Law Professors

Chemerinsky Recalls Hiring, Firing, Rehiring at UC Irvine

Constitutional law scholar Erwin Chemerinsky, who last year was recruited, hired, then publicly fired and run through the ringer before being hired again, describes the experience as “the most difficult of my life.” But Chemerinsky says that the ordeal that led to his installation as the first dean of the…

Sep 26, 2008 9:55 AM CDT

Greta Van Susteren Gave Mostly A’s as a Georgetown Law Prof

Georgetown students who didn’t get an A from law professor Greta Van Susteren, now a Fox News commentator, have some explaining to do. In a YouTube video posted on TaxProf Blog, Van Susteren calls law school grading a “fraud” and says she gave A’s to almost everybody. Above the Law…

Sep 25, 2008 2:14 PM CDT

Tulane Law Dean Apologizes to La. Justices for Errors in Study of Donor Influence

The dean of Tulane law school is apologizing to the Louisiana Supreme Court for errors in a professor’s study that had found campaign contributions appear to influence the justices’ votes. Dean Lawrence Ponoroff said “miscalculation in the underlying data” had called into question the reliability of some or all of…

Sep 18, 2008 2:41 PM CDT

Junior Bankruptcy Judge is Assigned Lehman Case

The second-most junior bankruptcy judge in Manhattan will be handling the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, but that doesn’t mean he can’t handle the job, says a lawyer who will be appearing before him. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge James Peck was randomly assigned to the $613 billion bankruptcy filing, Bloomberg News reports. Before…

Sep 16, 2008 2:50 PM CDT

‘Unrealistic Goal’ Helped Ex-Inmate Journey from Prison Cell to Yale Law

Andres Idarraga’s future didn’t look promising when his drug-dealing caught up with him and he was sentenced to a 14-year term in a Rhode Island prison. He was about 20 years old and had never graduated from high school. But he began spending all his free time in the prison…

Sep 11, 2008 11:46 PM CDT

More Law Schools Hiring Professor Power Couples

For several law schools, the hiring of law professors has become a package deal. As the number of law professor couples increases and the competition for top faculty becomes more intense, several law schools are hiring both spouses, the National Law Journal reports. The legal newspaper says these law school…

Sep 11, 2008 1:32 PM CDT

Law Profs’ Campaign Contributions Overwhelmingly Favor Democrats

Law professors have donated more than $1 million to the political parties and the presidential candidates, with more than 90 percent of the money flowing into Democratic coffers. Law profs donated $623,472 to the parties, and almost 93 percent of it went to Democrats, TaxProf Blog reports, using figures from…

Sep 10, 2008 1:41 PM CDT

Will Calif. Supreme Court Provide Bar Data for Controversial Study?

Seeking to pursue a controversial study about the effectiveness of law school affirmative action programs, researchers have sued the State Bar of California for access to 30 years of examination records. They are now asking the state supreme court to compel the bar association to turn over the bar exam…

Sep 8, 2008 5:10 PM CDT

Foley Hoag, Law Profs Represent Georgia in World Court Hearing

Foley Hoag and two law professors are representing the Republic of Georgia in an emergency hearing before the International Court of Justice. The hearing set to begin Sept. 8 claims Russian forces and Russian-supported separatist militias engaged in ethnic cleansing against Georgians, according to a Foley Hoag press release e-mailed…

Sep 3, 2008 2:09 PM CDT

Bankruptcy Filers Play Catch Up for at Least a Dozen Years

Individuals who file for bankruptcy are at a disadvantage for a dozen years in terms of savings and even longer in terms of net worth and home ownership, according to a study by a law professor and research scientist. The study found that bankruptcy filers were more likely to be…

Aug 27, 2008 3:46 PM CDT

Off-Label Drugs Will Be Next Enforcement Focus, Law Prof Predicts

Every year, when Dallas attorney Steve Kardell kicks off the corporate compliance and governance class he teaches at Southern Methodist University’s Dedman School of Law, he starts by predicting the subject of the next wave of company scandals. Last year, he pointed to subprime lending. The year before, it was…

Aug 27, 2008 3:39 PM CDT

Does Lack of Chutzpah Account for Dearth of Articles by Female Law Profs?

The top law reviews are printing fewer articles by women than men, according to a study by a Brooklyn Law School professor. She says the reason may be gender bias, a suggestion that is provoking some debate among bloggers. Professor Minna Kotkin analyzed articles in the top 15 law reviews…

Aug 21, 2008 2:47 PM CDT

AALS Moves Seminars Due to Profs’ Protest About Hotel Owner’s Views

To avoid a threatened boycott, the Association of American Law Schools won’t hold its annual meeting seminars at a hotel owned by a gay-marriage opponent. The AALS says in a statement that it will abide by its contract to reserve hotel rooms at the Manchester Grand Hyatt but it won’t…

Aug 19, 2008 4:48 PM CDT

Law Profs Threaten Boycott of Meeting Due to Hotel Owner’s Views

Updated: Four groups representing law professors and legal writing professionals are threatening to boycott the annual meeting of the Association of American Law Schools because of the views of the man who owns the hotel where the meeting may take place. The meeting is slated to be held in January…

Aug 5, 2008 2:19 PM CDT

Law Librarian’s Beef: High-Tech Law Students Do ‘Wal-Mart’-Style Research

The law library director for Texas Southern University’s Thurgood Marshall School of Law says law students today are more impatient and less likely to take the time to find complete answers to legal questions. DeCarlous Spearman talked about her observations in an interview with the Houston Chronicle. “Students now want…

Aug 4, 2008 6:03 PM CDT