legal
Doing It For The ‘Gram
The law’s stubbornness to bend with trends is not a flaw, but by design. It prevents unnecessary changes and ensures that an adjustment is truly needed. Consequently, the law often struggles to keep up with technology. For an example, look no further than Instagram. The application has become a major platform for advertising and copied content. This article by Scott Alan Burroughs highlights the law’s struggle to adapt…
See, Doing It For The Gram.
My Sweet iPhone Setup
Every so often, the writers over at The Sweet Setup interview a featured guest on the setup of one of their devices (iPhone, iPad, or mac). I find these posts extremely interesting because they expose the reader to the different workflows of industry leaders. While brief, it is generally very enlightening. I often compare it to the simple but once iconic question, “who do you have on your ipod?”
This inspired me to create a similar “Sweet Setup” column, one that may interest young burgeoning attorneys and professionals. If I have learned nothing at all, it is that a great deal can be learned from an individual’s device workflow/setup.
With no further ado, here it is, my self-interviewed iPhone Setup:
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Andre J. Webb and I am a twenty-eight year-old attorney in Delaware. I am also lead writer and editor of The Burgeoning Young Attorney. Through blogging I use my keen interest in law to provide miscellaneous pieces for readers to enjoy. Blogging also enables me to develop a voice in the legal community for young attorneys.
What iPhone do you have?
I believe that a strong integration with technology and efficiency is what will separate good legal services from great ones in the future. As a result, I try to use the latest and greatest. I have a 32GB iPhone 5S in Space Gray.
I am a huge proponent of using folders to group similar applications used frequently. Random apps used often are placed into favorite folders. Other folders include different groups of applications whether, writing, reading, research, entertainment, or financially related.
What apps do you use the most, and why?
The Stunt that Keeps on Giving…
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News of the mysterious ‘Dumb Starbucks’ coffee shop that popped up in Los Angeles over the weekend spread like wildfire. As details emerge, it appears the shop was one big stunt. As it turns out, the idea was the brainchild of Comedy Central reality-TV-show host Nathan Fielder. The networks argument against trademark infringement, parody law & free speech…
Despite threats from Starbucks that what Nathan Fielder is doing is a trademark infringement, the network’s parent company says “Dumb Starbucks” constitutes “protected free expression.”
Game On : PA Supreme Court Opens Door for Negligent Design Claims Against Pharmaceutical Manufacturers
Recently, the PA Supreme Court released a ruling that is sure to shake things up involving life science matters in Pennsylvania. Read more below.
In a decision with significant potential ramifications, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has issued a ruling that pharmaceutical companies can be held liable for negligence in the design and marketing of drugs, regardless of claims that the drugs had been properly labeled and tested, as well as approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The ruling, announced January 22nd, upholds an intermediate appellate court decision against a Pfizer, Inc. subsidiary in a wrongful death action involving the diet drug Redux. In its 4-2 decision, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania rejected arguments by Wyeth Ltd. that pharmaceutical companies could only be held liable in Pennsylvania for manufacturing defects and inadequate warnings.
2014 ABA MidYear Meeting (Chicago, IL)
Hello Chicago!
For the next few days, I will be in Chicago attending the 2014 ABA Midyear Meeting. The ABA promises a wonderful program and I am looking forward to the educational fun experience. Luckily, I was fortunate enough to be selected as a delegate for PA’s Youth Lawyer Division. Reviewing proposals and resolutions is sure to be interesting.
Other seminars I plan to attend include: Law School to Law Practice and the Anatomy of ADR.
Stay tuned for blog posts and updates!
Copyright Law Pop Quiz – News Organizations
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Consider the following scenarios:
- Two high school cheerleaders are suspected of spearheading an elaborate underground gambling ring. Neither the police nor the school will release the students’ photographs, but your reporter was able to obtain several images of the girls on Facebook along with a short video of them performing a cheerleading routine. Can your station use these visuals in its newscast? During a tease? On its website?
- With the gubernatorial election a month away, a story appears overnight on the website of the local alternative weekly newspaper that the incumbent has late-stage cancer and may only have weeks to live. Your political reporter tries, but is unable, to confirm the story overnight. Can your station lead its morning newscast with the story? If so, must you attribute the newspaper as the source of the story?
- Your station’s primary competitor obtains hidden-camera video of the star quarterback for the local NFL team injecting steroids before a big game. Your assignment editor identifies the source of the video, but is unable to negotiate a licensing agreement at a reasonable price. Can your station still broadcast parts of the video on its newscast (using the video recorded from your competitor’s newscast)?
See, What Every News Organization Needs to Know About Copyright Law.
Quentin Tarantino Suing Gawker Over Leaked Script
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Quentin Tarantino has filed a copyright lawsuit against Gawker Media for allegedly facilitating the dissemination of copies of his unproduced script, The Hateful Eight.
Last week, the famous director was outraged after details about the Western circulated. He was so irate that he told the media that he wouldn’t be making the picture as his next film.
Soon afterwards, Gawker’s Defamer blog linked to the 146-page script under a post titled, “Here Is the Leaked Quentin Tarantino Hateful Eight Script.”
Should Rap Lyrics Be Admissible Evidence?
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It seems hard to justify the use of lyrics like this as anything other than a cynical attempt to influence the jury with what is likely unfair character assassination. Any “gangster rap” artist is going to have lyrics in their songs that read like the manifesto of a criminal. That, however, does not make that person a criminal. Music is art, after all, and nobody goes around suggesting that Gwar actually wants to eat your children, that Martin Scorsese is part of the mob, or that John Carmack murders uber-demons in his spare time. Gangster rap has grown up and been commercialized so that it’s as authentic as Kraft American Singles cheese and mostly as palatable. Some gangster rappers are as “gangster” as the teenage surburbanite children who listen to it so faithfully. In the case of Skinner, the other evidence used against him was testimony by witnesses that told more stories than Stephen King. Still, he was convicted by the jury, though that conviction was later overturned.
Fake It ‘Til You Make It’ Huh???
Interesting take on the Young Upstart vs. the Seasoned Professional. While us Young Upstarts really know nothing, the truth is that law school and early experiences teach you to Fake It Till You Make It, and we are all guilty. I agree with the author completely. In reality we all start(ed) from the bottom and can learn quite a bit from each another.
We often feel that the legal community is split into two factions: the Young Upstarts vs. the Seasoned Professionals. The Young Upstart wants nothing more than to dive in and practice law and to learn and do everything, right now, today. He looks at the Seasoned Professional in sheer terror and hopes that no one notices that he doesn’t exactly know what he is doing.The Seasoned Professional looks at the Young Upstart and thinks, “Dear God! They’ll let anyone take the bar exam! His mere presence in the courtroom is malpractice!”
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The fact is, we ALL fake it ’til we make it. We ALL start from the same place. Today’s Young Upstart is tomorrow’s Seasoned Professional. The Seasoned Professional got that way by making mistakes and learning by doing as a Young Upstart. We all start with a metaphorical dirt lot and shovel and build our proverbial houses from the foundation up.
See, Are We Faking It ‘Til We Make It?’ for the complete article. Very interesting read.
Who really owns an LLC’s blog entries?
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Though the question presents itself under very unfortunate circumstances, the issue is worth pondering.
Dear Rich: I am part of an LLC that owns a blog. One of our officers was the active blog contributor. She died last year. Some of the other officers would like to publish her blog posts, but we are unsure who owns the copyright – the LLC or her heirs?
The Burgeoning Young Attorney 