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Unsigned Conflict Waiver Letter Found Enforceable
October 11, 2013
An unsigned advance conflict waiver is enforceable, according to a New York appellate court, allowing a law firm to continue to represent a large national retailer in a dispute with another large national retailer over the sale of Martha Stewart products. In Macy’s Inc. v. J.C. Penney Corp., the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Appellate Division, First Department affirmed the trial judge’s denial of J.C. Penney’s motion to disqualify the law firm from representing Macy’s due to a conflict....
October 11, 2013
An unsigned advance conflict waiver is enforceable, according to a New York appellate court, allowing a law firm to continue to represent a large national retailer in a dispute with another large national retailer over the sale of Martha Stewart products. In Macy’s Inc. v. J.C. Penney Corp., the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Appellate Division, First Department affirmed the trial judge’s denial of J.C. Penney’s motion to disqualify the law firm from representing Macy’s due to a conflict....
Neuroplasticity and Education
October 10, 2013
I have written several posts concerning how important understanding how the mind works is on improving education and legal education (the neurobiology of learning). There will be a conference on this subject in Vancouver on October 25: Neuroplasticity and Education: Strengthening the Connection Conference Introduction: VANCOUVER, Sept. 24, 2013 /CNW/ - The brain is a beautiful organ. One that enables us to plan, problem solve, reason, interact, remember, forgive, forget, and a myriad...
October 10, 2013
I have written several posts concerning how important understanding how the mind works is on improving education and legal education (the neurobiology of learning). There will be a conference on this subject in Vancouver on October 25: Neuroplasticity and Education: Strengthening the Connection Conference Introduction: VANCOUVER, Sept. 24, 2013 /CNW/ - The brain is a beautiful organ. One that enables us to plan, problem solve, reason, interact, remember, forgive, forget, and a myriad...
‘David and Goliath’: Understanding the Dynamics in a Power Struggle
October 10, 2013
In "David and Goliath," Malcolm Gladwell explores the dynamics that inform and effect our everyday lives. By analyzing the...
October 10, 2013
In "David and Goliath," Malcolm Gladwell explores the dynamics that inform and effect our everyday lives. By analyzing the...
Admissibility of Settlement-Related Evidence at Trial
October 10, 2013
Many trial lawyers assume that evidence of settlement offers and negotiations can never be admitted at trial. There is a general belief that placing the legend “Settlement Communication” on correspondence and other documents somehow precludes those documents from ever being seen by a jury. The bar on admissibility of settlement-related evidence is not nearly that broad, however, and can lead to a trap for the unwary. Federal Rule of Evidence 408, which governs admissibility of settlement-related...
October 10, 2013
Many trial lawyers assume that evidence of settlement offers and negotiations can never be admitted at trial. There is a general belief that placing the legend “Settlement Communication” on correspondence and other documents somehow precludes those documents from ever being seen by a jury. The bar on admissibility of settlement-related evidence is not nearly that broad, however, and can lead to a trap for the unwary. Federal Rule of Evidence 408, which governs admissibility of settlement-related...
Your Skills: Preparing to Win at Arbitration
October 10, 2013
It's your first, or one of your first, arbitrations. It may have started as a court lawsuit and was compelled to arbitration on a motion, or it may have started with a demand for arbitration pursuant to the client's contract providing for arbitration of disputes instead of court litigation. Either way, in order to get a successful result, the case assessment and strategy requires understanding how arbitration is fundamentally different from a case to be tried in state or federal court. Because...
October 10, 2013
It's your first, or one of your first, arbitrations. It may have started as a court lawsuit and was compelled to arbitration on a motion, or it may have started with a demand for arbitration pursuant to the client's contract providing for arbitration of disputes instead of court litigation. Either way, in order to get a successful result, the case assessment and strategy requires understanding how arbitration is fundamentally different from a case to be tried in state or federal court. Because...
Algorithm Writes People’s Life Histories Using Twitter Stream
October 10, 2013
If you tweet about your life, a new algorithm can identify your most significant events and assemble them into an accurate...
