Tell Us Which Sentence of the US Constitution You Would Rewrite, and How You Would Rewrite It

In early October, former U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens told the Chicago Bar Association at its annual John Paul Stevens Award luncheon of his desire to amend the supremacy clause of the U.S. Constitution by adding four words to it as shown in italics below: “This Constitution, and…

Oct 31, 2012 4:22 PM CDT

Around the Blawgosphere: ‘Financial Literacy’ at NYU Law; A 10th Law School in Illinois?

Redefining the Basics Last week, New York University Law School announced plans to remake its curriculum. This week at the New York Times’ Dealbook blog, University of Colorado Law School professor Victor Fleischer and Brian Leiter’s Law School Reports took note of NYU’s new mandatory financial literacy course for first-years.…

Oct 26, 2012 1:30 PM CDT

What Does Your Workplace Do to Make You Feel Appreciated?

Last week, the New York Times wrote about how the latest perks that Silicon Valley companies are giving to their employees focus on their home lives. “Facebook gives new parents $4,000 in spending money,” the Times reports. “Stanford School of Medicine is piloting a project to provide doctors with housecleaning…

Oct 24, 2012 7:35 PM CDT

Voter Fraud v. Voter Suppression: Author Explains That Neither Is Quite What We Think

Oct 22, 2012 5:00 PM CDT

If You Were Running for President, What Would Your Six-Word ‘Stump Speech’ Be?

For several months now, the National Constitution Center has invited both visitors to its Philadelphia museum and visitors to its website to share what they would use as a six-word stump speech if they were running for president. “This standard political speech dates back to the 1800s, when candidates stood…

Oct 17, 2012 7:00 PM CDT

Prison Break: Budget Crises Drive Reform, But Private Jails Press On

Some saw deviltry in the details of a letter (PDF) the Corrections Corporation of America sent to the heads of state corrections departments in January, offering to buy prisons rather than run them for hire. Just two weeks earlier, the CCA—the largest company in the nation’s private prison industry—had made…

Oct 12, 2012 11:04 PM CDT

Around the Blawgosphere: Media Getting Rape Case Wrong, Bloggers Say; Will LinkedIn Take Over?

In 2008, a Connecticut jury found Richard Fourtin Jr. guilty of sexually assaulting a woman with severe cerebral palsy. But in 2009, state appellate court, considering “the sole issue of whether the jury reasonably could have found that the state introduced sufficient evidence to prove that the victim was unable…

Oct 12, 2012 1:30 PM CDT

Do You Know What Your Co-Workers and Superiors Earn, or Not? What’s a Better Workplace Policy?

At Above the Law, columnist “Anonymous Partner” weighed in on a recent partner compensation survey (PDF) that noted that partners in law firms with open-compensation systems (a firm at which every partner knows what every other partner makes or could easily find out) earned far more than partners at firms…

Oct 10, 2012 4:45 PM CDT

‘Good Girls Revolt’ Author Discusses Groundbreaking 1970s Sex-Discrimination Suit Against Newsweek

Oct 9, 2012 1:35 PM CDT

The Guantanamo Quagmire

Federal appeals Judge A. Raymond Randolph is an admirer of the 18th century English critic Samuel Johnson. But it was Nick Carraway, the narrator of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, whom Randolph found himself quoting during a 2010 lecture at the Heritage Foundation. “They were careless people. … They…

Oct 5, 2012 9:02 PM CDT

Around the Blawgosphere: SCOTUSblog Hits 10-Year Mark; Building an Affordable Suit Wardrobe

Landmark Log-in Ten years ago this First Monday, SCOTUSBlog was born. Tom Goldstein and (his wife) Amy Howe’s blog “had 30 hits, and [we] were astonished; really, we were too embarrassed to quit, once we had a few readers,” Goldstein wrote at SCOTUSBlog. “Almost a decade later, on the day…

Oct 5, 2012 2:30 PM CDT

How Do You Deal with Rude Opposing Counsel?

At The Velvet Hammer a little while back, Seattle plaintiffs personal injury attorney Karen Koehler described a tense encounter at a photocopier with opposing counsel and offered her readers seven tips on how to deal with others of his ilk. Among her tips: “1. Sever all emotionality with the [rude…

Oct 3, 2012 4:48 PM CDT

Lucky 36: What It Takes to Land a Supreme Court Clerkship

About a thousand candidates–most if not all of whom have top grades, fascinating backgrounds and served as law review editors–apply for U.S. Supreme Court clerkship slots each year. How do the 36 who get tapped make the cut? Reputation, coupled with a bit of luck, goes a long way, guests tell ABA Journal Podcast moderator Stephanie Francis Ward.

Oct 1, 2012 1:29 PM CDT

As DC Circuit Weighs the Future of Guantanamo Inmates, Some Say Judicial Review Can Harm Military

Federal appeals Judge A. Raymond Randolph is an admirer of the 18th century English critic Samuel Johnson. But it was Nick Carraway, the narrator of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, whom Randolph found himself quoting during a 2010 lecture at the Heritage Foundation. “They were careless people. … They…

Oct 1, 2012 10:10 AM CDT

Detention Policies: What Role for Judicial Review?

Editor’s note: Professor Stephen I. Vladeck of the Washington College of Law at American University and Greg Jacob, a partner at O’Melveny & Myers in Washington, D.C., examine the intricacies of U.S. detention policy. Their essays are among those collected in Patriots Debate: Contemporary Issues in National Security Law, a…

Oct 1, 2012 9:59 AM CDT