Was the first English-language dictionary penned by a legal lexicographer?

The contender for the distinction is John Rastell (circa 1475–1536), who is commonly credited with having written the first English law dictionary. Yet he might just deserve credit for producing the first dictionary in the English language. Though early editions are undated, the first printing is thought to have appeared in 1523.

Apr 1, 2023 2:30 AM CDT

How to manage data privacy risk more effectively

Ari Kaplan recently spoke with Jerry McIver, the director of cyber services and the data privacy officer for Trustpoint.One, an integrated legal solutions provider serving the Am Law 400 and the Fortune 2000.

Mar 27, 2023 2:11 PM CDT

Alex Murdaugh and whether to testify in your own defense

“At the end of the day, I do believe juries want to see someone get on the stand and say, ‘I didn’t do it.’ But at what cost?” writes ABA Journal columnist and Oklahoma lawyer Adam Banner.

Mar 23, 2023 9:30 AM CDT

A real defense of fake trials and a love letter to my family

I knew that arming teenagers with the ability to understand the difference between hearsay exemptions and exceptions would boomerang on me as a parent already locked in daily arguments about truth-telling. And yet, that’s what my husband and I did once our children were old enough to participate in high school mock trial competitions.

Mar 22, 2023 2:11 PM CDT

Preventive Law: Helping your clients before push comes to shove

Rare is the client who looks to litigators, alternative dispute resolution specialists or even corporate counsel as the “go to” persons for providing services that will prevent disputes. Most attorneys serve their clients by representing them in disputes that are already or soon to be underway, with a focus on billable negotiation, mediation, arbitration or litigation representation. When it comes to employee and manager education, skills training and systemic dispute prevention, business leaders look not to their attorney advocates but to a potpourri of human relations consultants, trainers and behavioral science experts.

Mar 21, 2023 10:14 AM CDT

What makes for unhappy lawyers?

Hey, lawyers! Is everybody happy? If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands. Many of our colleagues are not exactly thrilled while practicing law. As Nanki-Poo in Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Mikado might say, the best way they could express their joys of law practice would be “modified rapture.”

Mar 15, 2023 3:17 PM CDT

Is this a court of record or ‘Nothing But Trouble’?

I’ve always been a fan of those movies that are so bad they’re good. They come in various forms. Sometimes it’s your standard low-budget “B-movie” that owes its appeal to the fact that, despite its low budget, a great deal of effort was put into the production only to yield a subpar result. The 2003 film The Room starring Tommy Wiseau and Juliette Danielle is a great example (and a must-watch for any fan of this genre).

Mar 15, 2023 2:09 PM CDT

Judges: Guard ‘your honor’

“We address judges as ‘your honor’ because we know they have real power. We appeal to their honor, not their egos, when we do it. ... ‘Your honor’ isn’t merely aspirational; it’s gloriously aspirational,” writes a Connecticut complex litigation judge.

Mar 7, 2023 8:47 AM CST

Chemerinsky: Student loan relief cases will have lasting effects whatever Supreme Court decides

No matter what the U.S. Supreme Court does in the cases involving the Biden administration’s student loan relief plan, there is sure to be a major effect on many people’s lives and on the law. On Tuesday, Feb. 28, the court heard oral arguments in two cases—Biden v. Nebraska and Department of Education v. Brown—that raise myriad legal issues and any path taken by the court will have significant consequences. (I was among 24 legal scholars who signed an amicus brief in support of the Biden administration).

Mar 1, 2023 8:42 AM CST

‘Rust’ and a look at criminal liability on movie sets

No profession is free from potential tragedy. It can come in various shapes and sizes to some degree or another, but the notion of someone dying while on a typical job is far from the realm of expectations. While these tragedies are always, well, tragic, death seems to hit on a different level when it happens in what should be a somewhat controlled environment. In that circumstance, as opposed to repercussions stemming from recklessness or a total disregard for safety, it is even more devastating when the death happens in the public eye for all the world to analyze.

Feb 27, 2023 8:41 AM CST

Even Death Can Be Political: An interview with forensic pathologist Michael Baden

It was May 29, 2020. Michael Baden, like most Americans, was holed up at home. For days, he had seen images on television of a lifeless George Floyd, his neck pinned to the ground by the knee of a Minneapolis police officer.

Feb 23, 2023 12:05 PM CST

How Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ can shed light on legal bias

What’s the problem with Hamlet? A central preoccupation of the characters in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is deciphering what’s going on with the title character.

Feb 23, 2023 11:55 AM CST

The Case for ChatGPT: Why lawyers should embrace AI

Artificial intelligence has the potential to change the world in which we work and live. If you’ve been paying attention, you know that AI-related transformation is already happening, and the legal industry is not immune.

Feb 21, 2023 1:11 PM CST

Tools for legal professionals to work at higher level ‘are on the horizon,’ says software developer CEO

Ari Kaplan recently spoke with Early Stephens, the CEO of Actionstep, a practice management software developer that serves law firms worldwide, about its newly released survey, 2023 Midsize Law Firm Priorities Report, which focuses on the most prominent priorities and trends impacting legal teams.

Feb 16, 2023 1:48 PM CST

Humanizing the Process: A new approach to interviewing for law firms

For the past 20 years in the legal recruiting business, my firm, the Advocates, has focused on helping our clients land key lateral attorneys and improve retention through several unique processes designed to match candidates’ personalities to the right law firm and corporate cultures for them.

Feb 16, 2023 12:21 PM CST