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So a lawyer walks into a courtroom and … No joke, a lawyer walked into a courtroom and bedbugs hopped out of his jacket. There are some things even insects won’t do. Seriously, officials closed the courthouse to have it treated for possible contamination. Then they let everyone but the lawyer back in. Just kidding. Unknown Lawyer The story came from the Rogers County Courthouse in Oklahoma. The Tulsa World reported that “someone saw something crawling on a lawyer” in the third-floor courtroom....

Perhaps you’ve never considered the similarities – and differences – between ducks and weddings. But you’re probably familiar with the “duck test.” If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it’s probably a duck. The same cannot be said for marriages, according to a California Appellate Court. In 2007, Andrew and Andrea entered into a stipulation providing for Andrew to pay spousal support to Andrea in the amount of $32,547 per month and child support in the amount of $14,590 per month....

While most of the internet public was outraged when news of the Cambridge Analytica scandal broke, one Facebook investor and shareholder decided to take legal action. The shareholder, Fan Yuan, filed a federal class action in the Northern District Court of California. The lawsuit claims that Facebook’s privacy failures resulted in the 10 percent drop in Facebook’s share price, causing significant losses to its shareholders. As noted by comedian and the Late Show host Stephen Colbert, that’s equates to a $36 billion dollar tumble....

In homeowners’ breach of contract and bad faith suit against their insurer, the insurer’s petition for writ of mandate is granted as, building a structure that encroaches onto another’s property is not an accident even if the owners acted in a good faith but mistaken belief that they were legally entitled to build where they did. Because their homeowner policy did not provide coverage for non-accidental occurrences, the owners’ insurer had no duty to defend when the owners were sued by the adjoining landowner as a result of the encroachment....

In case you haven’t been paying attention, here’s the dirt on Sri Srinivasan, a newer arrival to the D.C. Circuit, but widely considered a rising legal star and potential future SCOTUS nominee. A native of India, he grew up in Kansas, graduated from Stanford, and clerked for Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. Srinivasan gained notice as a private litigator and government lawyer before joining the D.C. Circuit. Four of the nine Justices currently sitting on the Supreme Court came through the D....

Kane Kellett gave Judge G. Martin Zopp the finger and in return he got a six-month contempt of court sentence. As reported by The Daily Herald, the 24-year-old man from Crystal Lake, Ill. was in court on charges including the violent assault of a pregnant woman. When asked to stand and raise his right hand to be sworn, he opted to give Judge Zopp the one finger salute. As one might expect, the rules of what one can freely express change drastically in the courtroom, particularly if addressed to the judge....

The Associated Press (AP) reports that a 19-year-old New Zealand student has auctioned her virginity online for $32,000 to pay her college tuition fees. But Kiwi police have issued a warning to the girl about following through with the deal. Spokesman Jon Neilson said the teenager had broken no law but “we would suggest it’s not a safe practice.” Using chat rooms, social dating networks and other Internet sites to arrange meetings between strangers always raise “issues of personal safety,” he added....

Jason Shoumaker, a former facilities director at the University of Texas law school, was having the time of his life. He traveled to the U.S. Virgin Islands, Cozumel, Las Vegas, and Miami – all on company time. The problem was, he was supposed to be at the law school all that time. Now he’s facing criminal charges for tampering with time records. But for the Texas law school, there is a much bigger problem....

Remember the cliquish stereotypes of high school – jocks, nerds, etc.? They seemed to form naturally, as kids gravitated to their own kind. It is not so different in college, what with fraternities formalizing the divisions. But law school? Perhaps we matured by then, but student groupings become a science in graduate school anyway. And that could be a good thing. This becomes relevant when discussing law school rankings. Where do the best students go?...

Newly minted lawyers are hanging their own shingles at a much higher rate than ever before. While some law schools have started offering courses on the practical business skills for running a firm as a result of this increase, the ivory tower is a bit too far removed from the real world to teach real client acquisition strategies. When push comes to shove, without clients, you can’t practice law, and paying the bills is going to be even harder....

