Law Students

Pharmaceuticals Summary Judgment: Graceway v. River?s Edge

Posted on November 16, 2009
Graceway sells prescription benzoyl peroxide, Benziq, for treating acne. River?s Edge markets a benzoyl peroxide product, Benprox, created specifically to compete with Benziq. They?re both available as a 5.25% wash and 5.25% and 2.75% gel. Graceway sued over River?s Edge?s allegedly false and misleading promotion of Benprox as ?generically equivalent or otherwise substitutable? for [...

10 Rules for Law Firm Retreats: How to Maximize Productivity, Usefulness, and Fun

Posted on November 11, 2009
Whether your next law firm retreat takes place at a tropical location or in the firm?s conference room, there are several things to keep in mind to make it productive, useful and fun. Here are my Ten ?Rules? for law firm retreats. Feel free to add your own in the comments...

Vanity Fair Test Applied to the Lanham Act to Activities Abroad

Posted on November 07, 2009
I think this is an unusual decision, so if you know of similar ones, please send them along. A Southern District of New York court last week denied reconsideration of its refusal to dismiss a 43(a) false advertising claim arising from activities in Germany...

ReachWorks SecureVend Makes Second Life DRM: Can It Stop Content Theft?

Posted on November 04, 2009
A post on the Second Life blog Shopping Cart Disco pointed me to a new vendor system that hope to be able to stop a large part of the content theft and copyright infringement in its tracks. The new system, entitled ReachWorks SecureVend, changes the way people buy goods in game and makes it more [...

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Top 5 Tips For Dealing Successfully With Police Officers

Posted on October 23, 2009
I have had more opportunities to deal with police officers than most people, both as a collaborator on certain justice initiatives, as an adversary defending clients, and as a motorist with a penchant for fast cars. I also have several friends ?on the job? (I?ve been watching Law & Order, yo) with whom I?ve [...

Invasion of Privacy With a Hidden Camera: Employer and Employee Law

Posted on October 05, 2009
Hoping to capture an evening intruder who surfed the Internet and viewed pornography on a work computer, a company installed a hidden camera to monitor the computer. The hidden camera was not turned on during the day when the employees were present – just at night in the hopes of catching the culprit...

Criminal Confused for an Attorney: How Ronald Tackman Escapes From Prison

Posted on October 03, 2009
Ordinarily – despite what so many of you are probably thinking right now – it is not that difficult to distinguish between lawyers and criminal suspects. Really. But I guess what we learn from this story is that it’s mostly because of the suit...

Using Internet Apps to Run, Manage, and Grow a High Volume Law Firm

Posted on September 29, 2009
Businesses have data to manage, documents to produce, and customers to invoice. Law firms are no different. I run my own traffic defense law firm. It?s a high-volume practice area, which means I have lots of clients at any given time. There are lots of client contracts and invoices going out and coming back from [...

Depression in the Legal Profession: Lawyers are the Most Likely to Be Depressed

Posted on September 24, 2009
Depression is a dangerous disease, and lawyers are more prone to it than members of any other profession. Consider these numbers: A 1990 study at Johns Hopkins University found that of 28 occupations studied, lawyers were the most likely to suffer depression, and were more than 3...

Puerto Rican Government Bans 5 Books for High Schoolers

Posted on September 22, 2009
The Department of Education of the government of Puerto Rico recently eliminated five books from the eleventh grade curriculum of the public school system: Antología Personal, by José Luis González; El Entierro de Cortijo, by Edgardo Rodríguez Juliá; Mejor Te Lo Cuento: Antología Personal, by Juan Antonio Ramos; Reunión de Espejos: An Anthology of [...

How the Changing Legal Landscape Will Affect Legal Education

Posted on September 16, 2009
As the fall progresses, many law students and law school administers will be trying to assess the direction of three market trends: (1) the number or percentage of summer associates who receive offers of permanent employment; (2) the prevalence of deferrals among those lucky enough to be offered jobs; and (3) the volume of [...

Movement Towards Limited Legal Services: Good Solution or Bad Service?

Posted on September 11, 2009
There has been some recent blog comments [See: Carolyn Elefant 's Blog [about  the meaning of Robert Capps article  in this month's WIRED Magazine, (September 2009) about the concept of "Good Enough",  "Good Enough" solutions, (when cheap and simple is just fine) and my quote about how this concept applies to the legal profession...

IDEA v PETA: New Post-Registration Copyright Infringement

Posted on September 10, 2009
IDEA v PETA (SDNY August 298 2009): Plaintiff, no doubt aware that statutory damages are only available for post-registration copyright infringements that are not part of a continuing, ongoing series of infringing acts of the same kind as those engaged by defendant prior to the effective date of registration, alleged in its amended complaint [...

