The Legal Intelligencer Blog: Legal News

Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Legal News Blogs

OR PHONE (866) 635-1838 for Bankruptcy Help, (866) 635-6190 for Divorce,
(866) 635-2689 for Personal Injury or (866) 635-9402 for Criminal Defense

Find a Local Lawyer

Bankruptcy (866) 635-1838
Divorce (866) 635-6190
Personal Injury (866) 635-2689
Criminal Defense (866) 635-9402

Legal News

The Legal Intelligencer Blog

From the oldest law journal in the United States.
By The Legal Intelligencer

Post Frequency: 4.6/day

Last Entry: March 29, 2011 at 14:24:47

Filmmaking, Novel Writing and Pretrial Publicity Redemption

Posted on May 13, 2008
In California, the question is whether a prosecutor?s consulting with the makers of a major motion picture ?Alpha Dog? based on a criminal defendant?s story creates a conflict sufficient to require recusal. In this case, Jesse James Hollywood (I can hardly believe that this is his real name) is facing the death penalty for the kidnapping [...

Is It Me?

Posted on May 13, 2008
Or does it seem that just about everyone in America is planning to retire in the next few years? If you watch television or read magazines of almost any kind, you will see constant stories about impending retirement: Are people ready for retirement; What can they do now to get ready; etc...

PBA Backs Rate Increase for Defense Attorneys

Posted on May 08, 2008
A group of Philadelphia criminal defense attorneys for the indigent suing the city to increase their rates have gained the support of the Philadelphia Bar Association in their effort. During the Board of Governors meeting held in April, the board endorsed increasing court appointed counsel fees because the fees remain ?oppressively low,? according to the resolution...

?Well, She Got Her Daddy?s Car??

Posted on May 05, 2008
“And she cruised through the hamburger stand, now.” The philosophers Brian Wilson and Mike Love remind us of the perils of giving children too much too soon, in “Fun, Fun, Fun (’Til Her Daddy Takes the T-Bird Away).” This is a theme common in literature going back centuries, at least to King Lear, and it’s [...

To access this complete feed in the blog feed reader login or register for free.

Pratt Calls for Senate Action to Fill Court Vacancies

Posted on May 01, 2008
Philadelphia Bar Association Chancellor Mike Pratt has joined Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille?s request for the Pennsylvania Senate to act on Gov. Edward G. Rendell?s nominees to fill four appellate court vacancies. Earlier this month, Senate President Pro Tempore Joseph B...

The Giant Rat of Sumatra

Posted on April 28, 2008
This title will be familiar to readers of the adventures of Sherlock Holmes. It’s a story mentioned in one of the Holmes stories as one for which the world was not yet ready. Apparently, the world was never ready for the story, because the author died without having written about a giant rat, from Sumatra [...

Blank Rome to Lose Half of Florida Office

Posted on April 24, 2008
Half of Blank Rome?s eight-attorney Boca Raton, Fla., office will be leaving for Greenberg Traurig, according to a story by The Legal?s sister publication, Law.com. Blank Rome spokesman Topper Ray confirmed that partner Bruce C. Rosetto would be leaving the office along with three associates...

False Claims of Citizenship Can Render Aliens Inadmissible

Posted on April 23, 2008
There are many aliens in the United States today, both legally and illegally, who are faced with the dilemma of supporting either themselves or their families financially, both here in the United States and back home in their country of origin. The conflict that these aliens face is determining exactly how they are planning to [...

Planning to Live

Posted on April 21, 2008
Every so often, a partner in my firm will approach me in a sheepish manner to say he or she hasn’t done any estate planning recently or, in extreme cases, doesn’t have a will at all. Sometimes clients admit the same. I suppose this has to do with a belief that planning for the inevitable [...

Gun Concerns in Philly? Nation

Posted on April 16, 2008
Clinton?s Take: She said the U.S. Supreme Court might have trouble finding constitutional Washington, D.C.?s complete ban on all guns. She said there can be a balance between gun control and gun rights. What works in New York City probably wouldn?t work in Montana, she said...

Hillary Gives Shout Out to Rendell? Hillary

Posted on April 16, 2008
In case you didn?t catch where Sen. Clinton stands on a certain issue, you can check out her Web site. She has mentioned it twice so far? HillaryClinton.com.. She also gave credit to Gov. Edward G. Rendell for keeping foreclosure rates low in Pennsylvania...

Iraq First Real Issue Discussed in Debate

Posted on April 16, 2008
Almost an hour into the debate, questions turned to real issues in the campaign instead of missteps in the campaigning. Iraq was the topic and both senators defended their positions to pull troops out of Iraq ? within 60 days for Clinton and 16 months for Obama...

Clinton Asks for Gift From Bush/Cheney Camp

Posted on April 16, 2008
Sen.� Clinton continually brought the debate back to who could really beat Sen. McCain, pointing to ways the Republicans could criticize Obama in the general election. “I wish the Republicans would just apologize for the Bush/Cheney years and not run” a candidate, she said, adding that clearly won’t happen...

Fireworks Fizzle as Debate Begins - Candidates Defend Recent Gaffes

Posted on April 16, 2008
The fight for a win in Pennsylvania?s Democratic primary has been blazing a trail across the state for weeks, but the fire seemed to burn out when the two candidates took the stage at the National Constitution Center. The debate between Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama took a subdued, respectful tone as the two [...

Civil Gideon Movement Looks to Expand Right to Publicly Provided Legal Counsel

Posted on April 15, 2008
The Supreme Court’s 1963 decision in Gideon v. Wainwright guaranteeing low-income citizens the right to publicly funded defense lawyers in criminal cases had a momentous day in Philadelphia last week On the same day, a group of private attorneys who take court-appointed cases representing indigent criminal defendants filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Philadelphia [...

