Outburst at US Supreme Court would be a violation of decorum rules, but it was mostly ignored.

Ever get mad about a Supreme Court decision? So mad that you want to show the justices how you feel? Well, there's a law against it. 

The federal law against "harangues or orations" and using “loud or threatening or abusive language in the Supreme Court Building,”is seldom (if ever?) violated, but it happened this week when a California man interrupted oral arguments to express his displeasure about the decision in Citizens United.

Article here. (via state bar of Michigan blog).

Shouting "Money is not speech!" and "Corporations are not people!" the man implored the nine justices to "Overturn Citizens United!"

Identity theft allow thieves to steal tax refunds

Filing a tax return is stressful but imagine being stopped from filing your federal income tax return because a con artist beat you to the punch and filed a fake return using your stolen ID.

Article here. 

ABA report on 2012 law grads: about 1/2 have full-time legal work

Barely half of all 2012 law school graduates had full time, long-term legal jobs as of Feb. 15, according to employment outcome data released Friday by the ABA's Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar.

Law schools reported that 56.2 percent of 2012 graduates were in jobs requiring bar passage, the figures show. But that's still a slight improvement over last year, when only 54.9 percent of all 2011 graduates had full-time, long-term legal jobs nine months after graduation.

Article here. 

Civil rights and same-gender marriages, will Michigan allow this? Trial starts today.

Michigan’s highly anticipated gay marriage trial gets underway today in Detroit, where a federal judge will hear the pros and cons of children being raised in same-sex families and ultimately decide what the definition of marriage should be and will be in this state.

Michigan has a voter-approved ban on same-gender marriages, that essentially defines marriage in Michigan as between one man and one woman. This was about 10 years ago. 

Article here.  

Michigan’s case involves two Hazel Park nurses who are challenging the state's ban on same-sex marriage and same-sex adoption, arguing the bans unlawfully violate their right to get married and adopt each other's children. The plaintiffs, April DeBoer and Jayne Rowse, filed their suit in January 2012, initially raising only the adoption issue, but then challenging the gay marriage prohibition as well.

My personal take on this: I wrote an article (unpublished, email me for a copy) about equal protection for persons with disabilities. Even if the federal Court in today's trial decides to drop the voter-approved ban on same-gender marriages (which the Supreme Court views in the same category as persons with disabilities), what will happen at the next level? The Supremes have been on this issue for a bit in other cases, but haven't changed the level of constitutional scrutiny for this group.

Attempted suicide by cop? Prosecutor says only injured man knows.

Police were told that 19-year-old James Spivey was distraught, suicidal and would “take out” anyone who tried to help him.

Spivey fled upstairs when police entered his apartment on North Castle Ridge Dr. SE.
Police lost sight of him.

Officer Benjamin Hawkins tried to get Spivey to come back down, with his hands up. Spivey started “yelling and screaming” at police and told them to leave. Incoherent at times, Spivey would not promise Hawkins he wouldn’t hurt himself, and said that “it will get nasty.”

Later, Spivey charged the officers and officers shot him in self-defense, according to the Kent County Prosecutor, William Forsyth.

Article here. 

High School Students' Amicus Brief Accepted at Michigan Supreme Court

High school students from Father Gabriel Richard High submitted an amicus brief to the Michigan Supreme Court. The Court is about to hear oral argument in the case of juvenile lifers. 

A sample of the brief, from the outline of the brief's arguments:

II.     FAITH AND MORALITY ARE AT THE HEART OF THE 9th AMENDMENT

 A.     VENGEANCE HAS NO PLACE IN OUR JUSTICE SYSTEM

 B.     TO REDEEM MEANS:  "TO BUY BACK"; "TO CHANGE FOR THE BETTER"; "TO REPAIR, RESTORE."- Merriam Webster

Also: "We believe all persons have the potential capacity to be sorry for their sins, work to repair their wrongs, restore their worth as a member of society, to be rehabilitated and reintegrated into society. Fundamental to our beliefs as Christians is that all of us have a right and the promise to be redeemed.”

Article here.  (State Bar of Michigan blog). 

And here (freep).

How to start your own law practice right out of law school

No, I didn't write this article! It was written by Branigan Robertson, JD, in the Business Insider.

From the article: (I'd have linked directly to the article, but Business Insider wants users to subscribe. )

Here is a list of the essential things you must do to succeed in starting your own law firm right out of school:

1. Ignore the People Who Say You Can’t
2. Plan Ahead
3. Pick Only One Area of Law
4. Pick the Right Area of Law
5. Build a Referral Network
6. Build a Website Immediately
7. Join Organizations and Listservs
8. Remember That Clients Don’t Care About Your GPA, Law Review, or Age.

Personal note: #5 is more important than #6. Your website should be built, sure, but it's not going to be what draws clients to you. Clients will use it to call you, but only once they've heard your name from someone else. #1 is also very important. Even if you're not sure you can, keep going, and the work will start coming.