Top 5 List of the Best Ways to Prevent Plagiarism of Online Content

Posted on September 09, 2009
If you?re a blogger (or any other kind of Webmaster) your content is being copied, it is virtually a guarantee. Whether you are big or small, users and commentators, along with spammers and scrapers, are using your work. Some of this use is likely legitimate, even desired, but some of it also likely goes [...

Carpooling Decision in Canada: No Compensation Allowed For Inter-City Trips

Posted on September 08, 2009
My wife won?t watch the news with me anymore. Apparently, my habit of talking back to the TV during reports on court cases is a little less than endearing. I just can?t help it, though- media reports on legal issues tend to range from slightly misleading to blatantly incorrect, and that drives me batty...

E-Verify Must Be Used By Federal Contractors to Verify Immigration Eligibility

Posted on September 03, 2009
Federal contractors must start using the federal government’s online E-Verify electronic program to verify the immigration eligibility for newly hired and current employees as of September 8, 2009. The United States Chamber of Commerce and a number of other plaintiffs challenged the directive that implemented this program, first issued under Presidential Executive Order [...

How to Investigate and Review an Expert?s Curriculum Vitae Before a Deposition

Posted on September 01, 2009
Don’t save your review of an expert’s curriculum vitae (CV) for the night before the deposition. Read it well in advance of the deposition, then mark it up and investigate the expert’s claims. Has the expert exaggerated his qualifications? Such exaggerations can seriously undermine his credibility...

Empirical Legal Studes in the Pre-1940 Era: Herb Kritzer Explains

Posted on August 28, 2009
Herb Kritzer (Minnesota Law), a seminal figure in the Law & Society movement, has recently posted a paper that provides a very exhaustive survey of empirical legal studies in the pre-1940 era. His paper, “Empirical Legal Studies Before 1940: A Bibliographic Essay“, includes a full bibliography of the articles he located...

Law School Interview Tips: Advice and How to Answer Questions

Posted on August 27, 2009
How can I prepare for my interview? You should do research on the school itself. Learn a little about the city it is in, the programs offered, grading policies, and instruction style. Look at the school’s information packet and their web site. If you’re interested in going into a particular field after law [...

Family Law Panel of Experts on Effects of Toxic Stress Related to Child Abuse

Posted on August 25, 2009
A recent panel of experts including Charles Nelson, the Richard David Scott Chair in Pediatric Developmental Research at Harvard Medical School, and Cindy Lederman, a judge of the Miami/Dade County Juvenile Court joined Harvard Law School (HLS) Professors Charles Ogletree, Martha Minow, and Child Abuse Prevention (CAP) Director Elizabeth Bartholet in exploring the short [...

American Society of International Law Announces 2009 Helton Fellowships

Posted on August 24, 2009
The American Society of International Law (ASIL) has announced the eleven student and young professional winners of its 2009 Helton Fellowships for projects in international law. Selected from more than 50 applicants from Africa, Asia, Europe and Eurasia, Oceania, and North and South America, the students will receive micro-grants of $1,500 to pursue fieldwork [...

The Battle Between the Apple iPhone and the RIM Blackberry for Attorney Technology

Posted on August 24, 2009
There?s no doubting the fact that almost every lawyer possesses a mobile phone ? it is sometimes the lifeline that keeps them connected to their office and their clients when they?re on the go. Most of them are either the proud owners of the sturdy workhorse BlackBerry while some others have been swayed by [...

Immunizations and Demonstrative Aids: Making Your Exhibits in Trial Bulletproof

Posted on August 22, 2009
The key to a good demonstrative aid is making it memorable for the jury–especially since the jury will be unlikely to take the exhibit into the deliberation room at the end of trial. Try to involve as many senses as possible: seeing, hearing, even touch...

Interview with Harvard Law Student Mona Williams: 2L Chayes Fellow

Posted on August 20, 2009
Q: What will you be doing this summer? This summer I will be working in Kinshasa, DRC with Development Alternatives, Inc. (DAI) as a legal intern for their Building Recovery and Reform through Democratic Governance (BRDG-DRC) project which is funded by USAID...

UK Movie Industry Wants to Turn Off Your Internet Without Judicial Review

Posted on August 19, 2009
The motion-picture industry has spoken out against a New Zealand proposal to allow them to disconnect entire households from the Internet if one member is accused of copyright infringement; they want to be able to disconnect your Internet connection without giving you a chance to defend yourself in front of a judge because that [...

