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Jimmy Elf v Santa Claus d/b/a Polar Enterprises
December 10, 2013
In a rush to get an extra bag on his sleigh , Santa ordered Jimmy Elf to lift a bag without the help of other elves. As Jimmy hoisted the bag, he felt a sharp pain in his back and fell forward. As he was falling, Jimmy was nailed in the head by one of Blitzen's hooves, who was already airborne . Santa failed to notice the fallen elf and Jimmy was rushed to Claus Community Hospital. Jimmy was diagnosed with a mild concussion. The MRI revealed a slightly bulging disc, which the ortho-elf attributed...
December 10, 2013
In a rush to get an extra bag on his sleigh , Santa ordered Jimmy Elf to lift a bag without the help of other elves. As Jimmy hoisted the bag, he felt a sharp pain in his back and fell forward. As he was falling, Jimmy was nailed in the head by one of Blitzen's hooves, who was already airborne . Santa failed to notice the fallen elf and Jimmy was rushed to Claus Community Hospital. Jimmy was diagnosed with a mild concussion. The MRI revealed a slightly bulging disc, which the ortho-elf attributed...
Reproducible Research as an Aspirational Goal for Legal Metrics
December 9, 2013
In the sciences, a recent movement is often referred to as “reproducible research.” What it espouses is a philosophy...
December 9, 2013
In the sciences, a recent movement is often referred to as “reproducible research.” What it espouses is a philosophy...
Learning From Past Mistakes With Predictive Analytics
December 9, 2013
Exchanges and investment firms are testing the waters with a real-time predictive analytics platform to make better evidence-based decisions. History is destined to repeat itself, but what if a trader had a crystal ball? Could firms avoid repeating past mistakes and improve efficiency? Verdande Technology, provider of real-time Case-Based Reasoning technology, believes it can. Verdande began as an academic study with a focus on oil rigs. Data was taken in real-time off a rig and correlated...
December 9, 2013
Exchanges and investment firms are testing the waters with a real-time predictive analytics platform to make better evidence-based decisions. History is destined to repeat itself, but what if a trader had a crystal ball? Could firms avoid repeating past mistakes and improve efficiency? Verdande Technology, provider of real-time Case-Based Reasoning technology, believes it can. Verdande began as an academic study with a focus on oil rigs. Data was taken in real-time off a rig and correlated...
Big Securities Class Action? Opt-Outs May Follow
December 9, 2013
A new report from Cornerstone Research and Latham & Watkins indicates that the larger the securities class action settlement, the more likely it is that at least some class members will jump ship and go it alone.“Opt-Out Cases in Securities Class Action Settlements” examines 15 years' worth of publicly available documentation, and is believed by its authors to be the first systematic study on the topic. Amir Rozen, a principal at Cornerstone Research, a firm providing economic and financial...
December 9, 2013
A new report from Cornerstone Research and Latham & Watkins indicates that the larger the securities class action settlement, the more likely it is that at least some class members will jump ship and go it alone.“Opt-Out Cases in Securities Class Action Settlements” examines 15 years' worth of publicly available documentation, and is believed by its authors to be the first systematic study on the topic. Amir Rozen, a principal at Cornerstone Research, a firm providing economic and financial...
Litigators Eye AAA Rules Allowing Appeal of Arbitral Decisions
December 9, 2013
For the first time, parties in a dispute before the American Arbitration Association (AAA) can opt for built-in appellate review of arbitral awards. But reception to the new AAA appellate rules, which became effective on Nov. 1, has been mixed among Texas litigators. The AAA's optional appellate rules can only be used when there is an agreement between the parties, and the rules only allow parties to appeal based on errors of law and clearly erroneous determinations of fact. The AAA appellate...
December 9, 2013
For the first time, parties in a dispute before the American Arbitration Association (AAA) can opt for built-in appellate review of arbitral awards. But reception to the new AAA appellate rules, which became effective on Nov. 1, has been mixed among Texas litigators. The AAA's optional appellate rules can only be used when there is an agreement between the parties, and the rules only allow parties to appeal based on errors of law and clearly erroneous determinations of fact. The AAA appellate...
