Magazine Lists 50 Law Schools With Best Financial Aid Ratios [And Cooley is Number One!]

Magazine Lists 50 Law Schools With Best Financial Aid Ratios [And Cooley is Number One!]

Posted Oct 10, 2008, 02:29 pm CST
By Martha Neil
as reported in ABAJournal Magazine

A magazine for law students has made a list of the nation's 50 most generous ABA-accredited law schools, as far as their ratio of financial aid to tuition is concerned.

The National Jurist ranking—which puts Michigan-based Thomas M. Cooley Law School at the top of the list—is based on a ratio of how much they hand out in grants and scholarship, compared to tuition, explains the TaxProf Blog.

Cooley won top honors by a huge margin, with a ratio of 93.9 percent. It is followed by the University of Toledo College of Law in the No. 2 spot, at 61.4 percent, and Liberty University School of Law, in Virginia, at 51.2 percent.

Although a number of highly regarded state university law schools made the list, none of the nation's most renowned private institutions is included, presumably because of their hefty tuition costs.

Probably the best-known name on the list is the University of Virginia School of Law. It squeaked in at number 50, with a ratio of 23.2 percent.

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Don’t Feed the Inmates: Arrested Lawyer Learns Lesson the Hard Way

Don’t Feed the Inmates: Arrested Lawyer Learns Lesson the Hard Way
Posted Dec 22, 2008, 12:36 pm CST
By Debra Cassens Weiss

An Arizona lawyer may have a sour taste in his mouth after being arrested for passing sweets to a client in court.

Lawyer Damon Rossi of Prescott is accused of giving his shackled client a piece of candy during a court hearing, even though two detention officials told him not to do it.

Rossi was arrested at his home last Thursday, a day after the candy caper, according to spokesman Dwight D'Evelyn of the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office.

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Be rational in your arguments

Justice Souter Calls Lawyer’s Argument ‘Utterly Irrational’

Posted Dec 10, 2008, 06:07 am CST
By Debra Cassens Weiss

A lawyer for the state of Tennessee defending prosecutors’ decision to withhold evidence in a death penalty trial encountered skeptical and indignant questioning from several justices on Tuesday.

“There were flashes of incredulity and anger from justices” during the oral arguments, the New York Times reports. At issue is when federal courts may reconsider state court rulings in death penalty cases, according to the story. But oral arguments focused on prosecutors’ failure to turn over the evidence.

The defendant, Gary Cone, had admitted murdering a Memphis couple, but his lawyer had claimed he committed the crime in an amphetamine psychosis, the Times says. Prosecutors called the defense “baloney” while withholding police reports and witness statements from the defense saying Cone was a heavy drug user.

The U.S. Supreme Court has twice upheld the death sentence for Cone, but arguments Tuesday raised the possibility that this time the court will overturn it, the Washington Post reports.

Jennifer Smith, a lawyer in the state attorney general's office, faced tough questions from Justice Stephen G. Breyer about why the evidence was withheld, the Post says.

Click here to continue reading.

http://www.abajournal.com/weekly/justice_souter_calls_lawyers_argument_utterly_irrational

Encoded ammunition database -- coming soon to your state

It was predicted and here it is. If you live in one of these states
the hour approaches for you. If you live elsewhere get ready because
this bill is coming to your state very soon, or so I fear.

Remember
how the Obamanation said that he wasn't going to take your guns?

Well, it seems that his minions and allies in the anti-gun world have no
problem with taking your ammo!

The bill that is being pushed in 18 states (including Illinois and Indiana) requires all ammunition to be encoded by the manufacture a data base of
all ammunition sales.

So they will know how much you buy and what calibers. Nobody can sell any ammunition
after June 30, 2009 unless the ammunition is coded.

Any privately held uncoded ammunition must be destroyed by July 1, 2011.
(Including hand loaded ammo.) They will also charge a .05 cent tax on
every round so every box of ammo you buy will go up at least $2.50 or more!

If they can deprive you of ammo they do not need to take your gun!

This legislation is currently pending in 18 states: Alabama , Arizona,
California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland,
Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island,
South Carolina, Tennessee, and Washington .

To find more about the anti-gun group that is sponsoring this legislation

and the specific legislation for each state, go to:

http://ammunitionaccountability.org/Legislation.htm

The Top 10 Killer Deposition Questions

The Top 10 Killer Deposition Questions

From David Newdorf's Blog

One of the prime reasons to spend the time and money to depose an adverse witness is to gather impeachment material. Other than hiring a private investigator to delve into the witness’s past, the deposition is the most effective tool in the lawyer’s arsenal for uncovering dirt and chipping away at credibility. That includes attacking an eye-witness account, challenging an unfavorable opinion, exposing bias, and undermining believability.

Yet most lawyers don’t ask all of the basic, open-ended questions that could help achieve their impeachment goals. In every deposition, there are questions tailored to the facts of the case, whether it is a business dispute or personal injury claim. But many (if not all) of these “killer” questions should be asked of adverse witnesses in every type of case. Many times you will strike out. That’s okay, because when you do connect with one of these questions, the result is likely to be a solid base hit – and occasionally a grand slam. The answers to these basic questions can be so damaging to the opponent’s case that the litigation will end on terms favorable to your client. And isn’t that the goal?

The Top 10 Killer Deposition Questions
http://www.newdorf.com/litigation-tips/top_ten_killer_deposition_questions