Sharon Keller or Sharon Killer: Texas Judge Refuses to Hear Appeal and Now Put on Trial

Posted on August 18, 2009
A senior Texas judge who refused to hear a last-minute appeal from a prisoner facing execution because her office “closed at five” was put on trial Monday in one of the most high-profile cases of alleged judicial misconduct in the state’s history...

Lawyers Collaborating with IT Specialists: The Essential Nature of Teamwork in EDD

Posted on August 17, 2009
Mike McBride has a good post up about the cooperation between Lawyers & IT experts as equal parts of a firm’s in-house Electronic Data Discovery (EDD) team. It’s an interesting read for both sides; and I must say, Mike nails in-house culture and the difficulties of being a non-lawyer...

Facenda v NFL Films: The Battle Over the Madden Video Game Voiceover

Posted on August 15, 2009
Facenda v. N.F.L. Films, Inc., — F.3d —-, 2008 WL 4138462 (3rd Cir.) This case saddens me (disclosure: I used to work at Debevoise, NFL?s counsel, though not within the time period covered by this case), but I really should blog about it, even most of a year later...

Cloud Based Law Practice Management Comes of Age

Posted on August 11, 2009
DeskTop Business Solutions offers a fully integrated, cloud-based, law practice management application that increases billable hours, streamlines your practice, and saves time and money. It?s designed specifically for small practices wanting to provide billable services rather than managing computer systems...

Gatorade v. Powerade: The Battle Over the Incomplete ESPN Magazine Advertisement

Posted on August 11, 2009
Coke’s POWERADE brand sports drink was contemplating how to take market share from segment leader Pepsi’s GATORADE product. It decided to tout the addition of calcium, magnesium and potassium. It ran a campaign describing these minerals as ‘critical’, describing POWERADE as ‘complete,’ describing GATORADE as ‘incomplete’ alongside a depiction of half a GATORADE bottle [...

Citizens Cannot Use CAN-Spam to Sue Spammers: District Court Rejects Appeal

Posted on August 10, 2009
When a lawyer thinks about test cases, usually the main considerations revolve around the makeup of the plaintiff and the defendant.  Lawyers want to put the white hat on the plaintiff and the black hat on the defendant.  With the CAN-Spam Act, that consideration is fairly straightforward:  pick a spammer for a defendant and [...

Form Objection Cheat Sheet For Lawyers: Objections You Need to Know

Posted on July 31, 2009
Lawyers who are defending depositions (or learning how to to defend depositions) sometimes like a handy list of form objections. If the form objection is not made during the deposition, this type of objection is normally waived. Here are some typical form objections: “Vague...

Forcing and Banning Hijab: The Legal Debate Rages On

Posted on July 30, 2009
Although the practice of wearing hijab has been around since pre-Islamic times, the debate surrounding it has increased in recent years. Whereas in some countries (Saudi Arabia, Iran, parts of Afghanistan and Indonesia), hijab is mandated, in others, it has been banned in schools, workplaces, and sometimes altogether (Turkey, Tunisia, parts of Belgium and [...

Patent Office Rejects Patent Protection For Latin American Enola Bean

Posted on July 29, 2009
You hear a lot of talk about piracy in the developing world, about Nigerian markets filled with bootleg DVDs or Chinese iPod knockoffs. But if you want to see what real piracy looks like, look at the bio-pirates, people and corporations who receive patents on common life-forms from the developing world (abetted by the sleepy [...

Sonia Sotomayor Pledges Fidelity to the Law

Posted on July 27, 2009
Sonia Sotomayor, the first nominee to the Supreme Court by a Democratic president in 15 years, told the Senate Judiciary Committee Monday, on the opening day of her confirmation hearing, that her judicial philosophy can be distilled to just a few words: “fidelity to the law...

Legal Activist Project Support For Arrested Protestors and Activists

Posted on July 14, 2009
Legal systems are different in every country. However, for actions where it is likely that participants will be arrested, it is always useful to have a ‘legal support team’. This advice on forming such a team in Britain is adapted from the first section of a much longer briefing by the Activist Legal Project...

Peer-to-Peer File Sharing Technology Under Fire By CRTC in Canada

Posted on July 14, 2009
P2P (Peer-to-Peer) is a technology, not an activity. File sharing is an activity uses P2P technology. P2P is about sharing content and resources with peers. The internet has always been about sharing resources with peers. Bandwidth is a resource. In the beginning it was military computer peers...

NextBus Information Systems v Routesy: iPhone Apps and Public Data Usage Debate

Posted on July 13, 2009
Steven Peterson, a web developer in San Francisco, put together a handy iPhone app called Routesy that gives schedules and arrival times for Muni, the city?s public transit system. The underlying data is collected by a company called NextBus, which puts trackers on the various vehicles...

