Bad enough when the media caters to this sort of thing, but when government itself does it, you may have crossed into Arpaio territory [Coyote] Related: David Kravets, Wired.
Archive for August, 2011
“The police have lost confidence in the Government”
A dispatch from Britain makes David Frum’s jaw drop.
Lemonade Freedom Day
The dangers of corn shucking
British Columbia lawyer Erik Magraken shares this photo.
UK: “Evicted gipsies launch human rights claim”
“A gipsy family accused of making life a misery is using legal aid to fund a human rights challenge in the European courts for being evicted – from a travellers’ camp.” [Telegraph]
August 11 roundup
- Seattle’s best? Class action lawyer suing Apple, e-publishers has represented Microsoft [Seattle Times, earlier]
- “Disabled” NYC firefighter/martial arts enthusiast can go on getting checks for life [NYPost; compare]
- After the FDA enforcement action on drug manufacturing lapses come the tagalong liability claims by uninjured plaintiffs [Beck]
- “What If Lower Court Judges Weren’t Bound by Supreme Court Precedent?” [Orin Kerr]
- Fark.com settles a patent suit for $0 (rough language);
- Canadian law society to pay $100K for asking prospective lawyers about mental illness [ABA Journal]
- Self-help eviction? “Chinese Developers Accused Of Putting Scorpions In Apartments To Force Out Residents” [Business Insider]
Bargain cruises between American ports
You’ll probably never see them unless Congress chooses to repeal or amend the Passenger Vessel Services Act of 1886, which bars most cruise operators from coastwise routes. [Matt Welch]
“Sometimes the dog means the difference between a conviction and an acquittal”
Prosecutors bring in adorable “therapy dogs” to assist witnesses in rape and abuse trials. Aside from the jury sympathy issue, and the possible sending of “this is a victim” signals, defense lawyers argue that the dogs’ presence makes testimony easier whether accusations are true or not: “They argue that as a therapy dog, Rosie responds to people under stress by comforting them, whether the stress comes from confronting a guilty defendant or lying under oath.” [N.Y. Times] More: Greenfield.
“How To Make A Mockery Of Your Own Law School: Sue Your Critics”
Which is good advice for many other touchy sorts of plaintiffs too, not just for the Thomas M. Cooley Law School of Lansing, Michigan [Mike Masnick, TechDirt, earlier]
August 10 roundup
- Maine Supreme Court agrees that not having to show up in court might be reasonable accommodation for plaintiff claiming PTSD disability [Volokh]
- Guess how much Richard Kreimer, the New Jersey homeless guy, has made in his many lawsuit settlements [Newark Star-Ledger, PoL]
- Given the problems with business-method patents, you can see why banks would want to dodge them [Felix Salmon]
- Contempt: “Calling the jailing of a person ‘civil’ doesn’t mean they put curtains on the cell windows.” [Greenfield]
- “Class Counsel Request $90.8M In Fees In Black Farmers Case” [BLT]
- Law school accreditation, recusal standards, international law among topics in new issue of Federalist Society’s ABA Watch;
- Electricity-wise, EPA puts the squeeze on the juice [Andrew Grossman, Heritage; Weston Hicks, AgendaWise; Tatler]