law in the news
Should we recognize negligent infliction of emotional distress in death of pets?
PHOTO: Piotr Ciuchta / SXC
The Wall Street Journal takes up the question - How Much Is Your Dog’s Life Worth? - in litigation that is.
Most people consider their pet priceless. But in civil law, at least, pets are usually seen as property — akin to a toaster or TV set — worth only their market [...]
Average Law Student Loan Debt, Bill to Assist Prosecutors and Public Defenders
Legislators have introduced a bill - John R. Justice Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act of 2007 - aimed at encouraging law students to consider careers in the prosecutors and public defenders offices by offering “up to $10,000 per year, to a maximum of $60,000, in exchange for a commitment of at least three years of [...]
Blawgletter on the U.S. Attorney Scandal
I hesitated on posting about the U.S. Attorney scandal looming over Bush administration and Alberto Gonzales but the Blawgletter’s theory on the appointment of Tim Griffin deserves some attention.
Bar/Bri class action Yields Settlement
Above the Law Says: You Are Probably $125 Richer Right Now
According to the Los Angeles Daily Journal, the Bar/Bri class action settled for $36 million, to be paid out to 290,000 clients. Each client will get $125.
It must be wonderful having lawyers for clients…
Mixtapes & the Law
From the NY Times: With Arrest of DJ Drama, the Law Takes Aim at Mixtapes
On Tuesday night [DJ Drama] was arrested with Don Cannon, a protégé. The police, working with the Recording Industry Association of America, raided his office, at 147 Walker Street in Atlanta. The association makes no distinction between counterfeit CDs and unlicensed [...]
Life on the Slow Track
The Wall Street Journal profiles a lawyer temp agency placing high-profile lawyers looking to duck big firm life - Finding Happiness On the Slow(er) Track ($).
Thomas Lee is one young lawyer who considers himself a perfect fit for Axiom. The 2000 Yale Law School graduate says he wants to practice law as well as devote [...]
1.2 Million Awarded to Houston Legal Aid Groups
Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation has awarded 1.2 million to various Hosuton Legal Aid Groups.
The following Houston-based groups will receive grants: Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse ($295,870), Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston ($145,652), Houston Volunteer Lawyers Program ($265,754), the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ($167,579), South Texas College [...]
Free access WSJ.com
One of the reasons I was excited to go back to school, other than the usual improving oneself, starting a career, blaw blaw blaw… is admittedly shortsighted and near term - free access to the Wall Street Journal. I’m a bit of a news junky. I read the NY Times and the Houston Chronicle and [...]
Right to Shoot in Self-Defense expanded
Wow. 15 States Expand Right to Shoot in Self-Defense (not Texas though)
The Florida law, which served as a model for the others, gives people the right to use deadly force against intruders entering their homes. They no longer need to prove that they feared for their safety, only that the person they killed had intruded [...]
Law as Art
I hear a lot of people who go to law school don’t end up practicing law, but this one was a new one for me.
Carey Young, for the 2003 Beck’s Future Award shortlist, had a work (‘Non-Disclosure’, 2003) which consists solely of a non-disclosure agreement framed on a wall. The document explains that Miss Young [...]