Opening Statements

Our Must-Reads Featuring the High Court

When President Barack Obama scolded the U.S. Supreme Court over the Citizens United case during last year’s State of the Union address, some historians had a sense of déjà vu. Obama’s remarks conjured up President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s crusade against the aging justices who, by 1937, were denying his New…

Jan 1, 2011 9:30 AM CST

Apple App Aims to Squash Sexting

If zealous prosecutors and Tiger Woods can’t stop sexting, maybe Steve Jobs can. In October, Apple obtained a patent (US 7814163) for technology that serves as an anti-sexting control and an educational tool. Titled “Text-based communication control for personal communication device,” the patented technology allows iPhone administrators (read: parents) to…

Jan 1, 2011 9:20 AM CST

The Lawsuit Guide for Dolts

With the proliferation of simplified guidebooks on the market, perhaps The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Lawsuits was inevitable. Bloomfield Hills, Mich., attorney Victoria Green penned the 320-page guide, which was published in September. Green, who also teaches business law and political science at Baker College, says the book is intended…

Jan 1, 2011 9:10 AM CST

Comic Book By Teens Gets to the Basics: ‘I Got Arrested—Now What?’

While most teenagers are still trying to figure out what to do with the rest of their lives, 16-year-old Khaair M. knows exactly what his future holds: “I want to run for mayor of New York City.” Khaair credits his budding interest in government and public policy to his work…

Dec 1, 2010 7:45 AM CST

Lawyer Trades Estate Planning Practice for Biz Guarding Against Flatulence and Sweat Stains

Irvine, Calif., attorney Kim Olenicoff’s estate planning practice has slowed in the past couple of years due to the economy, but that’s OK with her because the need to guard against flatulence and sweat stains appears to be recession-proof. Olenicoff runs Solutions That Stick. Her former sideline now has turned…

Dec 1, 2010 7:40 AM CST

Law Firm Demystifies Legal, Banking and Finance Jargon With iPhone App

If the term “Canadian wrapper” makes you conjure Drake, then you might think about downloading the Book of Jargon to your iPhone. The app, developed by Latham & Watkins, provides a glossary of U.S. legal and regulatory terminology, along with capital market and banking slang to help make financial jargon…

Dec 1, 2010 7:35 AM CST

Year of the Bow Tie

For those who wondered how former ABA President William H. Neukom (2007-08) was keeping himself occupied, it must have come as a shock to see his trademark white mane and bow tie sitting just behind the San Francisco Giants dugout during the World Series. Neukom, who launched the World Justice…

Dec 1, 2010 7:30 AM CST

Comic-Con

The Legal Edition

Nov 1, 2010 9:45 AM CDT

Thank God It’s a Freitag

A few years ago, Porta-John Industries came out with a top-notch portable lavatory complete with hardwood floors, a skylight, a working sink and a ceramic toilet that flushes. When it came time to name the new model, Porta-John’s CEO was inspired by his longtime lawyer, Bruce Freitag. “We just figured,…

Nov 1, 2010 9:40 AM CDT

Are You Happy Now?

If you think that a happy lawyer is a contradiction in terms—think again, say law professors Nancy Levit and Douglas Linder. The pair started studying lawyer happiness three years ago after helping to send countless JDs out into the world. The law profs from the University of Missouri at Kansas…

Nov 1, 2010 9:34 AM CDT

And Then There Was None

After then-California Gov. Ronald Reagan signed into law the country’s first no-fault divorce law in 1969, the concept spread quickly across the United States to everywhere but New York. Now, as New York falls in line with the rest of the country—Gov. David Patterson signed the state’s no-fault law in…

Nov 1, 2010 9:30 AM CDT

Legal Road Trip: Portland

The legal sites of Rose City

Nov 1, 2010 9:25 AM CDT

Warning Signs

Unless you have a very sheltered career, you’re going to end up dealing with a prospective client who is, as New Britain, Conn., lawyer Adrian Baron puts it, “a few pages short of a legal brief.” Baron, who writes most days at the Nutmeg Lawyer blog, recently ruminated about the…

Nov 1, 2010 9:20 AM CDT

Libel-less

During his 30 years as a lawyer for the New York Times Co., George Freeman says, the “Gray Lady” faced four to five new libel suits per year, on average, and has had maybe eight pending against it at any one time. But that’s all changed. Currently the New York…

Oct 1, 2010 8:50 AM CDT

Then and Now

If you’re looking for work, we don’t have to tell you that the legal job market is bleak. On average, firms hired 44 percent fewer summer associates this year, according to an American Lawyer survey, and some canceled their programs altogether. Some firms still are deferring the first-years they hired…

Oct 1, 2010 8:40 AM CDT