’ve ever dealt with some form of this guy, this story is like a dream come true. [IT-Lex] * A majority of students say that a two-year law school program would make them more likely to go to law school. This is the best argument against a two-year program ever. [Valley News Live] * Full-time jobs will exceed the number of law school grads by 2016. Except this assumes the number of legal jobs holds steady, which is a hell of an assumption when demand for legal services is still in decline. [Tax Prof Blog] * A company’s lawyer had secret communications with a judge and ultimately secured a multimillion dollar verdict. The Mississippi Supreme Court frowned on that behavior. [Cleveland Plain-Dealer] * For the 50th anniversary of the assassination of JFK by Fidel Castro the Mafia LBJ ALF Lee Harvey Oswald, here’s a look at just how difficult it is to kill chief executives these days. [Vocativ]

By Joe Patrice
Cyberlaw

Are Lawyers Officially No Longer Technophobic?

The first month of 2012 was a crazy one for internet law. The Stop Online Piracy Act gloriously crashed and burned, Apple is getting sued in China for naming rights to the iPad, and in America someone is suing to show that porn doesn’t deserve copyright protection. In the wake of all the hot debate […]

By Christopher Danzig