A picture may be worth a thousand words, but what will it cost tobacco companies?
The Supreme Court refuses to hear tobacco companies’ challenge to the 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. [...]
Topics
Former student protected after bashing Cooley Law School
The Michigan Court of Appeals considered First Amendment rights and ruled in favor of a former law student by issuing a protective order for anonymous speech. [...]
Preserving public accountability: quashed subpoenas and the journalist’s privilege
Despite widespread state adoption of media shield laws, there remains no statutory equivalent at the federal level. [...]
Prove it! Musings on advocacy, evidence, and the problems of proof at trial: To Lead or Not to Lead, That is the Question?!
Leading questions ordinarily allowed on cross-examination can be entirely inappropriate on direct-examination, but this does not mean only non-leading questions are permitted on direct. [...]
Better think twice before leaving your advice
Businesses take steps to fight negative online reviews of their products and services, causing some to rethink their online activity. [...]
Cruise Ships — Vacation Oases or Floating Nightmares?
Travelers on board disaster-stricken cruise ships seek legal remedies, and one politician urges the enactment of new legislation to protect passengers’ rights. [...]
“Safe Until Proven Dangerous”: Reforming the Toxic Substances Control Act
The flaws in the TSCA may finally be remedied through a breakthrough bipartisan bill initiated in the Senate. [...]
Collegiate Athletics: For the love of the game, or the love of money?
On June 20, 2013, a federal court in California will hear arguments to determine whether O’Bannon v. NCAA will be classified as a class-action lawsuit. If the class is certified, major changes could be much more likely to soon be underway for collegiate athletics. [...]
Rules of engagement [rings]
Mario Williams may not be able to force his ex-fiancée to return his engagement ring, depending on the approach employed by the Texas courts. [...]
The James Holmes trial turns its focus to knowing right from wrong
July 20, 2012. Just after midnight. A dark movie theater in Aurora, Colorado. Audience members are seated to watch the highly anticipated Dark Knight Rises, the final film in the acclaimed Batman series. But what begins as a theater buzzing with excitement over the on-screen entertainment quickly turns into a theater filled with cries of terror over the real-life nightmare occurring in the theater. No longer is the audience captivated by Bane, the movie’s villain with his [...]
Drug testing for Welfare recipients: as simple as it sounds?
N.C. Senate Bill 594, which would mandate drug testing for all welfare beneficiaries and require the beneficiary to front the testing costs, is far from a simple “solution” to a quite complex issue. [...]
You have one new Facebook notification: You’ve been served
“You’ve been served” is something no one ever wants to hear, but what if while checking out your new friend requests on Facebook, you were also greeted with a notification of service? While it seems far-fetched, Manhattan federal judge Paul Engelmayer ruled in March that U.S. Government lawyers could serve process on a group of defendants in India via Facebook. The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure require the method of service to be one reasonably calculated to give notice. Rule 4(f) of [...]
Thwarting Equality and Justice for All [Updated]
Updated June 7, 2013: The North Carolina General Assembly House voted on Wednesday, June 5 to repeal the Racial Justice Act on a 77 to 39 vote. The vote was split strictly along party lines, with no Democrats supporting repeal and only one Republican representative opposing repeal. The Senate passed an almost-identical bill in April 2013 but must now approve minor changes made by the House. Republican Governor Pat McCrory is widely expected to sign the bill, as well. Although the [...]
Avoiding the Orwellian Future: Privacy implications of increased public surveillance
Throughout history, pop culture has been a discussion board of sorts for society’s concerns about omnipresent government surveillance. George Orwell’s novel 1984, a classic tale of “Big Brother,” “thought control,” and pervasive government surveillance, is required reading in many high school English courses. More recently, the hit show “Person of Interest” on the CBS network has grappled with these types of concerns. Viewers watch as a vigilante goes about New York City [...]
The week that was: profound implications for Miranda rights [Updated]
Updated June 17, 2013: The Supreme Court, in a plurality opinion (pdf) written by Justice Alito, ruled that the right to remain silent must be expressly invoked in order for that silence to be protected at trial, even if that silence is pre-arrest. We have all heard it before, some of us through personal experience and others through fictional television shows such as Law & Order: “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of [...]