News
Does Priming Influence Behavior of Even the “Bad Boys”?
December 18, 2013
Priming is the idea that subtle cues and reminders can powerfully influence behavior. You hear about it in studies where women reminded of their gender perform less well on math problems. You may be skeptical of the power of priming on your own behavior. And certainly on the behavior of the hardened criminal. Alas, you may as well get used to it because even the behavior of those in maximum security prisons is influenced by priming. Researchers asked 182 inmates from a maximum-security prison...
December 18, 2013
Priming is the idea that subtle cues and reminders can powerfully influence behavior. You hear about it in studies where women reminded of their gender perform less well on math problems. You may be skeptical of the power of priming on your own behavior. And certainly on the behavior of the hardened criminal. Alas, you may as well get used to it because even the behavior of those in maximum security prisons is influenced by priming. Researchers asked 182 inmates from a maximum-security prison...
First-Year Law School Enrollment At 1977 Levels
December 18, 2013
First-year enrollment at U.S. law schools plunged to levels not seen since the 1970s, as students steered away from a career that has left many recent graduates loaded with debt and struggling to find work. The American Bar Association said on Tuesday that the number of first-year law students fell 11% this year. So far, 39,675 full-time and part-time students enrolled in law school, nearly 5,000 fewer than in 2012. That’s one student shy of 1977 enrollment levels, when the ABA reported 39,676 ...
December 18, 2013
First-year enrollment at U.S. law schools plunged to levels not seen since the 1970s, as students steered away from a career that has left many recent graduates loaded with debt and struggling to find work. The American Bar Association said on Tuesday that the number of first-year law students fell 11% this year. So far, 39,675 full-time and part-time students enrolled in law school, nearly 5,000 fewer than in 2012. That’s one student shy of 1977 enrollment levels, when the ABA reported 39,676 ...
Concepcion Gives No Easy Out to Lawyers in Client Disputes
December 18, 2013
The U.S. Supreme Court's 2011 blockbuster AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion has helped telecom companies, financial institutions, nursing homes and others force more cases into arbitration. But it may not have the same benefit for lawyers facing suits by their clients, at least within the Ninth Circuit. The appellate court ruled Thursday that the Federal Arbitration Act, as interpreted by Concepcion, does not preempt state unconscionability laws that require attorneys to fully and fairly...
December 18, 2013
The U.S. Supreme Court's 2011 blockbuster AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion has helped telecom companies, financial institutions, nursing homes and others force more cases into arbitration. But it may not have the same benefit for lawyers facing suits by their clients, at least within the Ninth Circuit. The appellate court ruled Thursday that the Federal Arbitration Act, as interpreted by Concepcion, does not preempt state unconscionability laws that require attorneys to fully and fairly...
Boies Schiller Tops Bonus Scale Again As Most Match Market
December 17, 2013
As it does every year, Boies, Schiller & Flexnerhas awarded 2013 associate bonuses significantly sweeter than those doled out by the rest of The Am Law 100, with the firm's high end hitting $300,000. Meanwhile, at least 10 other firms have now fallen in line with the $10,000-to-$60,000 range set, as usual, by Cravath, Swaine & Moore earlier this month. Associates at the 16-year-old Cravath spin-off received extra payments of $85,000 apiece on average this year based on a combination...
December 17, 2013
As it does every year, Boies, Schiller & Flexnerhas awarded 2013 associate bonuses significantly sweeter than those doled out by the rest of The Am Law 100, with the firm's high end hitting $300,000. Meanwhile, at least 10 other firms have now fallen in line with the $10,000-to-$60,000 range set, as usual, by Cravath, Swaine & Moore earlier this month. Associates at the 16-year-old Cravath spin-off received extra payments of $85,000 apiece on average this year based on a combination...
Do You Want To Make Your Juror “Think Fast”?
December 17, 2013
A new research review says thinking fast can improve our mood, and increase risk-taking, confidence and problem-solving. The author discusses the experiences of running, skiing, driving over the speed limit as all having the capacity to excite, elate and energize us. But we do not have to be moving fast in order to improve our moods. All that is required is for our thinking to shift into a rapid pace and our mood improves. It isn’t always clear whether we want relatively ‘happy’ or ‘sad’...
December 17, 2013
A new research review says thinking fast can improve our mood, and increase risk-taking, confidence and problem-solving. The author discusses the experiences of running, skiing, driving over the speed limit as all having the capacity to excite, elate and energize us. But we do not have to be moving fast in order to improve our moods. All that is required is for our thinking to shift into a rapid pace and our mood improves. It isn’t always clear whether we want relatively ‘happy’ or ‘sad’...
