This year, the cities of San Francisco, Somerville, Massachusetts, and Oakland, California, all banned the government’s use of facial recognition technology as a larger legislative package overseeing police surveillance technology. Now, a few other states are looking to, at a minimum, press pause on the police use of this technology.
The country has come a long way, said U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and that’s what keeps her optimistic for the future. “It can be hard to do anything as a loner, but if you get together with like-minded people, you can be a force for change,” Ginsburg said at a discussion Monday at the University of Chicago.
A judge need not automatically recuse or be disqualified if a lawyer or party in a matter before the judge is a friend. But it is necessary if the judge is in a close personal relationship with the lawyer or party.
Technology is a blessing and a curse. For some lawyers, cutting-edge technologies can seem overwhelming. But with just a little research and know-how, you can incorporate modern technology into your law firm to streamline your practice and increase efficiency, writes lawyer Nicole Black.
What had started as a pre-internet computer crime law affecting national security and finance has become a statute that prosecutors, plaintiff attorneys and defense counsels agree isn’t right for its time, and maybe never was. Even with broad agreement on the problem, however, the solution is less clear.
Like many seeking public service student loan forgiveness, Jeffrey Morgan says he got bad information from student loan servicing centers. However, thanks to Twitter and Reddit—and perhaps his experience as a government lawyer dealing with bureaucracy and deciphering regulatory language—he’s now part of the estimated 5% who have had student loans discharged.
ABA President Bob Carlson invoked the spirit of Toni Morrison—the first African American woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature—at the Margaret Brent Awards luncheon at the ABA Annual Meeting in San Francisco on Sunday. “She was a trailblazer who undoubtedly paved the way for new generations of aspiring writers,” Carlson said. “The women we are honoring today, … by their language have touched the lives of many.”
Waleed Abu al-Khair, a human rights lawyer who was convicted on anti-terrorism charges and sentenced to 15 years in prison—simply for calling for the rule of law in Saudi Arabia—will receive the 2019 ABA International Human Rights Award during the ABA Annual Meeting in San Francisco. “Abu al-Khair epitomizes the ideals of what lawyers around the world are fighting for,” ABA President Bob Carlson says.
There are nearly 650 events planned for the 2019 ABA Annual Meeting in San Francisco and some important resolutions being brought before the ABA House of Delegates. Attendees will have opportunities to hear from civil rights stalwarts like Rep. John Lewis and Dale Minami; to socialize at events including a benefit concert for the Legal Services Corp.; and to learn from both colleagues and leaders in the field while earning CLE credit.
