ABA Journal

How to submit a Your Voice essay

The ABA Journal wants to host and facilitate conversations among lawyers about their profession. We are seeking thoughtful reflections on issues related to the legal profession written by unpaid contributors to run in the Your Voice section of our website, ABAJournal.com. Columns focusing on one’s personal experiences related to the…

Dec 22, 2017 3:00 PM CST

The top 10 legal news stories of 2017

It’s hard to imagine a year more packed with major legal news than 2017, much of it generated by President Donald Trump's administration. We may never get used to the frenetic pace. Here are 10 stories—themes, really—that dominated legal news reports.

Dec 22, 2017 9:00 AM CST

12 of the year’s most fascinating lawyers

One lawyer spends Sunday afternoons on the gridiron, while another made the transition from the playing field to a seat behind the bench. Still another lawyer became a reality television star, and another forged a second carer as a fashion designer for Hollywood A-listers.

Dec 22, 2017 8:30 AM CST

Our 10 most-read stories of 2017

Law-office coffee breaks come with a strong dose of law-focused chatter. In 2017, Trump administration legal initiatives were a constant source of politically charged news. But headlines that drew the most interest were largely calming water-cooler distractions.

Dec 22, 2017 7:00 AM CST

What were the top legal words of 2017?

After Dictionary.com named “complicit” its legal word of 2017, someone asked legal journalist Robert Ambrogi what he considered to be the legal technology word of the year. (His eventual answer in his Above the Law column: Blockchain.) Ken Bresler of Massachusetts Weekly (via Clear Writing Co.) published a list of…

Dec 20, 2017 10:38 AM CST

Barbie v. Bratz: What happened when toy titans took each other to court (podcast)

In this month’s Modern Law Library, we read a thrilling tale of dueling toymakers, corporate espionage and a group of brats taking on the queen of the Dreamhouse.

Professor Orly Lobel, author of You Don’t Own Me: How Mattel v. MGA Entertainment Exposed Barbie’s Dark Side, speaks to the ABA Journal’s Lee Rawles about how an intellectual property dispute between the maker of Barbie and the creator of Bratz spun into a legal battle that would last more than a decade.

Dec 20, 2017 8:30 AM CST

Which colleagues and clients do you buy gifts for?

We’re in the thick of the season of holiday parties and year-end bonuses. And possibly gifts for co-workers and clients. This week, we’d like to ask you: Which colleagues do you buy gifts for? Your bosses? Your direct reports (or do you just give them cash)? What about clients? Do…

Dec 13, 2017 11:00 AM CST

Tech coach Adriana Linares translates tech for lawyers (podcast)

Adriana Linares considers it a badge of honor to work in the legal profession without being a lawyer.

Dec 13, 2017 8:30 AM CST

Cartoon Poll: Which emoji caption makes you LOL?

This month’s caption contest had us laughing out loud as we sorted through about 100 submissions. Now it’s your turn to decide what these emoji jurors are really feeling. The caption that receives the most votes will appear in an upcoming issue of the magazine. Vote in the cartoon poll…

Dec 11, 2017 4:37 PM CST

Can you write a happy legal-themed story in 4 words?

On Wednesday morning, the hashtag #writeahappystoryin4words was trending on Twitter. Some of the super-short happy stories we found: Eating without getting fat. Baby shoes, well worn. Twitter introduces “Edit” button Inspired by this, we’d like to ask you: Can you write a happy legal-themed story in four words? Answer in…

Dec 6, 2017 11:59 AM CST

Georgetown law prof calls for reimagining of criminal justice system in ‘Chokehold’ (podcast)

As a former federal prosecutor in Washington, D.C., Paul Butler once worked to put people in prison. Now, he has come to believe that prisons should be abolished.

Dec 6, 2017 8:30 AM CST

10 Questions: From plaintiffs to patients, Don D. Bush shifts careers at 70

Don D. Bush left his position as a magistrate judge with the U.S. District Court for work as a medical technician for a nonprofit urgent care clinic and an ambulance service.

Dec 1, 2017 1:40 AM CST

Lessons from the past can propel your future

For me, this career has always been about having choices and the freedom to create the life I wanted. Growing up, I was aware of the consequences of women not having economic independence. I was particularly influenced by my grandmother in Michigan, a talented local radio host who was limited…

Dec 1, 2017 1:35 AM CST

How serendipity, ‘Star Wars,’ Sunstein and constitutional law intersect

Justice requires great artistry. The narrative arc of our constitutional law saga is full of surprise, mystery and plot reversals.

Dec 1, 2017 1:15 AM CST

How to start a sentence: Consider all your alternatives, and sprinkle in some conjunctions, too

Many writers mistakenly think it’s the beginning: They begin a disproportionate number of sentences with the grammatical subject, and they rarely depart from the subject-verb-object pattern. Boring legal writers create paragraphs of sentence after sentence beginning with a client’s or litigant’s name; interesting writers, by contrast, spice their prose with syntactic variety.

Dec 1, 2017 1:05 AM CST