Negotiator in a Mixed Political Marriage Worries About Country’s Red-Blue Polarization

Harvard law lecturer Sheila Heen recalls her son’s consternation when he realized his parents had a mixed political marriage. Ben was only 5 in 2004 when President George W. Bush was challenged by John Kerry. On the day of the election, Heen planned to take her son with her to…

Nov 5, 2012 11:15 AM CST

Ad Attacks Michigan Supreme Court Candidate for Helping ‘Free a Terrorist’

A political ad sponsored by a group called the Judicial Crisis Network is criticizing a candidate for the Michigan Supreme Court with an allegation that she “volunteered to help free a terrorist.” The ad targets University of Michigan law professor Bridget McCormack. She is described as a lawyer fighting for…

Nov 5, 2012 11:00 AM CST

No Will, But a Way: Law Prof and Students Launch African Probate & Policy Initiative

Nov 1, 2012 9:20 AM CDT

Scalia’s Advice to Law Students: Take Bread-and-Butter Classes, Not ‘Law and Women’

Law students have just one chance to learn the basics, so they should avoid “frill courses,” Justice Antonin Scalia said on Thursday. Scalia spoke at the University of Wyoming after a hunting trip in which he did not bag any antelope, the Associated Press reports. Previous coverage said Scalia planned…

Oct 26, 2012 2:20 PM CDT

Law School Launches Program to House New Solo Lawyers

Five would-be solos and one two-person law firm hung their shingles this week on the sixth floor of their alma mater. Chicago-Kent College of Law’s “Solo and Small Firm Incubator” is a one-year program designed to provide real client experience under the guidance of clinical faculty and alumni mentors. The…

Oct 25, 2012 2:05 PM CDT

Mistrial Declared in Conservative Hiring Bias Suit Against University of Iowa Law School

A federal magistrate judge has declared a mistrial after jurors were unable to reach a verdict on one of two claims in a conservative hiring bias suit against the University of Iowa law school. Jurors ruled against Teresa Wagner on her First Amendment claim and deadlocked on her 14th Amendment…

Oct 25, 2012 11:49 AM CDT

Few Women Lead Law Journals at Top Schools

Only 31 percent of ABA-accredited law schools have female students as law review editors-in-chief, according to a recent data. The number drops to 29 percent at U.S. News & World Report top 50 law schools. The data was gathered by New York Law School, the National Law Journal reports, and…

Oct 22, 2012 8:23 PM CDT

Law School Email Draws Fire Amid Hotly Contested Retention Election for 3 Top Florida Judges

An unusual political battle over an upcoming retention election for three Florida Supreme Court justices has now embroiled one of the state’s law schools. As detailed recently by the Tampa Bay Times, the Republican Party of Florida, in an unprecedented move, announced last month that it would oppose the retention…

Oct 9, 2012 3:42 PM CDT

Columbia Law School Ranked Best for Career Prospects

The best law school for career prospects is Columbia and the best for classroom experience is Stanford, according to new rankings by the Princeton Review. The results were based on a survey of 18,000 law students and, in some instances, school-reported data, according to a Princeton Review press release. The…

Oct 9, 2012 1:26 PM CDT

Did Obama Violate the Take Care Clause by Staying Some Deportations? John Yoo Weighs In

President Barack Obama effectively wrote into law the failed DREAM Act when his administration announced in June that it would not deport many illegal aliens under 30 who came to this country as children, two law professors say. The president also breached his constitutional duty to enforce the laws under…

Oct 9, 2012 10:29 AM CDT

Is Law School Tuition ‘Too Damn High’? Dean and Tax Prof Differ on Solutions to Legal Ed Problems

A tax law professor and a law school dean are proposing two remedies for what ails law schools. University of California at Hastings law dean Frank Wu sees the problem as large class sizes. Law schools should have cut class sizes long ago, he writes in the Huffington Post. “Or…

Oct 5, 2012 12:14 PM CDT

Law Prof Sees Socioeconomic Bias on the Bench, Suggests Changes to ABA Model Code

In a 2010 opinion, Chief Judge Alex Kozinski of the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Court of Appeals suggested that judges display “unselfconscious cultural elitism” when they overlook the impact of their decisions on poor people. “There’s been much talk about diversity on the bench, but there’s one kind of diversity…

Oct 4, 2012 10:59 AM CDT

Lucky 36: What It Takes to Land a Supreme Court Clerkship

About a thousand candidates–most if not all of whom have top grades, fascinating backgrounds and served as law review editors–apply for U.S. Supreme Court clerkship slots each year. How do the 36 who get tapped make the cut? Reputation, coupled with a bit of luck, goes a long way, guests tell ABA Journal Podcast moderator Stephanie Francis Ward.

Oct 1, 2012 1:29 PM CDT

The World of McElhaney: Jim McElhaney Closes the Book on a Storied Career, But Angus Lives on

If anyone is in a position to explain the essence of what makes Jim McElhaney tick, it might well be Steven J. Miller. After starting law school at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., Miller transferred in 1979 to Case Western Reserve University School of Law in his native Cleveland, where…

Oct 1, 2012 10:20 AM CDT

Higher Ed: Yale Announces a Degree for Those Aiming to Be Law Profs

Oct 1, 2012 8:30 AM CDT