Some might think it’s bad enough to take a person who has paid his debt to society and make him a perpetual pariah.  Some might think it’s worse when the cause is some technical offense that threatens no one and offer no potential for future harm.  Some might think it’s sufficient to regulate them to the point where they will never be capable of getting a…  Read More →

The assertion is made within some circles with near absolute certainty: Why?  Why would any lawyer spend her valuable time blawging if not to get business?  To small minds, there can be no doubt.  The answer comes from Justice Anthony Kennedy. Via Orin Kerr at VC : On August 19th, Justice Kennedy gave an address that included an interesting passing remark about the role of blogs. Justice Kennedy was talking about how law review case comments…  Read More →

Another Labor Day to ponder what’s become of our great nation and the men and women who gave it the strength and resilience to face any challenge and overcome it.  This began as a celebration of the workingman, an animal no longer familiar to Americans. Whatever happened to labor? Not Labor with a capital L, as in organized labor unions. I mean labor as in skilled workers solving interesting problems. I mean craftspeople who use their hands,... 

A small war broke out among some of the law students who have enjoyed some recognition, at least amongst some of the younger lawyers, in the blawgosphere and on twitter.  The direct combatants are Huma Rashid, who writes The Reasonably Prudent Law Student , and does a (paid?) column for Carolyn Elefant on  lawyer fashion  at My Shingle , and Laura McWilliams, who blogs at Really? Law? , who fancies…  Read More →

The cops were called because someone in the trailer park complained about noise.  Whether it was worth the life of Michael Sipes is another matter.  Radley Balko at  the Agitator  posts the story. According to Sipes’ mother and others in the house, the police repeatedly knocked on the door to the home, but never identified themselves. They say both Sipes and his mother asked more than once who was outside. A neighbor who heard the…  Read More →

As many of you know, my skillset extends beyond legal analysis and lawyerly fashion to cutting edge music.  And not that Lady Googoo crap, either, but exceptional artists who you will need to know about if you don’t want your kids to ridicule you unmercifully behind your back.  And here’s one you really need to know about , Cara Salimando in her debut music video…  Read More →

There are two things clear about the nature of those whose days are spent in the Academy: They have thin skins and refined sensibilities.  So much so that their expressions of outrage are often mistaken for love notes.  Which is why George Washington Law School’s Jonathan Turley,  who sits in  the prestigious Shapiro Chair for Public Interest Law, shocked me with his embrace of violence .  The scene was the US Open Tennis Championship. ... 

Via Radley Balko , it seems that the cops don’t love guys with concealed carry permits as much as one might think.  The  Philly Inquirer   interviews nine permit holders who weren’t treated with the respect they deserved. Eight of the men said that they were detained by police – two for 18 hours each. Two were hospitalized for diabetic issues while in custody, one of whom was handcuffed to a bed. Charges were filed against three... 

If you think that we don’t know much about how the government gathered evidence against accused terrorists, consider how it feels to be SDNY Judge Lewis Kaplan. He’s apparently as much in the dark as anyone else.  From the New York Times . With the trial of a terrorism suspect held for nearly five years in the C.I.A.’s “black sites” and later in the military prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, only …  Read More →

Few people have observed the blawgosphere as well as Colin Samuels .  He is the undisputed King of Blawg Review , and served as blawg sherpa, guiding others in their quest to avoid blawg review shame by comparison,   In the past year, Colin created a BR of his own, A Round Tuit , which is a Master’s Class in Blawg Review, for those willing to learn. In his latest A Round Tuit , number 43 to be …  Read More →

Amongst most blawgs, Simple Justice gets its share of comments.  But it’s nothing compared to Volokh Conspiracy .  GW Lawprof Orin Kerr , who is known for his lengthy and well conceived posts on significant legal issues, showed his lighter side when he posted about The Ultimate Legal Blog Comment ? I found this gem in a comment thread at the blog of my collegue [sic] Jonathan Turley by commenter “Mick” at 4:42 am, May 22, 2010 : How... 

Let’s be frank, had Caroline Giuliani not been sired by Rudolph, no one would have either known or cared about her arrest for shoplifting or her court appearance, where she was given an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal (ACD) with one day of community service.  I wrote about it , not because of Caroline but because of my deep, abiding feelings toward her father.  It would have killed me not to take a shot at Rudy. The outcome of her... 

Via Doug Berman , there’s a columnist for the  Peoria Journal Star  named Phil Luciano who has come up with a provocative approach to sentencing everyone’s favorite hair mishap, Rod  Blagojevich. How would you like to see Rod Blagojevich punished? I’d like to see him do something that involves hard and demeaning work. You know, like real punishment. In the real world, that ain’t gonna happen – at least, not how a... 

The normal course of affairs is that there is no situation a police officer prefers than one where he comes out a hero.  Saving a life, especially that of a child, is the chance to make the front page, get the gold shield, shake hands with the mayor and make a name for oneself.  So what if that’s what they are trained and paid to do.  Glory is …  Read More →

Larry Joe Davis was pissed.  He was rated 3.7 by Avvo.  3.7.  Bricks are rated higher than 3.7.  Well, that’s certainly not going to get him any business.  From the Courthouse News : Davis claims Avvo misleads the public by failing to disclose that the attorney ratings on its website depend upon an attorney’s level of cooperation with the site. Davis …  Read More →