Opening Statements

10 Questions: Groundbreaking transgender judge happily passes the torch in post-Caitlyn age

Phyllis Randolph Frye is the first openly transgender judge in the nation. There’s an award named after her at her alma mater, Texas A&M University; she’s a life member of the National Eagle Scout Association; and the New York Times has called her the grandmother of the transgender movement. This…

May 1, 2016 3:00 AM CDT

Do anonymous social media apps create Title IX violations on college campuses?

Last year, students at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia, used Yik Yak, an anonymous social media app, to spew hatred and violence against their classmates.

Apr 1, 2016 4:00 AM CDT

Synthetic DNA may help reduce fraud in the art community

Art has long been used for nefarious purposes, including money laundering and tax evasion. And the art market is increasingly plagued by fakes and sophisticated forgeries, which not only cost unsuspecting buyers millions each year but also result in the plummeting confidence of potential buyers.

Apr 1, 2016 3:50 AM CDT

10 Questions: This Chicago lawyer is working in the tech sector after 5 years as a stay-at-home mom

A year into her new position as attorney-in-residence at Nextpoint, a litigation management software and support company, Julianne Walsh faces none of the challenges of her last gig. Leading advanced cybersecurity webinars does not involve singing the ABCs. The lawyer-clients she strategizes with generally remember to say “please” and “thank…

Apr 1, 2016 3:40 AM CDT

Law firm partner and clerk create a foundation to build schools in Honduras

A village in Honduras got a new school this year thanks to an unlikely alliance between a high-powered lawyer and a firm staff member. The pair, both from Kirkland & Ellis in New York City, created the Foundation for Education in Honduras to build and refurbish schools there. It also supports the students at those schools by ensuring they have everything they need, from textbooks and blackboards to backpacks and sanitary bathrooms.

Mar 1, 2016 3:50 AM CST

Boston lawyer rows to world championship

A few years ago, Greenberg Traurig partner Barbara Jones decided she needed a new form of exercise. Inspired by her son, who then rowed for his high school team, she picked up the oars for the first time.

Mar 1, 2016 3:40 AM CST

Federal courthouse draws the public in through lobby art exhibitions

Courthouses are not often thought of as the most welcoming of places, but a 6-year-old program in Pittsburgh is trying to change that perception, one framed piece of art at a time.

Mar 1, 2016 3:30 AM CST

10 Questions: This DC lawyer is helping her firm attract US Supreme Court clerks

Beth Heifetz knows what judicial clerks want. As head of the Jones Day issues and appeals practice group and director of judicial clerk recruiting, it’s her job to bring U.S. Supreme Court clerks on board—and she rocks it, writ large. For the past four years, the firm has welcomed more…

Mar 1, 2016 3:20 AM CST

NYC law firm buries a time capsule to celebrate its 125th birthday

The law firm of Seward & Kissel found a unique way to commemorate a rare milestone: In celebration of its 125th birthday, the firm buried a time capsule in Battery Park outside the firm's New York office.

Feb 1, 2016 3:40 AM CST

Texas Tech adopts SMART brain training for its 1Ls

The first year of law school can be akin to middle school. Anxiety and self-doubt abound: How should I study? What do I need to remember? Why was that lady carrying scales onto a train again?

Feb 1, 2016 3:30 AM CST

Courts decline to extend bankruptcy laws to marijuana businesses

Recent decisions holding that state-compliant medical marijuana growers and dispensaries can't reorganize in bankruptcy are highlighting the sticky problems that result when federal and state marijuana laws conflict.

Feb 1, 2016 3:20 AM CST

Chicago team competes at Lawyers Rugby World Cup

Rugby might not seem like a warm and fuzzy kind of sport, but Chicago lawyer Michael Young missed the camaraderie from his days playing it so much that he figured there must be other legal professionals pining to be back in the scrum.

Feb 1, 2016 3:15 AM CST

10 Questions: Want to find the next Triple Crown winner? You may want to talk to this lawyer

Last fall, American Pharoah galloped into history as horse racing’s first-ever Grand Slam winner. For the uninitiated, that means a clean sweep of the Triple Crown plus the Breeders’ Cup. But this legendary thoroughbred wasn’t always a sure bet. He flubbed his first race, and his owner had even tried…

Feb 1, 2016 3:10 AM CST

Florida Supreme Court orders judges to wear black robes

Black is the new … well, black. In Florida, anyway. Seeking to promote uniformity in judicial attire, last fall the Florida Supreme Court adopted Rule 2.340 on its own motion, which governs attire during judicial proceedings and declares that judges’ robes must be “solid black with no embellishment.” A consistent…

Jan 1, 2016 3:50 AM CST

California falls in line with the rest of the country when it comes to ‘Made in the USA’ labels

Nowadays, it seems that everything from cars to jeans proudly bears the "Made in the USA" label. But what exactly does that label mean?

In every state but California and under federal law, products don't actually have to be fully made in the United States to bear the label. As long as "all or virtually all" of the finished product is made domestically, it is considered to be made in the USA.

Jan 1, 2016 3:40 AM CST