California started a new rule requiring lawyers to submit finger prints to the bar association. All lawyers receive a background check when they first apply to the bar association in most states. But, what happens after admission to the bar? Do lawyers generally stay clean? Well, so far the California Bar Association has learned of
Pres. Trump cannot Find a Lawyer
Hiring a lawyer poses perils for any client. Not only must the lawyer have sufficient expertise and competence, the client needs to get along with the lawyer. They are locked in a major endeavor that will last months, if not years. Yes, a lawyer can quit or be fired. The client can quit or be
Study Finds Limited Success for Discrimination Plaintiffs
Employment cases are difficult for the employee. I have mentioned a couple of studies about the success rates for employment cases. See my prior posts here and here. Now, we have another study. In Rights on Trial: How Workplace Discrimination Perpetuates Inequality, the authors went to federal records and interviewed individual plaintiffs to
Abbott Files Another Frivolous Lawsuit
So, Greg Abbott files another frivolous lawsuit. He has filed suit against the federal government over Pres. Obama’s immigration measures. See San Antonio Express News report (account required). And, as before, the lawsuit is described as frivolous by lawyers familiar with immigration law. One immigration lawyer describes the lawsuit as "political theater." I have written
Schlumberger is Sanctioned for Lawsuit Against Former Employee
We are seeing more and more lawsuits against an employee after s/he leaves an employer. Some of these suits have basis, some do not. In Schlumberger v. Rutherford, we see a lawsuit that lacked basis. Charlotte Rutherford was employed by Schlumberger as an in-house lawyer. She was privy to confidential, proprietary
The Ugly Side of Practicing Law
There is a seamy side to lawsuits. I am sure this seamy side has been around ever since the Medieval days when representatives were hired because they were better criers. In the San Antonio Express News is a report about immigration lawyers who hire case runners, folks who go out and find clients. They lurk
Happy Workers are Better Workers
Dwight Lieb, the owner of the well-known La Fogata restaurant, makes the point I was addressing in my post about CPS. Happy workers make better workers. He asks what are "happy" workers? Happy workers are those employees who derive some satisfaction from their job and feel empowered to realize professional goals at their jobs. See San
Lawyers Should Speak the Common Language
In law school, we learn how to read legal terminology. Learning to "read the law" may be the most important skill lawyers develop. But, learning to read it does not mean we should actually use that mumbo-jumbo. Personally, I diligently avoid words like "therein" and "herein," but am not offended if other lawyers prefer "legalese."
Lawyer Files Suit Over Suit
Ok, I have been tempted once or twice to file suit when someone at the store gets my order wrong, or they make me wait too long. i might have even joked about doing so once or twice. But, I have never seriously considered suing over something trivial. I mean, let’s be real.
But
The Vanishing Plaintiff
Legal scholars are becoming more aware that actual trials in federal courts have decreased dramatically since the 1960’s. Suja Thomas discussed this trend in a recent speech at Seattle University to mark the 25th anniversary of the summary judgment trilogy. See Workplace Prof report. Prof. Thomas mentions a couple of developments leading to this