The Supreme Court's decisions in Missouri v. Frye and Lafler v. Cooper, and the upcoming appeal in Burt v. Titlow1, have put plea bargaining front and center on the national stage.2 As a result, they have divided practitioners and scholars into two camps: (1) those who consider the rulings to be a new statement in the law of plea bargaining and right to effective assistance of counsel; and (2) those who believe they are only a restatement of established principles.3 In any event, these cases have generated interest in the centrality and regulation of plea bargaining, the ethics and effectiveness of defense counsel as negotiator, the oversight of prosecutors regarding charging decisions, sentence recommendations and pre-trial discovery, and the scope of federal habeas corpus review and remedies.
This article collects high court opinions, scholarship and commentary regarding the themes addressed by the Supreme Court in Lafler and Frye as well as their implications for the administration of criminal justice.4
See first link below for entire article:
English: Multi-Screen Computer Desk with a Music Studio Setup (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Multi-monitors are great for segregating programs to different screens. They look very cool. But if you are reading this, you are an attorney, not a day-trader. You will spend the majority of your time at your computer doing two things: reading and writing. Most of what you do falls in one of those two categories. And for those purposes, jumbo monitors excel.
Early drafts of the book, the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM-5, have divided medical opinion so firmly that authors of previous editions are among the most prominent critics.
Known informally as the psychiatrists' bible, the $199 tome from the American Psychiatric Association is the guidebook that US doctors will use to diagnose mental disorders. The latest edition is the first major update in 20 years.
Read entire analysis by Guardian.
The New York State Bar Association is proud to provide an innovative Pro Bono Appeals Program that offers free representation to individuals of modest means in selected appeals to the Appellate Division in both the Third and Fourth Departments.
The Program, which began in the Third Department three years ago, was recently expanded to the Fourth Department. Family law appeals have proven to be the area of greatest need. The Program also offers appellate representation in cases involving education, health, housing, unemployment insurance, and worker's compensation. The Association's Committee on Courts of Appellate Jurisdiction selects cases based on several factors, including the merits of the issues raised and the potential impact of the case.
If you have clients of modest means who could benefit from this Program, please tell them about it and help them complete an application, available at www.nysba.org/probonoappeals, along with other details about the Program. Applicants with income up to 250% of Federal Poverty Guidelines are eligible for representation. Also, if you have appellate experience and would like to participate in the program, please contact the Program at info@probonoappealsny.org.
Sincerely,
Seymour W. James, Jr., President
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A key deadline of May 15 is facing many tax-exempt organizations that are required by law to file annual reports with the Internal Revenue Service. Organizations will see their federal tax exemptions automatically revoked if they have not filed reports for three consecutive years.
About the Author
Jim Calloway is director of the Oklahoma Bar Association Management Assistance Program. He publishes the blog Jim Calloway's Law Practice Tips (jimcalloway.typepad.com) and also produces, with Sharon D. Nelson, the monthly podcast, The Digital Edge: Lawyers and Technology. His Twitter handle is @jimcalloway.
THE FUTURE OF PRIVATE LAW PRACTICE has been a subject of much speculation the last several years. While some law firm partners behave as if they believe things will go back to business as usual, most of those who are paying attention believe we are headed to a "new normal" in our future. Among the factors cited to support this proposition are business clients more engaged in negotiating legal fees, an overexpansion of law schools that has led to more attorneys entering an already packed job market, the continuing impact of technological advances on law firms and the proliferation of legal services offered online by people or entities that are not lawyers.
So, it's a basic fact: Planning is critical for lawyers and law firms. But it remains far too easy for firms to get mired in important short-term planning issues such as budgeting and managing large projects at the expense of investment in the firm.
Read Calloway's eight (8) avenues to "Future-Proofing" your practice.
The 6th edition (pdf) of the Benchbook for U.S. District Court Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center, is now available online. The book, last updated in 2007, is a concise and practical guide to situations federal judges are likely to encounter on the bench. TheBenchbook covers procedures that are required by statute, rule or case law, with detailed guidance from experienced trial judges. And although new judges may benefit the most from the Benchbook, even experienced judges may find useful reminders about how to deal with routine matters, suggestions for handling more complex issues, and helpful starting points in new situations.
The 6th Edition includes a primer on a prosecutor's duty to disclose favorable information to defendants under Brady v. Maryland. There's a new section on civil pretrial case management focusing on the judge's role as an active case manager, and a completely revised section on sentencing, which contains an extensive colloquy for the sentencing hearing. There also are subsections on handling disruptive or dangerous defendants, and expanded jury instructions on the use of social media. Due to budgetary constraints, this edition of the Benchbook is published in electronic format only.
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NYS's Oil, Gas, Surface Mining Law (OGSML) does not preempt, either expressly or impliedly, a municipality's power to enact a local zoning ordinance banning all activities related to the exploration for, and the production or storage of, natural gas and petroleum within its borders.
Norse Energy Corp USA v. Town of Dryden, et.al.
ALBANY - Beginning today, New York lawyers must disclose on their biennial registration forms how many pro bono hours they provided and how much they made in financial donations to pro bono programs during the previous two years.
The new reporting requirements of Part 118 and Rule 6.1 of the Rules of Professional Conduct were approved by Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman and the presiding justices of the Appellate Division's four departments on April 23.
Lippman's "Task Force to Expand Access to Civil Legal Services" recommended increasing the voluntary pro bono goal for lawyers in the state to 50 hours a year from 20 (NYLJ, Dec. 7, 2012). That proposal is also being implemented today.
The day is here: Big data, loosely defined as the computer analysis of torrents of information to find hidden gems of insight, is slowly transforming the way law is practiced in the U.S.
Law firms are using big data to identify which cases will be easy slam dunks and those that are air balls. They're relying on the technology to get a read on what other law firms are charging, so they can adjust their rates accordingly. And big data is also popping up in law firm human resources departments, where tech-savvy department heads are crunching data on potential new hires in the hopes of coming up with recruits who are truly a good fit.
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I suppose its only price-fixing and a violation of anti-trust laws when a couple of solos and small firm practitioners talk about charges--not when the big folks do some data mining?
The videos from this year's LexThink.1 presentations have been posted.
In case you don't know about LexThink.1, it's an event that is usually held in conjunction with the ABA TECHSHOW. LexThink.1 takes place the evening before TECHSHOW begins.
Here's the format: 10 speakers, each with only 6 minutes to speak on a particular topic related to the future of law practice (this year's theme was "Disruption"), and each presentation includes 20 slides (which are automatically advanced every 18 seconds by the event host, not by the presenters themselves).
Read more: http://legalease.blogs.com/legal_ease_blog/2013/04/big-legal-ideas-in-6-minutes-lexthink1-2013.html#ixzz2RiQIdnVj