It’s OCI season and you’ve gone over the first hurdle – submitting your resume. Now that you have your interviews scheduled, the next big question is: what to wear? Remember in high school, how the smartest teachers would always be really hard on you at the beginning of the year, then ease up as you gained their trust? Well, professional dressing is just like that. You need to be very conservative in the beginning and then once you have the job, you can think about matching the firm culture with what you wear....

Trial court order dismissing the case against defendant is affirmed where: 1) trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying the request to continue the case beyond the time limit set forth in Penal Code sec. 1382 after finding no courtroom available in which to try the matter, and there was nothing in the record to support the People’s claim that the court congestion was caused by the trial court’s mismanagement or administrative policy; and 2) the People are foreclosed from refiling the charges in this case under Penal Code sec....

Should the American Bar Association drop its long-standing ban on academic credit for paid externships during law school? That was last week’s “Room for Debate” topic over at The New York Times, with two people (a law student an an attorney) arguing in favor of lifting the ban, and one (a professor) arguing for the status quo. If you’re a long-time reader, you know how much I absolutely hate the idea of unpaid internships, though that’s more an aversion to employers taking advantage of rising 2Ls and 3Ls who are desperate for resume filler by having them provide actual, valuable labor for free....

The Final Four tips off this weekend, and some of us are still clutching a red ink-stained bracket, holding out some hope that we can still win our office March Madness pool. While these office pools aren’t exactly legal (don’t worry - we won’t tell if you don’t), what kind of sports gambling, if any, is legal in your state? Here’s a quick survey of the sports gambling laws in each state:...

In an appeal from the denial of plaintiff’s action to enforce a settlement agreement it claimed the parties reached during the pendency of its suit for specific performance of a real estate transaction, the district court’s order is affirmed where the parties had failed to reach agreement on a material element of the case. Read T Street Dev., LLC v. Dereje & Dereje, No. 08-7123 Appellate Information Argued October 9, 2009...

You are not getting sleepy as you read this story. This is the twisted tale of a lawyer who hypnotized clients for sex, and a judge who said she was victimized by a man who hypnotized women for sex. They are actually two separate stories, but they intersect in a town, as Rod Serling would have said, somewhere in the Twilight Zone. Unlike the television show, however, these stories are true....

“Who Dat?” is a loaded question way down in New Orleans these days. For the uninitiated and/or Yankees among us (author included), “Who Dat” is the chant that Saints fans use to cheer on their beloved 2010 Super Bowl champs. As of late, the cheer is the subject of at least one cease and desist letter and one trademark suit. According to a terrific and wide-ranging report on ChillingEffects.org, the first quarter play in the Who Dat battle began with the NFL hitting two local establishments with cease and desist letters for selling merchandise combining the Saints colors of black and gold, the team insignia (and that of the city, the state, as well the ancient French Royal family, the Bourbons, and other ruling European dynasties) of the fleur-de-lys and the saintly slogan, “Who Dat....

Every parent has hopes and dreams for their children, but none more important than their health, safety, and welfare. In trying to provide a safe online environment for their children, many check to ensure all downloaded apps are age-appropriate and presumably compliant with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). When it comes to apps, there are two revenue models for the publisher: subscription and ad based. Since most children don’t have money to purchase one-time or monthly subscriptions, most publishers of children’s games choose to offer free apps and earn revenue from advertising companies....

In an opinion out of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, the massive pharma company Boehringer seems to have squeezed out a narrow victory in a rather large discovery dispute over attorney-client privileged communications between corporate employees and corporate attorneys. And while the court upheld the district court’s ruling that attorney-client privilege applied to the communications between employee and attorney, the underlying facts of the communication could nevertheless be fair game....

Many women go a little crazy over finding the perfect bridal gown. But when they can’t afford it they often settle for something more affordable. An as-yet unidentified woman didn’t have that kind of restraint. She knew which gown she wanted and since the $5,000 price tag was hard to swallow she just walked out the door with the dress. In a fairytale world she would be able to keep that dress but if police can figure out her identity that likely won’t happen....