Legal Research

Selections from National Law Journal Daily Headlines January 8, 2009

By David Badertscher, PLL

Source: NLM.com, January 8, 2009.

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FROM THE UPCOMING ISSUE  |  New year brings slew of midsize law firms mergers
"Merger and practice group acquisition announcements have been coming fast and furious from small and midsize law firms during the past week. That's not unusual at the end of a calendar year, as many firms wait until a new year to merge operations because it makes bookkeeping easier. But the recent tumble of the economy and the legal industry is adding a new dynamic to law firm mergers and practice group acquisitions, legal experts say."

FROM THE UPCOMING ISSUE  |  Federal sexual abuse, obstruction charges added to existing counts against Kent
"Federal sexual abuse and obstruction of justice charges have been added to the existing aggravated sexual abuse counts against U.S. District Judge Samuel B. Kent of the Southern District of Texas in Galveston. The charges include a new alleged victim identified as "Person B," a federal court employee."

WEB-ONLY  |  DOJ appeals order dismissing key charge in controversial case of Miami attorney Ben Kuehne
"The U.S. Department of Justice has appealed the dismissal of the key charge in the controversial money-laundering case against Miami attorney Ben Kuehne. It's unclear how the appeal will affect the planned trial of Kuehne next month."

WEB-ONLY  |  Laptops in law class may give students an edge
"To the chagrin of some law professors, the clickety-click of laptops in the classroom may be here to stay. A national study found that law school students who used their laptops in class were highly engaged in classroom activities and more likely to work hard to meet faculty expectations."

WEB-ONLY  |  Incoming law school association president sees strong role for lawyers in Obama's stimulus plan
"The Association of American Law Schools, made up of 160 of the country's law schools, is holding its annual meeting this week in San Diego and will usher in UC-Berkeley law professor Rachel Moran as its new president. We caught up with Moran and asked her about her plans as the leader of the organization and her thoughts on where legal education is headed."

WEB-ONLY  |  Employers can ask workers about prior drug offenses
"Longs Drugs Stores California Inc. cannot be punished for asking job applicants if they were convicted of drug offenses because a subsequent federal law overruled the state law prohibiting the practice, a state appeals court has found."

WEB-ONLY  |  Sills Cummis merges with New York's Silverberg Goldsmith
"Newark, N.J.-based Sills Cummis & Gross is growing across the Hudson River, thanks to a merger with New York-based Silverberg Stonehill Goldsmith & Haber."

OPINION:

 LAWYERS' PRINCIPLES  |  Recalling Griffin Bell
"When I came to teach at former Attorney General Griffin Bell's alma mater in 1990, I knew something about the school, but little about the man. As I learned more about Bell's career over the years, I realize that Bell offered some powerful lessons on being a lawyer, principles that guided his conduct through many thickets. His peculiarly arch qualities of independent thinking will be sorely missed in a world where the practice of law is too often buffeted by political whimsy and craven manipulation. "

 

Full post as published by New York Supreme Court Criminal Term Library on January 08, 2009 (boomark / email).