Legal Research

Selections from National Law Journal Daily Headlines May 30, 2008

By David Badertscher, PLL

Source: NLJ.com, May 30, 2008.

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FROM THE UPCOMING ISSUE  |  A deluge of law schools
"As many as 10 new law schools are in the works, with the majority of them proposed in the eastern part of the country. With three new law schools proposed in New York alone and others also in the early stages in Connecticut, Maine, Pennsylvania and elsewhere, developing facilities to pump out juris doctor degrees is the goal du jour for institutions looking to build a bigger name for themselves. Critics, however, point to a tight job market and starting salaries that do not cover the ballooning costs of tuition for the majority of students already graduating from the nation's hundreds of law schools."

FROM THE UPCOMING ISSUE  |  Place your bet: Are TV games a lottery?
"Eight class actions have been filed in the past year against producers of reality television shows that offer contests on certain episodes aimed at viewers. Participants are allowed to submit their votes, or answers, via text message or the Internet. The Internet submissions are free, but participants are charged 99 cents for a text message. "The theory in these cases is essentially that they're engaging in gambling by having the pay component," said Andrew Lustigman, who focuses on advertising and marketing law."

WEB-ONLY  |  California appeals court upholds $941,000 legal malpractice verdict against Wilson Elser
"A California appeals court has upheld a $941,000 legal malpractice verdict against Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker, but has thrown out $1.7 million of the original award given to the firm's former client. 'We are disappointed that any part of the verdict against our firm was affirmed, but we are pleased that the majority of claim has been knocked out,' said Thomas Hyland, managing partner of Wilson Elser's New York office."

WEB-ONLY  |  Bid to sue 4th Circuit's former chief judge over fees falters
"Defense lawyer Steven Rosenfield had no recourse in 2006 for the 4th Circuit's unexplained cut in his bill from $38,000 to $10,000 for work on a death penalty appeal to the circuit, the Supreme Court and a clemency petition. So he sued the man who signed off on the payments, former 4th Circuit Chief Judge William Wilkins, claiming the cut, without a chance to know why and challenge it, violated his due process rights. Rosenfeld lost his claim, but he can take comfort in the belief that his suit spurred a policy change in the court."

WEB-ONLY  |  Prosecutors re-assert Weiss' 'criminal arrogance'
"Federal prosecutors in the government's kickback case against Milberg are disputing claims made earlier this week by the firm's co-founder, Melvyn Weiss, who stated that his wrongdoing, while punishable, did not amount to 'criminal arrogance.' 'Weiss's post-hoc rationalization of his conduct is implausible,' prosecutors claim in court papers filed May 29."

WEB-ONLY  |  Solicitor General Paul Clement will teach at Georgetown University Law Center
"Solicitor General Paul D. Clement, who recently announced his resignation, will join Georgetown University Law Center in June as a visiting professor and senior fellow at the law school's Supreme Court Institute. Clement is no stranger to the school and its faculy; from 1998 to 2004, he taught a seminar on the separation of powers as an adjunct professor."

OPINION:

BELL SHOOTING PROSECUTION  |  Critics are mistaken
"In attacks on the prosecutor in the Sean Bell case for not trying hard enough to win, media and 'trial experts' have characterized his effort as incompetent. But blaming the acquittal of three police officers for killing Sean Bell outside Club Kalua in Queens, N.Y., on prosecutorial ineptness is misdirected. It ignores crucial considerations that no fair-minded prosecutor could avoid. A prosecutor's legal and ethical duty is not only to win, but to win while also serving the cause of justice."

Full post as published by New York Supreme Court Criminal Term Library on May 30, 2008 (boomark / email).