Texas Supreme Court to Ring in New Year With Two Arbitration Cases
December 9, 2013
The Texas Supreme Court will hear a pair of cases that present significant questions for the beginning and the end of the arbitration process. Those include whether an "unconscionable attorney fees" provision voids an arbitration agreement and what parties must do to vacate an arbitration award for alleged evident partiality. Those issues arise in Venture Cotton Cooperative and Noble Americas Corp. v. Shelby Alan Freemanand Ponderosa Pine Energy LLC v. Tenaska Energy Inc., on which the high...
December 9, 2013
The Texas Supreme Court will hear a pair of cases that present significant questions for the beginning and the end of the arbitration process. Those include whether an "unconscionable attorney fees" provision voids an arbitration agreement and what parties must do to vacate an arbitration award for alleged evident partiality. Those issues arise in Venture Cotton Cooperative and Noble Americas Corp. v. Shelby Alan Freemanand Ponderosa Pine Energy LLC v. Tenaska Energy Inc., on which the high...
Firm Leaders Survey: Slow Growth on Tap for 2014
December 8, 2013
Just over five years after the start of the global financial crisis, the job of an Am Law 200 law firm leader arguably remains as tough as it has ever been. The painful decisions to cut staff and attorneys may now be a distant memory, at least for most firms, but there remain two distinct drags on Big Law businesses. On the one hand, you have the still-sputtering domestic and global economies, prone to macroeconomic shocks like the U.S. government shutdown in October. And on the other, you have...
December 8, 2013
Just over five years after the start of the global financial crisis, the job of an Am Law 200 law firm leader arguably remains as tough as it has ever been. The painful decisions to cut staff and attorneys may now be a distant memory, at least for most firms, but there remain two distinct drags on Big Law businesses. On the one hand, you have the still-sputtering domestic and global economies, prone to macroeconomic shocks like the U.S. government shutdown in October. And on the other, you have...
‘Astronomically Generous’ Pay for Former Dewey CFO, Executive Director Alleged in Clawback Suit
December 8, 2013
The bankruptcy trustee for Dewey & LeBoeuf is seeking the return of $21.8 million in “astronomically generous” pay from two former leaders of the failed firm. The suit filed on Wednesday targets Dewey’s former executive director Stephen DiCarmine and former chief financial officer Joel Sanders, report the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) and the Am Law Daily (sub. req.). Each earned more than $10 million from 2008 to 2012, according to details of the suit published by the Wall...
December 8, 2013
The bankruptcy trustee for Dewey & LeBoeuf is seeking the return of $21.8 million in “astronomically generous” pay from two former leaders of the failed firm. The suit filed on Wednesday targets Dewey’s former executive director Stephen DiCarmine and former chief financial officer Joel Sanders, report the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) and the Am Law Daily (sub. req.). Each earned more than $10 million from 2008 to 2012, according to details of the suit published by the Wall...
What Do the 2013 Bonuses Tell Us About the Legal Market? (video)
December 8, 2013
David Lat and Elie Mystal from Above the Law talk with Bloomberg Law's Lee Pacchia about 2013 bonuses for lawyers at Cravath and Skadden, as well as some recent and noteworthy breakdowns in merger talks among several large law firms.
December 8, 2013
David Lat and Elie Mystal from Above the Law talk with Bloomberg Law's Lee Pacchia about 2013 bonuses for lawyers at Cravath and Skadden, as well as some recent and noteworthy breakdowns in merger talks among several large law firms.
University of Iowa Law Cuts Tuition Amid Enrollment Decline
December 8, 2013
The University of Iowa College of Law is the latest law school to slash tuition amid declining enrollment. University officials on Dec. 4 approved a 16.4 percent cut in tuition. Iowa residents next year will pay $21,965 in tuition—a $4,309 reduction—and the reduced tuition will apply to both current and new students. Non-residents who enroll next fall will see tuition fall by $7,750 to $39,500. Though the tuition cut doesn’t apply to current non-resident students, law dean Gail Agrawal...
December 8, 2013
The University of Iowa College of Law is the latest law school to slash tuition amid declining enrollment. University officials on Dec. 4 approved a 16.4 percent cut in tuition. Iowa residents next year will pay $21,965 in tuition—a $4,309 reduction—and the reduced tuition will apply to both current and new students. Non-residents who enroll next fall will see tuition fall by $7,750 to $39,500. Though the tuition cut doesn’t apply to current non-resident students, law dean Gail Agrawal...