LinkedIn as a Method to Create Your Virtual Online Legal Presence

Posted on July 10, 2009
In thinking about the “law firm of the future,” I have to believe that having an Internet presence will be essential to business development. But how do you create an Internet presence, especially for those of us who grew up in the real world (not the virtual world)? The short answer is: “I don’t know, [...

Davidoff v CVS: Removal of UPC Code and Confirmed Preliminary Injunction

Posted on July 09, 2009
As a result of a prior injunction, Plaintiff Manufacturer (Zino Davidoff) had right to inspect Defendant retailer’s (CVS Corporation) inventory, and uncovered 16,000 units of its product, with the UPC code removed (either cut off or chemically ‘erased...

Impolite Language at Mandatory Settlement Conference May Mean Sanctions

Posted on July 06, 2009
Settlement can occur in a case at any time – from the time before the complaint is filed, during a deposition, in the middle of trial, after the judgment, even after the appeal. Most typically, settlements occur during a formal process known as the Mandatory Settlement Conference...

Conviction Overturned Due to Defendent?s Lawyer Reading Magazines and Napping

Posted on July 01, 2009
On June 15, a New York judge set aside a conviction on the grounds that the defendant’s attorney had provided ineffective assistance of counsel. For future reference, your lawyer may be providing ineffective assistance if he or she is sleeping or reading health-and-fitness magazines during trial...

Blackberry v. Redberry: Trademark Lawyer Drafts a Letter

Posted on June 27, 2009
Let’s say you’re RIM, owner of the BLACKBERRY trademark. After years of trying to get into China market, just as you launch, you discover that a Chinese telecom giant has just launched its own wireless email product named REDBERRY. What do you do? Well, you could contact a great Chinese trademark lawyer like Spring Chang at [...

Planning Your Digital Estate: Dealing With Online Data After Death

Posted on June 25, 2009
All grown-ups know about the importance of estate planning. Even if we don?t always heed the good advice, we know that we need a will, life insurance, and an estate plan, and we know what we need to do to ensure that our money and property is distributed efficiently and in accordance with our [...

Creative Commons and the Law: Redefining Old Rules of Copyright

Posted on June 22, 2009
Creative Commons is an organization that allows people to issue creative works under a license that allows more flexibility than the default “all rights reserved” of copyright law. Recently, John Dvorak wrote a column asking what good Creative Commons serves...

Filling Out Your Lawyer Shopping List: Chopsticks, Coolers, Alarms, Bags, and More

Posted on June 22, 2009
Is there a lawyer on your shopping list? If I?m anything like other attorneys, we?re a hard group to shop for. So I picked out a few things you might consider for the lawyer on your list. Chopsticks in your pocket To start off this list, here?s a cool set of chopsticks for Chinese-food-loving attorneys...

Ten Rules of Legal Technology for Lawyers

Posted on June 19, 2009
For your consideration:  Ten “Rules” of Legal Technology.  Not many are new, and very few apply only to lawyers, but these are a few more nuggets I’m pulling out of previous posts to fill out my portfolio of speeches I’ve got “in the can...

California Attorney General Brown Issues Directive to Foreclosure Consultants

Posted on June 17, 2009
Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. issued a directive today that forces ?foreclosure consultants? to register with the Attorney General?s office and post a $100,000 bond by July 1, 2009. According to the press release issued by the AG?s office, the foreclosure consultants that fail to comply ?will be in violation of state law, subject [...

Honking a Car Horn is Not Protected Free Speech

Posted on June 16, 2009
In a landmark First Amendment decision that will disappoint drivers everywhere, the Washington Court of Appeals has ruled that honking a car horn is not necessarily protected speech. As you might not expect, the case arose from a dispute about chickens...

New York City Bar Event: Getting Back in the Game

Posted on June 13, 2009
Here’s a heads-up of an event in New York City, hosted by the NYC bar and Vault. The program is specifically designed for those attorneys looking to join a firm, start their own practice, or an alternative legal career. If you’re a NYC Bar member make sure to register using that specific link so [...

What a Criminal Tax Attorney Can Do To Help Get You Out of Trouble

Posted on June 11, 2009
Those who find themselves charged with some kind of criminal tax evasion may also be in the rather urgent need of a highly specialized criminal tax attorney. The reason(s) the tax authorities is after you may not matter that much. Regardless if you willingly filed false returns or if you forgot or simply made [...

LegalZoom Launching Paid Attorney Directory

Posted on June 11, 2009
LegalZoom has a clever plan to create an Attorney Directory for visitors to its web site that supports its market position. LegalZoom now attracts the most web traffic of any legal web site so this is an attempt to squeeze more value from this traffic...

