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Tweets Track Secret Edits to SCOTUS Opinions
June 18, 2014
Last month, a collective “Really!?” rolled through the U.S. legal community when Harvard Law Professor Richard J. Lazarus published his study — and Adam Liptak reported it in The New York Times — revealing that the Supreme Court sometimes quietly revises its opinions years after they were issued, sometimes in ways that result in “truly substantive changes in factual statements and legal reasoning.” Yes, it turns out that bedrock law you relied on may be a bit looser than anyone knew....
June 18, 2014
Last month, a collective “Really!?” rolled through the U.S. legal community when Harvard Law Professor Richard J. Lazarus published his study — and Adam Liptak reported it in The New York Times — revealing that the Supreme Court sometimes quietly revises its opinions years after they were issued, sometimes in ways that result in “truly substantive changes in factual statements and legal reasoning.” Yes, it turns out that bedrock law you relied on may be a bit looser than anyone knew....
Supreme Court Accepts Certiorari in CAFA Removal Case
June 12, 2014
On April 7, 2014, the Supreme Court accepted certiorari review in Dart Cherokee Basin Operating Co., LLC v. Owens, No. 13-719, to resolve a circuit split regarding whether the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA) requires a removing defendant to submit evidence in support of removal at the time of the notice of removal or whether evidence can be submitted later in response to a motion to remand. The United States District Court for the District of Kansas had remanded a putative class action removed under...
June 12, 2014
On April 7, 2014, the Supreme Court accepted certiorari review in Dart Cherokee Basin Operating Co., LLC v. Owens, No. 13-719, to resolve a circuit split regarding whether the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA) requires a removing defendant to submit evidence in support of removal at the time of the notice of removal or whether evidence can be submitted later in response to a motion to remand. The United States District Court for the District of Kansas had remanded a putative class action removed under...
Supreme Court Continues Down Pro-Arbitration Road
June 12, 2014
Although arbitration features regularly on the Supreme Court’s docket, a number of significant cases have been before the Court recently. The gist of these rulings is a continued pro-arbitration approach, consistent with the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), 9 U.S.C. § 1. The Supreme Court also confirmed that parties to an arbitration contract are bound by the words of that contract. In addition, by denying certiorari in the Delaware Coalition for Open Government v. Strine case, the Court struck...
June 12, 2014
Although arbitration features regularly on the Supreme Court’s docket, a number of significant cases have been before the Court recently. The gist of these rulings is a continued pro-arbitration approach, consistent with the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), 9 U.S.C. § 1. The Supreme Court also confirmed that parties to an arbitration contract are bound by the words of that contract. In addition, by denying certiorari in the Delaware Coalition for Open Government v. Strine case, the Court struck...
US Supreme Court Hears Argument that Might Hurt Cloud Storage
May 20, 2014
During a hearing in a copyright infringement case about TV programs the alleged infringer’s attorney argued that the “cloud...
May 20, 2014
During a hearing in a copyright infringement case about TV programs the alleged infringer’s attorney argued that the “cloud...
Insurer’s Due Process Rights Trumps California’s Mediation Confidentiality Statute
May 14, 2014
A federal trial court concluded that California’s strict mediation confidentiality provisions were not applicable in a bad faith claim by homeowners against their insurer, as the insurer needed to be able to show that its failure to settle the case was the result of the homeowners’ excessive demands in mediation. The court relied on the seminal California Supreme Court case, Cassel v. Superior Court, in which due process is recognized as a limit on the mediation confidentiality statute, even...
May 14, 2014
A federal trial court concluded that California’s strict mediation confidentiality provisions were not applicable in a bad faith claim by homeowners against their insurer, as the insurer needed to be able to show that its failure to settle the case was the result of the homeowners’ excessive demands in mediation. The court relied on the seminal California Supreme Court case, Cassel v. Superior Court, in which due process is recognized as a limit on the mediation confidentiality statute, even...
The Incidental Lawyer
May 3, 2014
The South Carolina Supreme Court ruled this week that LegalZoom’s services do not constitute the unauthorized practice...
May 3, 2014
The South Carolina Supreme Court ruled this week that LegalZoom’s services do not constitute the unauthorized practice...
Have Supreme Court Opinions Become More Unreadable?
April 28, 2014
Professor Stephen Johnson says, yes. His article is “The Changing Discourse of the Supreme Court,” 12University of New Hampshire Law Review 29 (2013). I correlate this decline in readability with the increasing density of law review articles. The top law review officers go on to clerk for SCOTUS and bring their bad habits with them. Here is the abstract (excerpts): Academics, judges and other commentators complain that, for the past few decades, the Justices on the Supreme Court have been increasingly...
April 28, 2014
Professor Stephen Johnson says, yes. His article is “The Changing Discourse of the Supreme Court,” 12University of New Hampshire Law Review 29 (2013). I correlate this decline in readability with the increasing density of law review articles. The top law review officers go on to clerk for SCOTUS and bring their bad habits with them. Here is the abstract (excerpts): Academics, judges and other commentators complain that, for the past few decades, the Justices on the Supreme Court have been increasingly...
We Test WordRake’s Beta Version 2.0 on ‘McCutcheon’
April 26, 2014
When WordRake , the editing program for lawyers, was first released in 2012, I put it to the test against two of the most eloquent writers on the Supreme Court, Justices Antonin Scalia and Elena Kagan. If WordRake could improve on Scalia and Kagan, I reasoned, imagine what it could do for the rest of us. Now, WordRake is preparing to release version 2.0 of its software and it provided me with a beta version. This time, I decided to give Justices Scalia and Kagan a rest, so I turned to the Supreme...
April 26, 2014
When WordRake , the editing program for lawyers, was first released in 2012, I put it to the test against two of the most eloquent writers on the Supreme Court, Justices Antonin Scalia and Elena Kagan. If WordRake could improve on Scalia and Kagan, I reasoned, imagine what it could do for the rest of us. Now, WordRake is preparing to release version 2.0 of its software and it provided me with a beta version. This time, I decided to give Justices Scalia and Kagan a rest, so I turned to the Supreme...
The Future of Class Arbitration Part I
April 22, 2014
In recent years, the Supreme Court has frequently granted certiorari in class arbitration cases. In the wake of AT&T...
April 22, 2014
In recent years, the Supreme Court has frequently granted certiorari in class arbitration cases. In the wake of AT&T...
Supreme Court to Consider Cert Petition Friday Regarding Delaware Business Arbitration Program
March 20, 2014
The certiorari petition in Strine v. Delaware Coalition For Open Government, Inc. (seeking review of the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals decision holding that confidential Delaware Business Arbitration Program proceedings would be contrary to “a First Amendment right of access to Delaware’s government-sponsored arbitrations”) has been distributed to the Justices of the US Supreme Court for review at their regular conference this coming Friday (March 21, 2014). It is therefore likely...
March 20, 2014
The certiorari petition in Strine v. Delaware Coalition For Open Government, Inc. (seeking review of the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals decision holding that confidential Delaware Business Arbitration Program proceedings would be contrary to “a First Amendment right of access to Delaware’s government-sponsored arbitrations”) has been distributed to the Justices of the US Supreme Court for review at their regular conference this coming Friday (March 21, 2014). It is therefore likely...
