Appellate Practice

Federal Appeals Court Stays District Judge’s Ban on Stem Cell Research

In a three-paragraph order today, a federal appeals court has temporarily lifted a district judge’s preliminary ban on government funding of some research on stem cells from human embryos. By preserving the status quo for now, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., panel plans…

Sep 9, 2010 8:14 PM CDT

Lawyer Sues for $700K After His Arrest for Failing to Show ID in Courthouse

A Maryland lawyer in a hurry to file some briefs decided to take a stand when an officer at the appeals court in Annapolis asked to see his ID. Norman Christopher Usiak refused, the Baltimore Sun reports. His resulting arrest spurred Usiak to file a $700,000 lawsuit claiming false arrest,…

Sep 3, 2010 12:23 PM CDT

Legal Writing Advice: Go Ahead, Split Your Infinitives

Blindly following grammar rules can be a mistake for legal writers, according to a lawyer and a public relations consultant. That means it is permissible to boldly split your infinitives, according to a Recorder article by AT&T lawyer John di Bene and public relations consultant Elizabeth Lampert. “Lawyers will write…

Sep 3, 2010 11:00 AM CDT

Georgetown 3L’s Supreme Court Appeal: Let Law Students Save Money, Take Bar After 2 Years

A number of law students see their third year as something of a waste of time—and money. But Roger Gordon, 43, is walking the walk. The third-year student at Georgetown University Law Center has taken a leave of absence to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court his loss in a…

Sep 1, 2010 7:51 PM CDT

California High Court Clerk Warns Against Faux Pas

The clerk of California’s Supreme Court has some advice for appellate lawyers: Don’t address justices by name because you will probably get it wrong. Frederick Ohlrich, 67, has seen too many mistakes since he became the court’s clerk in 2000, the Los Angeles Times reports. One lawyer substituted the name…

Sep 1, 2010 11:00 AM CDT

Chief Judge Has Power to Block Hires on Nepotism Grounds, Appellate Court Rules

A chief administrative judge had the power to prevent the probation department from hiring an individual who had six relatives working in the court system, reports the Metro Desk blog of the Boston Globe. The power to block hires is based on “statutory duties to promulgate and enforce standards of…

Aug 30, 2010 10:47 PM CDT

Hard-Fought Depo Didn’t Cross Ethical Line, Grievance Panel Finds

After many years in practice, Andrew O’Keefe had a clean disciplinary record. But a hard-fought deposition put the Hartford, Conn., defense attorney in the hot seat after a Manchester woman contended that he tried to “harass, intimidate and embarrass” her with questions at the session. A local grievance panel determined…

Aug 30, 2010 9:10 PM CDT

Lawyer’s Mom Helps Inmate Pen Pal Win Conviction Reversal

Carol Raeber intended to be a just a pen pal to James “Country” Parkerson, who is now 40. But the more she corresponded with the Dooly State Prison inmate, the more the Georgia woman felt that he couldn’t be guilty of the vicious murder he had been convicted of committing…

Aug 30, 2010 7:50 PM CDT

Appeals Court Grants New Trial Due to Plaintiff Attorney’s Inflammatory Language

Finding that a trial judge had abused his discretion by failing to do so, a Florida appeals court has granted a new trial on most issues in a personal injury case because of inflammatory remarks made by the plaintiff’s lawyer in opening and closing remarks. For example, attorney Michael Laurato…

Aug 27, 2010 4:29 PM CDT

Chihuahua Bought By Wife Isn’t Community Property, Appeals Court Rules

After a trial court awarded custody of a pet Chihuahua to the wife in a divorce case, a Texas man appealed the ruling. But a three-judge panel of the 3rd Court of Appeals in Austin yesterday affirmed the lower court decision that the diminutive dog belongs to Brooke Ashley Calder,…

Aug 27, 2010 12:06 AM CDT

Music Downloader Appeals $67.5K Award, Calls It ‘Equally as Insane’ as Earlier $675K Verdict

A Boston University physics graduate student has announced that he will appeal a reduced $67,500 award for downloading copyrighted music, calling the amount “equally as insane” as the $675,000 jury verdict he originally faced after a federal trial last year. Joel Tenenbaum, 26, says he will have to declare bankruptcy…

Aug 25, 2010 11:16 PM CDT

Supreme Court Artist Markets with ‘Flair and Flattery’

Some of the country’s top lawyers have purchased drawing of themselves making oral arguments in the Supreme Court, but the drawings are apparently done after the fact. The artist, Todd Crespi, “markets his work with flair and flattery,” the New York Times reports. Recently he wrote to Florida Solicitor General…

Aug 24, 2010 11:00 AM CDT

Pro Se Inmate Scores 7th Circuit Win, Says His Own Lawyer Was Targeted by the Feds, Too

A pro se prison inmate has notched a federal appeals court victory in a drug and weapons case, winning a ruling from the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that a trial judge erred by not looking more carefully at a claimed conflict of interest on the part of…

Aug 17, 2010 5:47 PM CDT

Ex-Associate Says ‘Unbillable Hours’ at Latham Made the Job Worthwhile

Having gone to law school at the University of Texas for lack of a better career option, Ian Graham turned out to be a stellar student. A BigLaw job was his virtually by right, and when Graham was interviewing, Latham & Watkins stood out, he recounts in a recently published…

Aug 17, 2010 11:02 AM CDT

9th Circuit Blocks Same-Sex Weddings in Calif. as Prop 8 Case Is Appealed

A federal appeals court today blocked a plan to allow same-sex marriages in California later this week, while the so-called Proposition 8 case ruling overturning a state referendum that banned same-sex weddings is challenged. However, this may not be the final answer: The temporary ban on same-sex weddings imposed by…

Aug 16, 2010 11:45 PM CDT