Law in Popular Culture

Terminally ill Brittany Maynard ends her life; her act may influence right-to-die debate

The death of Brittany Maynard, the terminally ill woman who died Saturday at her Oregon home after taking a lethal dose of barbiturates prescribed by her physician, may forever change the right-the-die debate in this country. In the weeks leading up to her death, the 29-year-old Maynard, who was diagnosed…

Nov 3, 2014 5:36 PM CST

How to regain the joy of reading

At a law firm retreat, a partner approached me during a break. She had a problem she hoped I could solve: "I can't read anymore. I've lost the ability. I used to read great literature—all the time—but now I can't. Ever since I went to law school, I find myself scouring whatever I'm reading to find what's most relevant. I skim for the main point—as if for a holding. But in literature, it's not there."

Nov 1, 2014 5:50 AM CDT

SCOTUS watchers make court more accessible through blogs, tweets, animation and fantasy leagues

Want short and sweet summaries of U.S. Supreme Court decisions? Interested in predicting their outcomes? No problem. There may be a blog or a fantasy league for you. Those who follow the Supreme Court have turned to social media and technology in ways that can build interest in the court…

Oct 28, 2014 12:52 PM CDT

Money, sex, madness and murder at fictional Bay Street law firm is focus of ex-partner’s new novel

In the wake of a best-selling nonfiction book about lawyers behaving badly, a former law school dean and ex-partner at one of Canada’s elite law firms has turned to fiction. In his self-published legal thriller Bay Street, Philip Slayton writes of money, sex, madness and murder, the Globe and Mail…

Oct 24, 2014 4:30 PM CDT

Women lawyers group asks NBC to cancel ‘Bad Judge,’ a show about an ‘unethical, lazy’ female jurist

The Miami-Dade chapter of the Florida Association for Women Lawyers has asked NBC to cancel a new comedy series about a hard-drinking, hard-partying female judge—appropriately titled Bad Judge, the Miami Herald reports. “Our organization understands that Bad Judge may be intended to be hyperbole, but we nonetheless find it damaging…

Oct 23, 2014 5:57 PM CDT

Las Vegas DA to seek county OK for reality TV show about cold and closed cases

A new reality television show about the work of the Las Vegas coroner could soon be followed by one about its district attorney. Apparently inspired by Postmortem in Vegas, DA Steve Wolfson will be seeking permission from Clark County commissioners next month to create a similar show about cold and…

Oct 21, 2014 10:40 AM CDT

Scalia is a bulldog, literally, in SCOTUS re-enactment (See the video)

Even the mundane comes to life in an animal video posted to YouTube. Comedian John Oliver is taking that observation a step further in dog re-enactments of U.S. Supreme Court arguments. On Sunday’s Last Week Tonight, Oliver featured real audio from the justices, superimposed with video of dogs seated at…

Oct 21, 2014 5:45 AM CDT

John Grisham says US ‘has gone nuts’ with child porn incarcerations, then issues apology

Legal thriller author John Grisham has issued an apology after telling a British newspaper that the United States “has gone nuts” with incarcerations of people for viewing child porn. In a wide-ranging interview with the Telegraph on the U.S. judicial system, Grisham said judges have “gone crazy” locking up people…

Oct 20, 2014 6:15 AM CDT

Sordid or educational? ‘Deadbeat’ TV show shames child-support scofflaws with real courtroom footage

A Louisville, Kentucky, reality TV show that features real-life courtroom footage of defendants accused of failing to pay child support is popular with viewers, but critics are hoping for a cancellation. The “stars” of the WBNA show Deadbeat are two Jefferson district court judges who preside over the cases, one…

Oct 16, 2014 5:45 AM CDT

What things do you consider before taking a case? | Bloggers review novel by ATL’s David Lat

Do you actually have procedures in place for whether you should take a case? Minneapolis solo Randall Ryder does—a four-step process he shared at Lawyerist. Two of his steps: • Determine whether the case is one you can handle—particularly if it’s out of your practice area. Taking the “approach of…

Oct 3, 2014 8:30 AM CDT

How to shape your legal storytelling

I've taught at five law schools for almost 30 years now. Here's one takeaway from the experience: Law schools tip the storytelling practitioner's factually complex, often indeterminate and ambiguous world upside down. Our pedagogy drains the emotional life from the stories and human conflict beneath the surface of appellate cases—the pathos and drama often at the heart of the narratives that cases are built upon. This enables students to focus exclusively upon close legal analysis and parsing of doctrinal law.

Oct 1, 2014 7:00 AM CDT

Letters: More movie tips

Your list “12 Movies with Pivotal Lessons Featuring Lawyers,” August, is fine, yet there is one remarkable omission and two surprising ones. The remarkable omission is Compulsion (1959), the roman à clef of the notorious Leopold and Loeb thrill-killing trial of 1924. In the film, the masterful Orson Welles plays…

Oct 1, 2014 5:10 AM CDT

Daughter of BTK serial killer speaks out against Stephen King story, says her dad enjoys attention

A daughter of a notorious serial killer has for the first time publicly spoken about her father, in response to news that a short story by Stephen King, “A Good Marriage”, was inspired by her family’s experience in living unknowing with a multiple murderer. Kerri Rawson says it’s unfortunate that…

Sep 26, 2014 2:40 PM CDT

White & Case opens new services center in Florida

White & Case has opened a new facility in Tampa, Florida, to provide centralized support services for the firm. Some New York employees will relocate to work there, and the firm will hire others locally, the Tampa Bay Times reports. “Our goal is to create a services center that serves…

Sep 25, 2014 5:05 PM CDT

Law firm uses rapper Master P and his ‘trademark grunt’ to brand its advertising

A well-known rap artist isn’t just narrating video advertising for a Kentucky personal injury law firm. Winton & Hiestand is also branding its services with what Above the Law describes as Master P’s “trademark grunt.” Spelled UGHH! on law firm billboards, which feature the heading “HURT? MAKE EM SAY UGHH!,”…

Sep 25, 2014 12:40 PM CDT