North America

Racial and ethnic justice cases reveal ideological rift in the courts

In December, the Trump-era “Remain in Mexico” program resumed under President Joe Biden's administration. The immigration policy, formally known as the Migrant Protection Protocols, requires the U.S. government to return certain asylum-seekers to Mexico pending the adjudication of their immigration cases in American courts.

Jan 4, 2022 10:58 AM CST

US reinstates remain-in-Mexico program to comply with court order, expands people affected

The Biden administration on Monday began sending asylum-seekers to Mexico to await court hearings.

Dec 7, 2021 11:00 AM CST

Some California law firms turn down work amid associate shortage; six-figure signing bonuses reported

A shortage of associates in California’s Bay Area is leading some law firms to turn down work and others to strain available lawyers with the workload, according to a report by the Recorder.

Nov 4, 2021 9:26 AM CDT

Human rights abuses at boarding schools for Native American children must be examined, ABA House says

Resolution 801 urges organizations and governments to cooperate with the Department of the Interior’s Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative and hand over school records to help uncover the truth of what happened at the boarding schools.

Oct 1, 2021 1:10 AM CDT

Weekly Briefs: ABA president remembers 9/11; female judges in Afghanistan live in fear

ABA president calls for spirit of cooperation in Sept. 11 statement The ABA joins all of America in remembering the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, said ABA President Reginald M. Turner Jr. in a statement Friday. “We mourn for the lives lost and the families forever…

Sep 10, 2021 3:51 PM CDT

Dating app is for lawyers, legal professionals and those who want to meet them

A dating app called Lawyr is intended to connect people in the legal community with each other or with others who want to meet them.

Sep 9, 2021 2:53 PM CDT

Supreme Court doesn’t disturb order forcing Biden to revive remain-in-Mexico policy

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday kept in place a judge’s order requiring reinstatement of a Trump administration policy requiring asylum-seekers to remain in Mexico while their cases are pending.

Aug 25, 2021 9:35 AM CDT

Human rights violations at American Indian boarding schools must be investigated, ABA House says

The ABA House of Delegates voted Monday in favor of a resolution calling for an investigation into human rights abuses at American Indian boarding schools after the president of the Canadian Bar Association appeared in person to support the resolution.

Aug 10, 2021 9:30 AM CDT

Weekly Briefs: More people apply to law school; gun-pointing lawyers pardoned

Law school applicants jump, along with high LSAT scores The number of law school applicants jumped by 13% this year, the biggest hike since 2002. The data from the Law School Admission Council also shows an increase in people with top LSAT scores of 175 to 180; there were 1,487…

Aug 6, 2021 11:27 AM CDT

Texas lawyer pleads guilty to passing public PACER documents to Mexican drug traffickers

A lawyer with an office in McAllen, Texas, has pleaded guilty to violating the Travel Act by accessing the PACER court database and using his cellphone to pass the publicly available information to drug traffickers.

Jul 28, 2021 4:00 PM CDT

Law Society of British Columbia launches ‘innovation sandbox’ to address access-to-justice gap

The law society’s initiative comes several months after the Utah Supreme Court launched its own regulatory sandbox amid a growing movement in North America to open up the legal marketplace to nonlawyer financial interests and practitioners.

Nov 24, 2020 9:37 AM CST

Remain-in-Mexico policy for asylum-seekers will be reviewed by Supreme Court

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to review a Trump administration policy that requires asylum-seekers at the southern border to remain in Mexico while their cases are pending.

Oct 19, 2020 11:29 AM CDT

Does firm size matter? Retired lawyer muses on pros and cons of BigLaw and SmallLaw

The concept of BigLaw only recently crossed my radar. Though I had an idea of what it means, I wan’t sure and so I Googled it and went straight to one of my most trusted word reference texts, the Urban Dictionary.

Sep 14, 2020 10:07 AM CDT

Law firm teams up with Canadian legal tech company on AI-powered case prediction tool

Labor and employment law firm Fisher Phillips has partnered with Blue J Legal Inc. to bring the Toronto legal tech company’s AI-powered technology, which predicts court outcomes in the employment law arena, to the United States.

Aug 25, 2020 8:00 AM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: BigLaw’s big bankruptcy bucks; polyamorous ties recognized

Some BigLaw firms will earn big bucks in retail bankruptcies Several large law firms will likely earn millions of dollars representing retailers such as Neiman Marcus, J. Crew and J.C. Penney in Chapter 11 bankruptcies. Kirkland & Ellis partners are billing up to $1,845 per hour. (Law.com) Town recognizes polyamorous…

Jul 7, 2020 4:27 PM CDT