October 10, 2013
If you tweet about your life, a new algorithm can identify your most significant events and assemble them into an accurate...
Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives
October 9, 2013
True confession time: I’ve been reading about teaching and learning theory for a good while. Always at an amateur level, and never with the rigor the enterprise unarguably deserves. I do not think I have a level of exposure to the pedagogical literature that is atypically inadequate compared with many in the legal academy. But I’d never spent much time or thought on Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives until just recently. It’s fascinating. For those in ADR, this is the equivalent...
October 9, 2013
True confession time: I’ve been reading about teaching and learning theory for a good while. Always at an amateur level, and never with the rigor the enterprise unarguably deserves. I do not think I have a level of exposure to the pedagogical literature that is atypically inadequate compared with many in the legal academy. But I’d never spent much time or thought on Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives until just recently. It’s fascinating. For those in ADR, this is the equivalent...
D.R. Horton Hears It from the Ninth Circuit
October 9, 2013
In a case decided this summer, the Ninth Circuit reached an issue it admitted was unnecessary to its decision so that it could critique the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) opinion in D.R. Horton, 357 N.L.R.B. No. 184, 2012 WL 36274 (Jan. 3, 2012). D.R. Horton held that arbitration agreements with class-action waivers create an unfair labor practice because they restrict employees from engaging in protected concerted activity. D.R. Horton, 357 NLRB 184 (Jan 3, 2012). But in Richards v. Ernst...
October 9, 2013
In a case decided this summer, the Ninth Circuit reached an issue it admitted was unnecessary to its decision so that it could critique the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) opinion in D.R. Horton, 357 N.L.R.B. No. 184, 2012 WL 36274 (Jan. 3, 2012). D.R. Horton held that arbitration agreements with class-action waivers create an unfair labor practice because they restrict employees from engaging in protected concerted activity. D.R. Horton, 357 NLRB 184 (Jan 3, 2012). But in Richards v. Ernst...
When First Amendment Rights Collide
October 9, 2013
When First Amendment Rights Collide By Karen Monsen “Merry Christmas!” “Happy Hanukkah!” These are the words that, if spoken in a school setting, some say will spark litigation. They certainly sparked the Texas Legislature to take action. During the 2013 legislative session, Governor Rick Perry signed the Merry Christmas Bill into law, permitting teachers to use traditional holiday phrases and symbols in school without incurring liability. “It’s a shame that a bill like this...
October 9, 2013
When First Amendment Rights Collide By Karen Monsen “Merry Christmas!” “Happy Hanukkah!” These are the words that, if spoken in a school setting, some say will spark litigation. They certainly sparked the Texas Legislature to take action. During the 2013 legislative session, Governor Rick Perry signed the Merry Christmas Bill into law, permitting teachers to use traditional holiday phrases and symbols in school without incurring liability. “It’s a shame that a bill like this...
Schultz v. Medina Valley ISD: When Cultures and Beliefs Collide (Or How Air Conditioning Changed Texas)
October 9, 2013
Schultz v. Medina Valley ISD: When Cultures and Beliefs Collide (Or How Air Conditioning Changed Texas) By Hon. Fred Biery In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee’s character, Scout, observed the Christian Women’s Missionary Society speaking intolerantly of local Negroes, but nevertheless collected money for missionaries to bring salvation to people of the same race in Africa. Seeing this hypocrisy, Scout said, “Humans are a peculiar lot.” In this case, the Court also wrote in the third...
October 9, 2013
Schultz v. Medina Valley ISD: When Cultures and Beliefs Collide (Or How Air Conditioning Changed Texas) By Hon. Fred Biery In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee’s character, Scout, observed the Christian Women’s Missionary Society speaking intolerantly of local Negroes, but nevertheless collected money for missionaries to bring salvation to people of the same race in Africa. Seeing this hypocrisy, Scout said, “Humans are a peculiar lot.” In this case, the Court also wrote in the third...