Essential Planning for Retirement Distributions

Posted on April 14, 2008
For many people, their largest financial asset will be the balance in their retirement plan.� The growth in 401(k) plans and the increases in the limits on deductible contributions to retirement plans have resulted in growth of such plans to overall levels of trillions of dollars...

Chance Plays by No Rules

Posted on April 11, 2008
As the winter sky slowly changes to a springtime blue ? a deep vibrant color that hints at immortality ? memories return. I inhale the cool morning air as I walk among trees budding with promise, and I sink into a reverie of my youth, a reflection that is painfully informed by the fact that [...

JuicyCampus May Sour Communication Decency Act of 1996

Posted on April 11, 2008
In the fall of 2007, college student Matt Ivester founded JuicyCampus.com, an Internet blog that allows fellow college students to anonymously post information about each other. Since its founding, the blog has created much controversy for containing hate speech, potentially defamatory and libelous statements and spreading allegedly malicious gossip about students...

Pa. Supreme Court May Import Negligence Concepts Into Products Liability Law

Posted on April 10, 2008
A defense attorney representing an industrial supplier in a pending asbestos appeal before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court believes that the Supreme Court is likely to change the state?s law to import negligence concepts into products liability law. The Supreme Court granted allocatur in an asbestos case on Feb...

Litigating Hague Convention Claims

Posted on April 09, 2008
The Hague Convention is an international treaty that many countries have ratified, including the United States. The treaty prohibits parents from wrongfully removing and/or retaining a child from his or her home country. In order to seek relief under the convention, both the child?s home country and the country where the child was taken must [...

Federal Estate Tax ? No, Seriously

Posted on April 08, 2008
In 2001, Congress passed, and the President signed, a strange law regarding the federal estate tax. The plan was to gradually reduce the tax rate and gradually increase the exemption from tax.� In 2010, the tax was to disappear entirely but only for people who died in that year...

Read the Fine Print of Open Source Software Regulations

Posted on April 04, 2008
My inaugural ?techlaw? post focuses on some of the recent activities of the Free Software Foundation that should be of interest for any organization selling products that incorporate software. The FSF is a non-profit entity that advocates use of so-called ?open source? software subject to the ?GPL? license...

Best Practices for Contract Administration and Other Terms and Conditions Pointers

Posted on April 03, 2008
Did you hear the one about the sales person who faxed a quote to a customer? The company?s terms and conditions, which were on the reverse side of the page, didn?t quite make it. Ultimately, the customer had a warranty claim and, since the company never actually sent its terms and conditions to the customer, [...

HSP Gaming Gets Its Wish ? Court Moves Up Arguments to April Session

Posted on April 03, 2008
HSP Gaming will now get to argue for the right to build its casino on state-owned riparian lands in the same city where those lands lie beneath the Delaware River. The arguments, originally scheduled for the state Supreme Court?s May session in Harrisburg, were moved up to the court?s April 15 session in Philadelphia at HSP [...

ICE Worksite Enforcement of U.S. Immigration Laws

Posted on April 02, 2008
Under the old Immigration and Naturalization Service, there was little deterrent, if any, for U.S. employers to stop hiring illegal aliens for the purposes of employment with their companies.� The only punishment levied by the INS against employers who hired illegal aliens under this country?s prior Immigration Laws was administrative sanctions or fines...

Megatrends in Trusts and Estates

Posted on March 31, 2008
Megatrends is a name given to important changes in the economy or in the behavior of many people. People write books and articles about megatrends, hoping to identify them before others do and to benefit in some way (usually by selling more books). There are several megatrends that have a definite impact on trusts and [...

PBA Closer to Directly Electing Leadership

Posted on March 28, 2008
The Philadelphia Bar Association moved one step closer to directly electing all of its leadership after the Board of Governors accepted a bylaw amendment during its meeting Thursday that will eliminate the nominating committee in favor of a completely member-and voter-directed process...

Client Interviewers Increasing in Popularity

Posted on March 28, 2008
While Ballard Spahr was the latest Pennsylvania firm to add a client interviewer, it isn’t the only one to have such a position. Duane Morris, well known for having one of the largest marketing departments in the country relative to its lawyer headcount, has had a dedicated client relationships manager for more than four years...

Schnader Harrison Brings Back Former Partner

Posted on March 28, 2008
Jeffrey O. Greenfield rejoined Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis as a partner in the firm’s business services department. He was most recently with the firm in 2001. Schnader Harrison said he plans to use is experience as an attorney for more than 18 years along with his business background to work with the firm’s corporate clients [...

Court Decision Perpetuates Fodder in Mumia Case

Posted on March 27, 2008
The Legal Intelligencer reported online today that Mumia Abu-Jamal?s death sentence has been overturned but his conviction upheld. Shannon Duffy reported that the ?3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court?s ruling that affirmed Abu-Jamal?s conviction but overturned his death sentence due to potentially confusing jury instructions...

Previous | Next

Related Law Bulletins

Update on AILF's Legal Action Center Visa Bulletin Litigation (Updated 7/10/07)
The following is the latest update from AILF regarding its pening ...

The Immigrant Legal Resource Center Legislative Forecast
The ILRC Forecast on Immigration ReformJudith Golub, Executive Dir...

The Christian Legal Society and "discrimation": Response to Susan
In response to Susan's post, I'm inclined to think that, yes, the ...

Stacy Scnheider Legal Commentator Apprentice

Catholic Legal Theory and life and death
Tom Berg’s question regarding the propriety or not of capital pu...