California Legislature’s Nanny-ism and the Scientific Method of Legislating
There are brewing concerns about the intrusiveness of the proposals floating around in the California legislature, sparked most visibly by the proposal to ban parental spanking of children. Some critics are calling some of these proposals “Nanny Bills” because they…
Sullivan & Cromwell Partnership Agreement
It’s relatively rare to get public access to a major law firm’s partnership agreement. Courtesy of a plaintiff, here is a copy of the 1994 Sullivan & Cromwell partnership agreement (starting on page 27) [warning: 3MB file]. I didn’t see…
Using Quicken Software to Prepare Will for Another Person = Unauthorized Practice of Law
Franklin v. Chavis, Opinion No. 26251 (SC Sup. Ct. Jan. 22, 2007) An insurance agent helped a 91 year old woman prepare a will using Quicken lawyer. Some relatives who got less than they thought they deserved challenged the will,…
Meowing at Neighbor Isn’t Criminal Harassment
You may recall that I previously blogged on the story of the 14 year old boy who, with malice, meowed repeatedly (at least twice) at an elderly neighbor, which led to a criminal prosecution for harassment. At that time, I…
Beef with a Frank–Gershengorin v. Vienna Beef
Some observant Jews are suing Vienna Beef Hot Dog for extensively marketing that they are 100% beef (and, thus, acceptable for some Jews to eat, even if the hot dogs aren’t otherwise strictly kosher), even though allegedly the wholesale ingredients…
Princess Bride and Jurisprudence
A Wisconsin lawyer is defending a client from charges of “sexual gratification with an animal.” But in this case, the deer was dead at the relevant time, so the principal defense is that a dead deer isn’t an “animal” as…
FTC Lawyer Convicted and Disciplined for Using the Office’s FedEx Account to Send Personal Mail
From NY Lawyer: Seth Zimmerman was an FTC lawyer and an active eBayer. He actively sold Washington Redskins tickets via eBay–a total of 1,100 sales over the course of 3 years, grossing nearly $100,000 in revenues. After he fell behind…
Indecent Exposure Laws Apply Only to Men?
From AP: In the category of bad interactions between older women and 14 year old boys who are neighbors, a 40 year old woman tired of hearing her 14 year old neighbor play basketball. So, to discourage him, she stripped…
Battle over Goldmensex.com
I previously blogged on the battle over Goldmansex.com. Goldman Sachs successfully won a UDRP to reclaim this name, although I think I had better standing to object than they did. The registrant of Goldmansex.com, feeling a little screwed by the…
Patent Lawyer Gets Statue
No question that the Wright brothers deserve credit as innovators. But what about their patent lawyer, Harry Toulmin, who wrote the patents that survived a brutal patent battle? The greater Dayton community has recognized his heroic efforts as well, erecting…