Futurelawyer

Chuck Newton: ARE YOU INTERESTED IN POSSIBLY JOINING ME IN A THIRD WAVE SUMMIT OR SABBATICAL TO JAPAN NEXT SUMMER? PLEASE LET ME KNOW!

Chuck Newton: ARE YOU INTERESTED IN POSSIBLY JOINING ME IN A THIRD WAVE SUMMIT OR SABBATICAL TO JAPAN NEXT SUMMER? PLEASE LET ME KNOW!. Chuck Newton is asking if there is any interest in a Third Wave Summit in Japan next summer. It sounds like a winning idea; meet other solos, third wavers, and bloggers in Japan, for a week of CLE and getting away. No commitment required now; just let Chuck know if you are interested in the idea. I know I am.

Outlines - Law Outline Wiki - LegalIntellects.com

Outlines - Law Outline Wiki - LegalIntellects.com. For all you law students out there, my friend from Canada, Johathan Kleiman, has a new Wiki that collects and distributes law school outlines. It is Canada heavy right now; but Jonathan wants outlines from U.S. law schools as well. My own law school days predate the Internet by many years (I'm not telling how many). Would have been nice to have resources such as this back then. Oh, well. If you are a law student in the Internet Age, enjoy.

Carol's Corner Office - Microsoft Office tips and tricks - Home of the Word Bytes Newsletter

Carol's Corner Office - Microsoft Office tips and tricks - Home of the Word Bytes Newsletter. There is a new link in the TechBlogs section,for Carol Bratt's excellent MS Office blog. Carol trains law staff in the use of Microsoft Office and other applications. She also publishes a monthly newsletter, with all sorts of tips and tricks in the use of word processing software. We can all identify with her experiences with new software, and law office training, can't we? Thanks, Carol, for calling your excellent resource to my attention.

BITTER LAWYER - Do Grades Matter?

BITTER LAWYER. Apparently, some Big Law denizens are unhappy about the trend to Pass Fail systems in the elite law schools. Given the inherently subjective nature of a Grading system, and given that the Bar Exam is Pass Fail, I don't see the problem. Of course, I have never been in Big Law, and have never applied. I like solo practice. Don't the Big Law hiring lawyers know how to vet a new hire? Oh, well. If your law school's Pass Fail system prevents you from getting a job in Big Law, you can always go solo. If you have to ask "Am I Elite?", you aren't.

Ross Kodner At Legal Tech

Link: Ross Ipsa Loquitur Blog � LegalTech NY Day One: Microsoft and the Next Big Thing: “Intrasocial Networking”. Legal Tech Shows are about more than tech innovation, and wandering show floors looking for SWAG. Ross Kodner hits the nail on the head with this post. I haven't attended one of these things in a while; (okay, nobody asked me to come), but he is absolutely right that it really isn't instructive when 75% of the exhibitors and speakers are talking about electronic discovery. Most solo and small firm practitioners just don't spend that much time with this stuff. We are interested in new software, old software, gadgets, and other computer stuff that will help us be better, more efficient lawyers. Thanks, Ross, for the post, so that I didn't have to fly into the snow. It is 80 degrees in Florida this week, and I am going to spend it by the pool.

Next, Law School Credit for Watching Judge Judy

Link: Excite News - SoCal College Offers YouTube Class. Okay, now I know that the Internet has fried some brains. This college is offering a for credit course in "YouTube". What's next, law schools offering credit for watching lawyer shows on T.V.? The dumbing down of America is not the best use of the Internet. I realize that many intelligent people are using the Internet for educational purposes; look at all the lawyer blogs about important issues. But, YouTube as course material? Pleeeeze.

Legal Research - The Movie

Once upon a time, in a galaxy far, far away, I was a law student. I did legal research in books. I spent hours in a law library. I pored through indexes, and I lugged case books around. I didn't have time to make movies. Of course, I also didn't have the Internet. These law students have way too much time on their hands.

ABA TECHSHOW�| Exhibitor Listing

Link: ABA TECHSHOW�| Exhibitor Listing. ABA TechShow starts today in Chicago. Most of us will be working in our offices, so here's a way to check out the Exhibitors without flying to Chicago. It's cold up there anyway. This page lists and links to all the Exhibitors, and I bet that they will be happy to discuss their products with you via email. I never did get the whole walk til you drop show floor thing anyway. I admit that personal contact has its benefits (I am discussing a SoloLawyer Unconference with Grant Griffiths in Atlanta or Orlando). However, if you can't travel to one of these things, this page will help.

YouTube - Most Technologically Advanced Courthouse in U.S. - Part I

Link: YouTube - Most Technologically Advanced Courthouse in U.S. - Part I. Here is a short interview with a Judge from Harris County, Texas, about the technological advances in Harris County courts. The new courthouse is filled with courtroom tech, and is one of the most advanced in the U.S.

Sovereign Immunity - Google Video

Link: Sovereign Immunity - Google Video. The Massachusetts School of Law is posting its wonderful video series, "A Matter of Law" on the Internet, and it can be found at Google Video. This 1999 video on sovereign immunity is excellent. Just another example of the educational possibilities for lawyers on the net. Should Governments be immune from suit by their citizens? The phrase doesn't appear in the Eleventh Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and the Amendment doesn't specifically say that citizens can't sue their "own" state. The Supreme Court has uniformly held, however, that the principle is not derived from the Eleventh Amendment, but from the structure of the original Constitution itself. In fact, the principle goes as far back as Governments have existed. The video does a good job of circumscribing the power and limits of the principle. Good stuff.