Lawsuit Against Indonesian Mother That Wrote Online Complaint Letter

Posted on May 29, 2009
The case of Prita Mulyasari, a mother of two,  is currently the hot topic among Indonesian bloggers. She wrote an online complaint letter [id] against a private hospital in Tangerang, one of Jakarta’s suburban areas, and now she is being charged for violating chapter 27 verse 3 of the Information and Electronic Transaction Law (UU [...

Protests in Guatemala for Assassinated Lawyer Streamed Live from Laptops in the Streets

Posted on May 12, 2009
Protests are taking place today in Guatemala City to demand justice for an attorney who was assassinated on Sunday, and who claimed in a posthumously released YouTube video taped before his death that if he were to die, it would be at the orders of Guatemalan president Álvaro Colom...

Kazakhstan Approves Draft Law on Internet Regulation

Posted on May 04, 2009
The Kazakh Parliament’s lower chamber has approved the first reading of the draft law on online regulation, which is meant to equate all websites (including blogs, social networks, chatrooms, forums and even online shops) with mass media. On the other hand of this law, the authorities will be granted the right to block any local [...

Black?s Law Dictionary Apple iPhone App: Price Is Too High

Posted on April 27, 2009
If you work in the legal industry and you’re an iPhone or iPod Touch user, you’ve probably picked up on the fact that Black’s Law Dictionary is now available for the iPhone or iPod touch. You may also be aware that West released the new application at a price of $49...

Creative Commons Releases CCo: The Zero Copyright Public Domain License

Posted on March 01, 2009
The CC0 (or CC Zero) tool, which has been in the works since December 2007, was recently quietly released to the public in the format of a full version 1.0. CC0 is not so much a license as it is a waiver. It is an attempt by the Creative Commons organization to improve upon its public [...

Dippin? Dots v. Mosey: The Attorney Fee Appeals

Posted on February 01, 2009
2008-13379/2008-1125 Dippin’ Dots v. Mosey ND/TX 3:96-cv-1959 Dippin’ Dots appeals from Judge Thomas Thrash, Jr.’s orders awarding over $3.2 million in attorney fees to defendants under § 285.  Note that Judge Thrash is from the ND/GA...

The Celebrity California UCLA Medical Center Scandal: Snooping on Celeb Records

Posted on January 30, 2009
A serious breach of doctor-patient confidentiality has occurred within the California Department of Public Health. Sources establish that there are now 127 UCLA Medical Center employees who have made less-than-innocent peeks at celebrity medical profiles...

Federal Agents Allowed to Take Your Laptop: Is This a Necessary Evil?

Posted on January 28, 2009
Crimes committed via cyber transactions have ben rising at an increasingly alarming rate, hence many feel that random inspections and detentions of laptops and other electronic devices are ethical in the name of security. The Department of Homeland Security has released recent security information about the legalities of allowing federal agents to take, search [...

Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich Has Been Impeached by a Vote of 114 to 1

Posted on January 23, 2009
The Illinois House of Representatives has formally impeached Governor Rod Blagojevich, with the initial impeachment process having begun on January 10, 2009. This development came after the governor allegedly tried to sell the Senate seat of United States President Barack Obama in replacement of solicitation for individual profit...

Secret Service Informant Turns into Identity Thief: The Brett Shannon Johnson Story

Posted on January 13, 2009
The United States Secret Service has witnessed yet another informant turned criminal. Convicted of credit card and identity theft, Brett Shannon Johnson is now facing six years and three months imprisonment and paying at least $300,000 in restitution...

Rediscovering Absinthe: Removing The Green Fairy From The Banned List

Posted on January 07, 2009
If there is any alcoholic drink in the global market that has been in for a lot of bad rep, then that would be the absinthe, or the green fairy as it is called. For decades this clear, green liquid has been condemned as a vile and vicious drink that can drive a sane [...

The José Medellín Case: When Moral Law and International Law Collides

Posted on January 05, 2009
Should outsiders stepping foot on foreign land be shielded or granted immunity for any atrocious act or heinous crime committed while in that alien territory?  Does crime beget crime? When a balancing of  interests emerges in the practice of criminal law, can one law be truly more dominant than another to merit the promulgation [...

Making an Example Out of Mondello: Feds Cracking Down Hard on Online Offenders

Posted on January 03, 2009
When Sir Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web in 1989, he certainly did not foresee cyber crimes happening on a daily basis. The fact is: no one did. Yet online offenders are not only thriving in virtual space, they are multiplying as well… also on a daily basis...

