Features

How can aging judges know when it’s time to hang up the robe?

Lawyers, law professors and even members of the judiciary voice concerns that judges are serving too much time on the bench without ensuring their cognitive skills stay sharp. They have called for mandatory retirement and cognitive testing as well as a more consistent approach to addressing cognitive decline. But members of the legal community who have experience with neuroscience argue that the question of when a judge should step down is complex.

Dec 1, 2020 3:30 AM CST

Lawyers involved in the gun debate are primed for the Supreme Court to take the next big case

As fatal police shootings and gun violence ravage Black communities, and mass shootings and active shooter drills have become ingrained in the American experience, local and state governments have countered the threat by creating more gun laws. As gun rights groups have fought those laws in the courts, it’s become a common refrain that trial judges are flouting the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in District of Columbia v. Heller and undermining Second Amendment rights.

Dec 1, 2020 3:00 AM CST

Law school debt is delaying plans for recent grads

Some new attorneys delay buying a home or a new car. Others reluctantly postpone marriage and having children while altering the career plans they had going into law school. These are among the personal and professional sacrifices young lawyers often make due to their sizable student loan debt.

Dec 1, 2020 12:00 AM CST

Coronavirus-related deaths in nursing homes prompt lawsuits and questions about who’s responsible

A growing number of negligence suits are being filed across the country against nursing homes and other long-term care facilities by families whose relatives died from the coronavirus while living in such facilities.

Oct 1, 2020 4:00 AM CDT

Recent equal pay lawsuits by female law professors has shined a light on academic compensation process

“People who violate the norms get punished. Whether that is demanding equal pay, demanding to get the same quality of work as a nonminority or demanding to be spoken to with dignity, norm violators get punished. And for too long, women were expected to sit down, be quiet and follow the lead of men,” says Fitzgerald Bramwell, a Chicago litigator.

Oct 1, 2020 3:30 AM CDT

Is this a moment or a movement? 6 civil rights lawyers reflect on recent demands for racial justice

Lawyers have a long tradition of supporting efforts to bring racial and social justice to this country. Recent killings of unarmed Black people by police have sparked a new wave of protests and demonstrations on a scale not seen in decades. Once again, the nation has been forced to pay attention.

Oct 1, 2020 12:00 AM CDT

ABA’s Practice Forward group will help lawyers navigate rapidly changing profession

The rapid spread of COVID-19 has forced lawyers and the justice system to quickly implement new ways of operating to best serve the public, and experts predict many of these changes will continue beyond the current global health crisis. In response, the ABA has created the Coordinating Group on Practice Forward.

Aug 1, 2020 2:40 AM CDT

Documentaries are shaping public opinion and influencing cases

“Legal documentaries reflect the best of what media can do,” says Dan Abrams, chief legal affairs anchor at ABC News. “They can expose injustices, highlight things that have been buried and force action from people in power.” On the flip side, Abrams cautions that some documentaries can blur the line between journalism and advocacy, giving them a veneer or presumption of legitimacy.

Aug 1, 2020 2:30 AM CDT

Activists are fighting new voter suppression tactics in court

Despite legislative achievements, it wasn’t long until end runs were made around voter protection laws, and those efforts are alive and well, election law attorneys and voting rights advocates say.

Aug 1, 2020 2:00 AM CDT

Will the COVID-19 pandemic fundamentally remake the legal industry?

Many technological changes being adopted now will persist beyond COVID-19, as will the utilization of remote working. Meanwhile, others have suggested the widespread upheaval will provide fuel for state reviews of whether to open up the legal marketplace to alternative business structures and nonlawyer practitioners.

Aug 1, 2020 12:00 AM CDT

How to avoid 10 common ethics pitfalls

We asked legal ethics experts for a primer on the most pressing and pernicious ethics traps out there for the modern lawyer, along with best practices to avoid problems on the front end.

Jun 1, 2020 12:10 AM CDT

Millions have been invested in the emerging field of neurolaw. Where is it leading?

How do courts determine a person’s mental state and apply that in deciding guilt or innocence? How do judges and juries weigh evidence related to brain functioning? And what do lawyers and judges need to know to effectively evaluate such questions?

Jun 1, 2020 12:05 AM CDT

Coronavirus on board: Lawyer’s parents were trapped on a contaminated cruise ship

Florida plaintiffs lawyer Debi F. Chalik remembers the moment she decided to file suit against Princess Cruises for negligence arising from the COVID-19 outbreak on the Grand Princess ship. It was March 6, and she was home watching Vice President Mike Pence deliver a televised briefing that included an update on the status of the Grand Princess.

Jun 1, 2020 12:02 AM CDT

Suing a cruise line? There are a boatload of challenges unique to the industry

Bringing a case against an ocean cruise line is challenging. Plaintiffs lawyers say these cases are highly specific and highly specialized, governed by myriad legal standards and subject to investigative challenges. It’s an area so unique that it’s easy for a novice lawyer to make an honest mistake that can permanently sink an otherwise meritorious case.

Jun 1, 2020 12:00 AM CDT

Corporate lawyers can help clients change the world—and bill for it—with this growing practice area

Lawyers who practice in the social enterprise and investment impact space say their structures vary depending on the deal, but all agree: This is not pro bono legal work. “It’s no longer about making money or doing good, it’s about making money and doing good,” says Scott M. Curran, founder of Beyond Advisers, a Chicago-based social impact consulting firm.

Apr 1, 2020 3:40 AM CDT