Looking for a reason to visit St. Louis in March?

National Appellate Advocacy Competition Seeks Judges for St. Louis Competition on March 5-7, 2015

The ABA Law Student Division seeks 120 lawyers and judges to serve as oral argument judges for the Division’s regional National Appellate Advocacy Competition (NAAC) in St. Louis on March 5-7, 2015 at the St. Louis Municipal Court Department.

The rounds are scheduled as follows:
Round 1: Thursday, March 5 (3:30pm-7:45pm)
Round 2: Friday, March 6 (3:30pm-7:45pm)
Round 3: Saturday, March 7 (8:30am-12:45pm)
Round 4: Saturday, March 7 (1:00pm-3:30pm)
Round 5: Saturday, March 7 (3:30pm-6:00pm)


Register Here
CLE CREDIT INFORMATION
The ABA Law Student Division National Appellate Advocacy Competition will apply for CLE credit in Illinois, California, and New York for all regional locations and the state of Missouri.
The ABA Law Student Division will send an email confirming judging assignments and provide a bench memorandum, the problem (record), and instructions on judging. Reviewing these materials is the only preparation required of competition judges.
Visit the NAAC Website for more information

9th Cir. Judge Nguyen video profile online

'Pathways' Video: Judge Nguyen Cites Lessons in Family's Flight from Vietnam

U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Jacqueline H. Nguyen understands the importance of  reaching out to accept opportunities to serve. In the newest U.S. Courts Pathways to the Bench video profile, Judge Nguyen says that her parents had "tremendous' gratitude"  for their opportunities in America, after fleeing Vietnam with their young family in 1975. In the video, Judge Nguyen encourages others to step out of their comfort zone – as she did – "to have the courage and work ethic to accept opportunities that will shape your life." Watch the video about Judge Nguyen. The full Pathways to the Bench video series is available on the U.S. Courts Educational Resources section. While intended for all audiences, the Pathways videos especially can inspire high school students and youth groups to overcome obstacles on the way to achieving  dreams.

See also, this Gavel to Gavel article here.

"Appeals Court Slapped Over Lengthy 'Unpublished' Ruling"

 

The NLJ presents "Appeals Court Slapped Over Lengthy 'Unpublished' Ruling", which explains:

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas on Tuesday sharply criticized a federal appeals court for issuing a lengthy opinion that was nonetheless unpublished, which he called a "disturbing aspect" of the case before the high court.
The comment could revive a decades-old debate over so-called "unpublished opinions" of appeals courts, which are sometimes cursory and don't have precedential value. According to the most recent statistics available, 88 percent of the 37,820 opinions issued by federal appeals courts in 2013 were categorized as "unpublished"—a misnomer because most are actually available through the court that issued them or through online data services. ...

Controversy over unpublished opinions divided the federal judiciary a decade ago, with judges—including the Ninth Circuit's Alex Kozinski—arguing that ending them would vastly increase the workload of judges by requiring them to put more research into even the most cursory rulings.
But the late Judge Richard Arnold of the Eighth Circuit and others argued that issuing decisions without precedential value was unconstitutional.

In 2005 the Supreme Court issued a rule that did not end the practice, but said lawyers could cite unpublished opinions. That did not stem the flow of unpublished opinions in most courts. 

Also in the NLJ see State of the Union Address: Supreme Court Highlights

Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. attended the address with justices Anthony Kennedy, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, one more than last year but still below the average number of previous decades. 

Court scholars Todd Peppers and Michael Giles, in a 2011 paper on justices and the State of the Union address, said only 31 percent of justices have attended since 2000, down from 84 percent from 1965 to 1980.

Mosk on Mosk!

2/5's Justice Mosk has an interesting article in today's DJ titled Mosk on Mosk and Civil Rights in California. Here's the upshot:

"My father was in the forefront of the civil rights movement. He established a Civil Rights division in the state Department of Justice; fought for Latino voting rights in the Imperial Valley; ruled that schools could consider race in efforts to desegregate schools; worked to end discrimination in housing, lending and public accommodations; sought to educate law enforcement on minority issues; supported the extension of the jurisdiction of the California Fair Employment Practices Commission; and hired minorities and women into the state Department of Justice.
After a long and sordid history of racial discrimination in the state, California emerged as a leader in state and judicial action to combat it. And Stanley Mosk was an important figure in that battle."

The LA Times' "New Look of High Court"

Today's LA Times (California Section, page B1 above the fold) offers
Brown appointees to Supreme Court renew hopes in death penalty cases.
The best part of the article is that in the actual print edition (not online), there's a nice photo spread of each justice -- except that the photos for Justices Corrigan and Werdegar are switched! OOPS!

 

This is what's currently posted on the Supreme Court Justices' webpage
for Justices Cuéllar  and Kruger.

San Diego Bar Appellate Events

SDCBA's Appellate Practice Section has a regular monthly meeting January 28. (Meetings are at noon, the fourth Wednesday of the month at the County Bar Center.)

And it is offering an appellate settlement program (live and via webcast) on February 4:

Register here for the live program at the SDCBA Conference Center downtown.
Hon. Judith L. Haller, Chief Circuit Mediator Claudia L. Bernard, and Guylyn Cummins
(This program is worth 1.0 Specialization Credit in Appellate Practice)
Learn from a Court of Appeal Justice, the 9th Circuit's Chief Circuit Mediator, and a top practitioner how to effectively handle settlement conferences both procedurally and substantively in state and federal appellate courts. Topics to be covered:

• Trial versus appellate court: Learn critical differences between settlement conferences at the trial and appellate levels.
• State versus federal: Know significant differences in how settlement conferences are handled in both forums and the impact on your appeal.
• How to prevail: Find out how to prevail in the settlement context on appeal and to educate your client about the process.

Click here to register for the remote internet Webcast.

OCBA Feb. 5 Appellate Section program

Appellate Law Section Meeting Annual State of the Court Address Justice O'Leary will discuss the state of the court, provide a budget update, and give her expectations for the future. Honorable Kathleen E. O'Leary  Presiding Justice Court of Appeal, 4th District, Division 3

AND
for more OC Appellate/Legal Excitement
Visit the Newport Beach Central Library

Three award-winning courtroom illustrators, Elizabeth Williams, Bill Robles and Aggie Kenny will be highlighted and the focus will be on their court art and its unique blend of law, journalism and art. These three artists have covered hundreds of cases and trials, including Charles Manson, O. J. Simpson, John Gotti, Michael Jackson, Martha Stewart, and Patty Hearst. An exhibit of courtroom art will be on display in the Central Library Lobby from January 2 through March 5.



Finally, not sure how we missed this one, but the Netherland America Foundation honored a certain OC Justice of Dutch heritage with a lifetime achievement award back in November. (Details here.)