The Jammie Thomas Case: RIAA Strikes Hard at Kazaa Users

Posted on November 12, 2008
Intellectual property rights are oftentimes thorny issues in the legal community. Enforcing intellectual property laws are challenging, especially in the digital age, which is marked by instantaneous and wide-scale access to materials deemed owned by certain organizations or companies, with only a few clicks of the mouse...

The Wiretapping Debate: George W. Bush and Barack Obama

Posted on October 30, 2008
Wiretapping was unheard of back in the early days of communication when modern technology was still in its early development phase.  As the years sped by and innovations were churned out, so too did forms of unauthorized communications surveillance arise - ushering in complex cases of rights infringement...

Journalistic Prison: National Intelligence Opinion on Shield Laws

Posted on October 20, 2008
Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell has very strong opinions on the Free Flow of Information Act of 2007. In fact, he’s passionate enough about the subject to submit an opinion article to the newspaper USA Today. His published article reacts against the proposed legislation of a reporter shield law...

Snooping On You: The Embarq ISP Spying Scandal

Posted on October 17, 2008
Embarq, an internet service provider offshoot from Sprint, has recently admitted to federal lawmakers that it has eavesdropped on the web surfing habits and interests of 26,000 customers in Kansas without due notification. The web snooping was done to test a new and controversial advertising technology that profiles anonymous users’ online activity...

Sprint Ordered To Refund Early Termination Fees to Customers

Posted on October 13, 2008
A termination fee that amounts to about $200 is a large amount of money for most people. Apparently, a state judge has agreed with those hit with this termination fee. Late July of this year, the California Judge Bonnie Sabraw has decreed that Sprint Nextel must refund $18...

MPAA Attacks: Lawsuits Come Down on FOMDB and MovieRumor

Posted on October 09, 2008
FOMDB.com, the Free Online Movie DataBase, is officially off the internet. FOMDB.com used to feature real-time streaming of almost anything you’d want to see that’s actively showing in movie theaters, dvd, and on televison. This free movie and tv watching website at one point boasted this statement on their now defunct homepage: “All of our movies [...

The Retail Store Hacker Albert Gonzalez Now Faces Prison Time

Posted on September 24, 2008
From conviction of credit card fraud to participation with the Secret Service then back to being federally prosecuted again, Albert “Segvec” Gonzalez is facing a lawsuit in what could possibly be the single largest and most complicated identity theft crime in the United States...

E-Gold Founder Admits E-Gold Used for Money Laundering

Posted on September 16, 2008
E-Gold, with the slogan “Better Money Since 1996″ has been embroiled in legal battles almost since inception. Now in a stunning court move, its founder has plead guilty to major criminal charges. E-Gold founder Douglas Jackson has vowed to implement necessary changes in the company...

RIAA Settles Kazaa Copyright Battle with Bronx Woman

Posted on September 10, 2008
Denise Barker, a Bronx woman charged with copyright infringement by downloading eight copyrighted recordings via the peer-to-peer file sharing application Kazaa, has settled a three-year lawsuit with the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for $6,050...

How to Pass the Bar Exam the First Time You Take It

Posted on August 27, 2008
Taking the bar exam? Want to succeed? Here’s a few tips from a poor soul that had to take the bar exam in two different states?and taking these tips to heart helped her pass the first time, both times. Understand the distinctions in the law, and understand them well...

The End of P2P Throttling: FCC Slaps Comcast

Posted on August 26, 2008
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has announced its orders on Comcast, a major high-speed internet provider, to halt their practice of throttling selected peer-to-peer file sharing traffic. The commission voted 3-2 on the said ruling stating that Comcast has been monitoring the contents of their customers? internet connections and has been blocking traffic, particularly [...

The NYU Law School Cash for Class Scandal

Posted on August 25, 2008
Nowadays at NYU Law School, the right amount of cash can buy you any class. Students studying at the top-tier New York University law school are wheeling and dealing for the opportunity to gain a seat in the most popular of classes. Offers for the seats that range from cash, baking, gift certificates, and even inappropriate favours [...

The AutoAdmit Scandal: The XOXOTH Secret Forum Identities

Posted on August 05, 2008
There’s a major controversy that’s been brewing at the law school forums at AutoAdmit (also known as Xoxoth). One of the forum posters involved in this scandal is AK-47, who used profane language to describe the intimate lives of women who were attending the top law schools in America in 2007...

Law Firm 2.0: The New Business Model of the Legal Industry

Posted on July 09, 2008
One thing the legal industry isn?t known for is creating new and innovative ways of doing business, but a few newcomers to the legal arena are changing this. This new, up and coming business model is one that does away with the old ideas of how a law firm should be run, and is landing [...