Appeals Court Ponders Arbitration of Legal Malpractice Claim
December 17, 2013
A federal appeals court weighed whether a law firm can keep a client’s malpractice claim out of court if the two sides have a contract calling for arbitration of all disputes. On Monday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit heard Douglas Bezio’s appeal of a Maine federal judge’s dismissal of his case against Portland, Maine-based Bernstein, Shur, Sawyer & Nelson and three of its lawyers. Bezio hired Bernstein Shur for a case involving a regulatory dispute with the state...
December 17, 2013
A federal appeals court weighed whether a law firm can keep a client’s malpractice claim out of court if the two sides have a contract calling for arbitration of all disputes. On Monday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit heard Douglas Bezio’s appeal of a Maine federal judge’s dismissal of his case against Portland, Maine-based Bernstein, Shur, Sawyer & Nelson and three of its lawyers. Bezio hired Bernstein Shur for a case involving a regulatory dispute with the state...
Technology, Not Rules Changes, Is Answer to E-Discovery Costs, Arthur Miller Tells Senate Panel
December 17, 2013
In a post here last April, we discussed proposed changes to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure designed to enhance cooperation and proportionality and to standardize sanctions. A preliminary draft of those rule changes has now been posted for public comment, with the commend period closing on Feb. 15. Before they could take effect, the rules would have to be approved by the Judicial Conference’s Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure, the Judicial Conference, and the Supreme...
December 17, 2013
In a post here last April, we discussed proposed changes to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure designed to enhance cooperation and proportionality and to standardize sanctions. A preliminary draft of those rule changes has now been posted for public comment, with the commend period closing on Feb. 15. Before they could take effect, the rules would have to be approved by the Judicial Conference’s Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure, the Judicial Conference, and the Supreme...
Fourth Circuit Avoids Choosing Between “Chevron” Deference to Regulatory Agency and Pro-Arbitration FAA Policy
December 17, 2013
The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Seney v. Rent-a-Center, Inc. (No. 13-1064, 4th Cir., Dec. 11. 2013) avoided deciding whether Federal agency regulatory limits on pre-dispute arbitration agreements for consumer warranty disputes, promulgated by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) under the general authority of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. § 2301 et seq. (the “MMWA”), are consistent with US Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) pro-arbitration jurisprudence. The Court...
December 17, 2013
The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Seney v. Rent-a-Center, Inc. (No. 13-1064, 4th Cir., Dec. 11. 2013) avoided deciding whether Federal agency regulatory limits on pre-dispute arbitration agreements for consumer warranty disputes, promulgated by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) under the general authority of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. § 2301 et seq. (the “MMWA”), are consistent with US Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) pro-arbitration jurisprudence. The Court...
Is Axiom the Bellwether for Disruption in the Legal Industry?
December 16, 2013
The "Managed Services" Business Model Based on my own discussions with Axiom management and several articles on the topic, see, e.g., Adam Smith, ABA Journal, Strategic Legal Technology Blog, the fastest growing part of Axiom's business is its "Managed Services" practice. Part of the managed services practice is analyzing and redesigning workflows so that in-house lawyers have the cost and quality information needed to make better sourcing decisions. Because Axiom is helping to redesign...
December 16, 2013
The "Managed Services" Business Model Based on my own discussions with Axiom management and several articles on the topic, see, e.g., Adam Smith, ABA Journal, Strategic Legal Technology Blog, the fastest growing part of Axiom's business is its "Managed Services" practice. Part of the managed services practice is analyzing and redesigning workflows so that in-house lawyers have the cost and quality information needed to make better sourcing decisions. Because Axiom is helping to redesign...
Empathy: Paving the Road to Preferential Treatment with Good Intentions
December 16, 2013
How do empathy, accountability and fairness interact to result in preferential treatment (but with the best of intentions)? You know we are looking at this with an eye toward litigation implications and it isn’t even that much of a stretch. The researchers are looking at the workplace supervisor/supervisee relationship to assess how knowing that an employee is having a rough time might result in differing (i.e., preferential) treatment to a “needy employee”. What they find is that when someone...
December 16, 2013
How do empathy, accountability and fairness interact to result in preferential treatment (but with the best of intentions)? You know we are looking at this with an eye toward litigation implications and it isn’t even that much of a stretch. The researchers are looking at the workplace supervisor/supervisee relationship to assess how knowing that an employee is having a rough time might result in differing (i.e., preferential) treatment to a “needy employee”. What they find is that when someone...
