Articles Posted in October, 2010

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On Wednesday, U.S District Court Judge Virginia Phillips issued a permanent injunction against enforcement of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) law. The injunction was issued pursuant to a claim brought by the Log Cabin Republicans, an LGBT Republican organization.

The Court’s Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law (per FRCP 52) explained the decision to grant the injunction.


Posted in: Legal News
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Hi Friends,

Soby and I went to Ann Arbor to see my parents and Anna at Michigan Law School and watch Michigan lose to MSU… when you are down by 3 scores in the late 4th quarter you don’t punt… unless you are coach Rich Rodriguez and want to lose by less. But it was good to see Anna and my parents 🙂

Michigan Stadium - UM v MSU 2010

Anna and Soby at Michigan Law School


Posted in: Uncategorized
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Most of us are probably familiar with The Library of Congress THOMAS web site – a terrific resource where you can find a wealth of federal legislative information dating back to the 104th Congress. While THOMAS is a great place to find current legislative resources, the Library of Congress (LOC) also has some really interesting online collections consisting of primary and secondary source legal materials relating to the formation of the United States. As well, the LOC provides an entire century of US Congressional documents, statutes, journals and debates in their Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation collection, which covers Congress from 1774 – 1875. Below are some links to help get you started on an exploration of these incredible archives.

Creating the United States

This LOC exhibition and collection consists of the founding papers and documents of the United States. Browse through the various sections to see such things as a rough draft of the Declaration of Independence,  James Madison’s notes on “the great compromise”, or the letter notifying George Washington of his unanimous election to the be the first President of the United States. The Exhibit is broken up into three main sections: Creating the Declaration of Independence, Creating the United States Constitution, and Creating the Bill of Rights.


Posted in: Legal Research
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Credit: Original by Arnob Alam

Last week, Caitlin Sanchez, the voice of Dora the Explorer, sued MTV Networks and Nickelodeon/Viacom Consumer Products, Inc. In her complaint filed with the Supreme Court of the State of New York in the County of New York, Sanchez alleged that she was swindled out of millions in “promised compensation for merchandi[s]ing, re-runs (also known as ‘residuals’), promotional work and recordings.”

Sanchez accused Nickelodeon and Nickelodeon Consumer Products of colluding with her talent agency Cunningham-Escott-Slevin-Doherty Talent Agency, Inc. and her agent Jason Bercy to induce her to sign an allegedly unconscionable contract “with convoluted, vague, incomplete, and misrepresented terms.”


Posted in: Legal News
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Last term, the buzz was all about Citizens United, which found that corporations are entitled to First Amendment free speech protection.  This term, the Court has the opportunity to extend even more rights to corporations in AT&T vs. FCC, as AT&T seeks protection from unwarranted privacy violations under the Freedom of Information Act.

The Freedom of Information Act exempts from mandatory disclosure records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes when such disclosure could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of “personal privacy.” 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(7)(C)


Posted in: Legal News
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Today, the Justia Law, Technology & Legal Marketing Blog will begin a new series of articles focused on useful legal-related smartphone applications.  As my colleagues have mentioned, the United States Supreme Court is back in session this week, and as such it seems fitting to begin our App of the Week series with an application that’s all about the Supreme Court: PocketJustice by our friends at Oyez.

'The best con law iPhone app!' - PocketJusticePocketJustice is currently available in both a free “Top 100 Cases” edition and a “Full Set” edition for $4.99 for the iPhone and iPod touch mobile devices. An iPad optimized version will be coming soon.

Both the free and full editions make it easy to find information about constitutional law cases decided by the US Supreme Court.


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The U.S. Supreme Court announced that it would make audio of oral arguments available online. Will you be listening?

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By onecle.

The 2010-2011 term of the U.S. Supreme Court begins this week.  Below are some our favorite (and free!) online Supreme Court resources which can help you track cases, find opinions, locate news, analysis and other resources such as briefs and recordings of oral arguments.

United States Supreme Court Web Site

The official site of the U.S. Supreme Court provides docket information, an interactive Court calendar, a case citation finder, information on bar admissions, court rules and official opinions from United States Reports, 1991 – present, and much more.

Justia’s Supreme Court Center

Find free full text opinions of the court from 1791 – present at Justia’s Supreme Court Center as well as links to other Supreme Court resources and news.


Posted in: Legal Research
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Credit: Westboro Baptist Church

The first Monday in October marks the opening of the 2010 term for the United States Supreme Court. During this week, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a number of cases, including one that examines the boundaries of the First Amendment.

In Snyder v. Phelps, Albert Snyder, the father of a deceased Marine had sued Pastor Fred W. Phelps, Sr., the Westboro Baptist Church and some of its members for defamation, invasion of privacy, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Plaintiff Snyder had lost his son, Marine Lance Corporal Matthew A. Snyder, on March 3, 2006, while his son was serving in the line of duty in Iraq.


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BlawgSearch is Justia’s law blog directory and search engine. While BlawgSearch can be used to explore new legal blogs, it really shines as a current awareness tool to keep you up-to-date on news and legal developments in your areas of practice or interest.

To take advantage of this feature, you can subscribe to one of our many category-based RSS feeds (e.g., criminal law or bankruptcy). These RSS feeds aggregate blog posts from numerous law blogs and can be read from your favorite RSS reader. Additionally, BlawgSearch allows you to create custom RSS feeds based on legal keywords or phrases, or citations to specific statutes, regulations or cases. This post will show you how to access these feeds to develop a collection of content relevant to your areas of interest and focus.

But, before we show you how to customize your feeds, let’s first make sure you know how to sign up for the general category feeds, and also explain some of your other options when viewing these feeds. From the Blawgsearch home page, select a category that is of interest to you. For example, if you are interested in civil rights law, click on the Civil Rights link.