Life as a Paralegal: Major Multi-Tasking

Posted on July 01, 2008
Paralegals may not be giving dramatic arguments in the courtroom before judge and jury. They may not have the ultimate responsibility in the legal work they are preparing. But don?t discount the impact paralegals have on the legal process! If you look at all the tasks that paralegals are charged with doing, you definitely realize that [...

Law Student Leaves Gang Life For School Life

Posted on June 16, 2008
There are many stories of people who don?t really go to school, and yet come out on top of the world with successfully-built empires that conquering the height of business. A perfect example would be Microsoft?s Bill Gates. But for an ordinary person, jumping from one level of success to the next [...

Beauty and the Beast: How Attractiveness Affects Your Life

Posted on May 31, 2008
It’s been a long time since discrimination and contempt for others was a common out-in-the open occurrence in the society. These days, most people seem to have become more civil when it comes to handling their reservations against others who do not seem to fit their standards...

Lawyer Held in Contempt of Court for Pretending to Masturbate

Posted on May 29, 2008
Can the law ever become too lenient? Everybody is familiar with the tag line “ignorance of the law excuses no one” and true to its strictest sense, no one, even those in privileged positions are excused from any of the provisions of the law...

Donald Trump Files Lawsuit Against Law Firm Over Legal Fees

Posted on May 19, 2008
Donald Trump is in the news once again. This time he is suing Manhattan law firm Morrison Cohen LLP and his lawyer who represented him in a malpractice suit, saying that the law firm has treated him like a ?cash cow? by overcharging him and performing unnecessary work in order to bill more [...

Top 10 Law Student Books of the Moment: Starter Edition

Posted on May 12, 2008
We’re unveiling something new here at Law Vibe that has the promisings to be a regular feature: the hottest law school related books that you, the LawVibe community, have been buying over the last three months! The LawVibe team is able to get a sneak peak into what our readers like in terms of law [...

How to Read Efficiently and Effectively

Posted on May 02, 2008
Time to write on a topic that’s dear to my heart: craziness when it comes to knowing what to read and how to read. Maybe you’re looking to read about the latest advances in law, like second life law firms. Perhaps you’re interested in finding out about the most recent law school rankings...

How Business Cards Can Skyrocket Your Legal Business

Posted on April 23, 2008
When you’re growing your legal business, whether as a solo practicioner or as part of a law firm, you know the importance of a business card. It’s a simple marketing tool that is extremely effective in making your business grow and be known, and works as a powerful advertisement without the hefty cost...

Jake Warner Profile: The Self-Help Legal Trailblazer

Posted on April 19, 2008
We all know that legal fees are sometimes unaffordable by those with limited income. We all know some people will not have the capacity to hire lawyers and represent them in every dispute they may find themselves in. So, placed in a difficult situation, these people turn to free legal aid given by the government...

Eminem Takes On Belgium: Cleanin? Out My Daydream

Posted on April 14, 2008
The 5 year controversy about Eminem’s track “Cleanin’ Out My Closet” and Raymond Vincent’s “Daydream” seems to be nearing the end. What’s the controversy about? This particular case has raised questions about the copyright law and its interpretation in Belgium...

Top 100 Law Schools in America for 2009

Posted on April 02, 2008
1. Yale University New Haven, CT Score 100 Tier 1 Out-of-state tuition (full-time)$43,750 2007 Total enrollment (full-time)586 2. Harvard University Cambridge, MA Score 91 Tier 1 Out-of-state tuition (full-time)$39,325 2007 Total enrollment (full-time)1,734 2...

10 Ways to Ensure Success in Law School

Posted on March 31, 2008
If you’re considering entering law school or already a new student the intimidation factor can be overwhelming. Anyone who has gone through the rigors of a three-year law school program will tell you it gets less threatening as you advance. In order to get through these three years you’re going to need [...

Call for Contributions at LawVibe: Law School Blog

Posted on March 28, 2008
I am looking for partner bloggers to blog on LawVibe on topics relating to law - such as general law and legal topics, law school, being a law student, being a lawyer, starting your solo practice, law firm topics, etc. As of now I have no limits to the amount of bloggers I’d [...

How to Be Fulfilled as a Solo Lawyer

Posted on March 26, 2008
From Susan Cartier Liebel: “To pursue something difficult you will need commitment, focus and confidence.  You will need the promise of gaining a significant outcome and a sense of fulfillment. If your goals do not move you, if they do not inspire and incite you to action, then you have not found the right goals...

NETeller Founders Arrested on Conspiracy Charges

Posted on March 21, 2008
NETeller, a payment processor, now has two former founders charged with federal crimes. Stephen Lawrence, 47, has plead guilty to a conspiracy charge over the way Neteller handled billions of dollars in gambling proceeds obtained illegally. He faces a maximum prison sentence of 5 years on the conspiracy charge in this case, presided by U...

