#AppellateTwitter is place for networking as well as commentary
When a federal appeals court heard oral arguments on President Donald Trump’s revised travel ban, #AppellateTwitter was a source for journalists and observers looking for commentary as the oral arguments unfolded.
But the hashtag, coined a year ago by a lawyer missing out on a lunch of appellate lawyers, is also a networking tool for appellate lawyers, Law360 (sub. req.) reports.
According to the article, lawyers, law students and “passionate court observers” use the hashtag to link discussions on subjects such as grammar and breaking court decisions, and to share “the kind of jokes only an appellate nerd could love.”
There is also a practical side to #AppellateTwitter. Appellate lawyers tweeting at the hashtag have gotten referrals, forged connections and obtained practice pointers about practice in unfamiliar venues, according to the article. Some lawyers have also gotten new clients who found them through Twitter.
The online networking is also a social outlet for appellate lawyers, who tend to be cerebral and “a little different,” according to Raffi Melkonian of Wright & Close. “I’ve found it to be fantastic that there’s this community of people who have similar interests who like to talk to each other and share tips and advice,” he told Law360.
Happy #AppellateTwitter Day. It has a certain appeal to it. I'm cert of that.
— lawprofblawg (@lawprofblawg) June 8, 2017
