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How to best help law students? Provide full-time, on-campus counselors, among other things

Law students have many things to be anxious about—getting called on in class can be terrifying, plus the process of applying for jobs and the rejection that frequently comes with it doesn’t help. Some law students worry that they may never find jobs as lawyers.

Feb 15, 2018 7:00 AM CST

What was your path to law? Twitter threads dazzle

This month, law lecturer Matthew Channon of Exeter University in England encouraged lawyers from less privileged backgrounds to share their stories on Twitter.

Feb 14, 2018 12:50 PM CST

The judiciary must deal with #MeToo—and with what I know

Time magazine recently named “The Silence Breakers” as its 2017 Person of the Year in recognition of the #MeToo movement and the people who have spoken out about sexual assault. Some of the Silence Breakers led to national storylines chronicling the downfall of powerful men who used their positions to…

Feb 13, 2018 7:00 AM CST

No. 3 lawyer at Justice Department is leaving; what does it mean for the special counsel probe?

Associate Attorney General Rachel Brand, the third-highest ranking official at the Justice Department, is leaving for a top position with Walmart.

Feb 12, 2018 9:00 AM CST

Lawyers from less privileged backgrounds tell their stories at #mypathtolaw

A law lecturer at Exeter University in England who was the first member of his family to attend college sought out stories from other lawyers who came from less privileged backgrounds through a hashtag he created.

Feb 8, 2018 11:06 AM CST

White House aide who resigned amid abuse allegations was a former BigLaw lawyer and ‘rising star’

A White House aide who resigned on Wednesday amid allegations of domestic abuse had a Harvard law degree and a BigLaw resume.

Feb 8, 2018 9:03 AM CST

Teamsters lawyer pens children’s book to show importance of the labor movement (podcast)

As general counsel for the Teamsters Union Local 810, Mark Torres spends his days arguing for workers' rights. But another of his passions is writing; he published his debut crime novel A Stirring in the North Fork in 2015.

So when he was approached by Hard Ball Press to write a bilingual children's book explaining the importance of labor unions in ways that kids could connect with, Torres agreed. Good Guy Jake (or Buen Chico Jake) tells the story of a sanitation worker who breaks the rules by taking toys from the trash along his route, but for a good reason: He fixes the toys and donates them to a local shelter so that children can have presents at Christmas. When Jake's manager discovers that Jake has been violating regulations, it's up to Jake's union representative, his lawyer and an arbitration judge to determine whether Jake has to lose his job or whether there's a more fitting solution to the problem.

Feb 7, 2018 8:30 AM CST

ABA takes timely stand on sex harassment

In one of its final acts at the 2018 Midyear Meeting, the ABA House of Delegates has taken a stand against sexual harassment, approving a resolution to urge all employers to create and enforce effective sexual harassment policies.

Feb 5, 2018 9:01 PM CST

Legal employment drops by 1,100 jobs in January

Employment in the legal sector dropped by 1,100 jobs in January even as the country added 200,000 jobs. The number of legal jobs was 1,135,500, compared to 1,136,600 in December, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The American Lawyer reports on seasonally adjusted numbers. Despite the drop, there are…

Feb 5, 2018 2:45 PM CST

Female litigators should be given equal opportunities to gain trial experience, ABA House urges

Law firms, corporate clients, general counsel and the judiciary should all be taking steps to provide women with more opportunities to gain trial and courtroom experience, the ABA House of Delegates resolved Monday.

Feb 5, 2018 1:05 PM CST

Milberg Weiss founder Melvyn Weiss dies at 82

Melvyn Weiss, a founder of securities class-action law firm Milberg, Weiss, Bershad, Hynes & Lerach, has died at the age of 82. Weiss, “a giant of the plaintiffs bar,” had been diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in June and died in his sleep, the American Lawyer reports. A press release…

Feb 5, 2018 11:03 AM CST

Are you a woman considering running for office? ‘Go for it,’ says Oregon attorney general

Ellen Rosenblum, the first woman to serve as attorney general for Oregon, has a message for all women considering a run for office: Don't overthink it.

Feb 3, 2018 11:20 AM CST

Retired ABA Journal editor, a ‘classic Chicago journalist’ with deep ABA knowledge, dies at 67

James Podgers, a retired ABA Journal editor known for his deep knowledge of the American Bar Association and its inner workings, has died at the age of 67. Podgers died Thursday from islet cell neuroendocrine cancer, barely one year after his retirement. He had battled the cancer for 14 years,…

Feb 2, 2018 3:46 PM CST

Project by LSAC, law schools association aims to boost understanding—and appeal—of law profession

The Law School Admission Council and the Association of American Law Schools are coming together on a project to improve how the public sees the prospects of a legal education and the legal profession. Consisting of “multiple web-based and social media initiatives” the two groups say in a press release,…

Feb 2, 2018 1:00 PM CST

Law firm increases clerkship bonus to $105K

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan has increased its clerkship signing bonus to $105,000. Clerks who complete two qualifying clerkships would get an additional $20,000 bonus. Above the Law and Law360 had the story. On Tuesday, Above the Law published a form letter from Quinn Emanuel sent to a number of…

Feb 1, 2018 2:15 PM CST