Law School Archetypes: The Philosopher

Posted on March 21, 2008
From Barely Legal:  “I have nothing to declare but my genius” - Oscar Wilde Most law students see law school as a means to an end. Even though law school is boring, they grit their teeth, do the work, and get out of there to cash in on their J...

Lawyers Taking Over Second Life

Posted on March 20, 2008
Do you have a Second Life? No I don’t mean a dual personality. Or some sort of alter-ego, like Clark Kent/Superman. I’m talking about that pseudo-videogame called Second Life. Second Life (SL for short) is a virtual-world on the internet, developed by Linden Research, Inc (a...

Soda Company Gets Sued Over False New Mexico Advertising

Posted on March 20, 2008
From 43(B)log: Chavez v. Blue Sky Natural Beverage Co., 2007 WL 1691249 (N.D. Cal.) Defendants make beverages under a variety of brand names. In late 2000, they acquired the Blue Sky natural soda business from the Blue Sky Natural Beverage Co., a Santa Fe, NM-based company in business since 1980...

Sex Toy Ban: You Can Own Them But You Can?t Sell Them

Posted on December 31, 2007
From Craig Williams:  Here’s the follow-up to a February 14, 2007 ruling from the Alabama Supreme Court:  stores who lost their attempts to overturn the Alabama legislature’s ban on selling sex toys have taken their appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court...

Money Is Not the Only Way to Settle a Lawsuit

Posted on December 30, 2007
From Diane Levin: It’s been a tough month for the American legal system and American lawyers. First an attorney with drug-resistant TB travels to Europe and back, potentially exposing his fellow air travelers to a dreaded illness. Then an administrative law judge goes to court to recover $54 million dollars from his former dry cleaner over [...

The Secrets of Library Panhandlers Revealed

Posted on December 28, 2007
From Mary Minow:   Interview with Mark Weinberg, Chicago civil rights attorney with a specialty in panhandling cases M: When can a library tell people not to panhandle or solicit - e.g. on the sidewalk leading up to the library front doors? Weinberg: Nobody should be permitted to block the entrance to any building anywhere, including a library...

HBO Wants to Change DRM to Something More Friendly

Posted on December 27, 2007
From Ed Felten: People have had lots of objections to Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology ? centering mainly on its clumsiness and the futility of its anti-infringement rationale ? but until recently nobody had complained that the term ?Digital Rights Management? was insufficiently Orwellian...

The Difference Between Smashing, Bumping, and Hitting

Posted on December 20, 2007
From Evan Schaeffer:  From The Psychiatrist Blog comes news that “witnesses are potentially highly suggestible and words are important”: The effect of changing a single word in questions has been tested by psychologists Loftus and Palmer in the context of eye witness statements...

The Solo Practice and Small Law Firm Profit Prejudice

Posted on December 19, 2007
From Susan Cartier Liebel, Esq: Last week I was invited to the Quinnipiac University School of Law Externship Program Reception which honors the supervisors who provided invaluable externship experience to the law students. In my opinion, the in-house legal clinic run by my very good friend, Carolyn Wilkes Kaas, and the externship program run by both [...

Law School Archetypes: The Old Guy

Posted on December 14, 2007
From Mike: “That Ol’ Man River. He must know somepin.’” -Oscar Hammerstein “Old Man River” Walk down the hall at your average law school and the scene will probably resemble a real life version of Saved By The Bell: People in their mid-twenties doing their best to portray high schoolers, with a couple of [...

The House of Astor Scandal: Father Against Son

Posted on December 13, 2007
Greed, money, and power versus family. Who wins? In this tale concerning one of the greatest philanthropic ladies in New York, greed definitely wins out. Millionaire Brooke Astor ruled the New York social scene for decades. Her late husband, Vincent Astor was the last heir as the descendant of legendary John Jacob Astor who made an amazing [...

Fair Use Debate: People Posting Your Private Photos on Forums

Posted on December 06, 2007
From Rebecca Tushnet: Two Yale Law School students have sued posters on a law school discussion board (AutoAdmit, also known as Xoxohth) for defamation, related torts, misappropriation of personality, and copyright infringement, for reposting candid photos that were part of one student’s online collection at her own page...

Close the Lid on Bad Reporting: Radioactive Waste Spill

Posted on December 05, 2007
From Marty: Not really trademark law but may be of interest to those in communications or those who drink water and eat fish. I read an Associated Press report reprinted in Forbes magazine on the Japanese earthquake and came across the following: “Tokyo Electric Power Company also said about 400 barrels containing low-level radioactive [...