SoCal Minds

A pro bono plea to law students, lawyers, judges

*From Claremont McKenna College & Southwestern

Calling all law students, lawyers and jurists: Some ambitious undergrads need help as they conduct the American Mock Trial Association's regional tournament in the midst of tough economic times. The aspiring legal eagles out in Claremont run their mock trial program with student leadership and without the common trappings of hovering faculty and attorney counsel. That can make the hurdles huge for them in handling the logistics and finances of conducting the Feb. 20-21 event in Southern California in which they say 30 teams with more than 200 competitors from three states will take part. The state budget crisis really complicated their planning as they could not secure donated courtroom space as they had in the past. But the college president and a state lawmaker have pitched in so they now will partner with Southwestern Law School and the Los Angeles Superior Courts. Southwestern is providing the mock trial program financial support and use of its facilities, while Assemblyman Mike Eng's office helped secure the use of the Stanley Mosk courthouse. Now, though, the students need at least 100 volunteers with legal training to judge the competition.

*Full disclosure: I'm a writing and editing consultant for Southwestern Law School

Undergrads running mock trial program seek 100 legally trained judges

Click here to learn more, volunteer

Here's a timely symposium topic: bankruptcy

* From Southwestern Law

It's truly a sign of the times: Six of the 10 largest bankruptcies in U.S. history -- cases in which the assets totaled in excess of $1 trillion -- were filed in the last two years, experts say. And with the economic crisis holding fast, with its harsh unemployment figures and unrelenting numbers of home foreclosures, well, is there a more timely topic for a legal symposium than bankruptcy and the latest developments in this area of the law? The session, 'Bankruptcy in the New Millenium,' will, of course, be on Lincoln's birthday (Feb. 12). It will feature jurists, academic scholars and top practitioners. It will be coordinated with articles in the Southwestern Law Review; continuing legal ed credits also will be available. Registration is required by Feb. 5 and there is a fee.

*Full disclosure: I'm a writing and editing consultant for the school

With joblessness roaring, foreclosures soaring, bankruptcy is top topic for program  

Legal eyes on fiscal crisis, digital entertainment

*From USC, Southwestern Law

The legal eagles at two schools will be staying atop current issues and concerns with major programs this week on the nation's looming fiscal crisis and challenges of the new media frontier. The Trojans have summoned leading economists, budget experts and tax authorities for a Friday conference on what sponsors are calling the 'train wreck' of the federal and state budgeting, government revenue shortfalls and deficits, as well as walloping spending and galloping costs of entitlement programs, especially those in the health area. Across downtown, the Biederman Institute and Media Law Resource Center will bring together top entertainment law figures on Thursday to tackle the unknowns of digital entertainment, content regulation and crisis management.

*Full disclosure: I'm a writing and editing consultant at Southwestern

'Train wreck' of federal, state fiscal crisis to come under Trojan scrutiny

Click here for agenda, speakers list

Click here to register

At Southwestern, an examination of unknowns on the digital entertainment frontier

Click here to access conference brochure, online registration

*Full disclosure: I'm a writing and editing consultant at Southwestern

Law schools ranked by number of 'Super Lawyers'

From Loyola Law School

As a publishing niche, the folks who dreamed up the glossy Super Lawyers supplements deserve credit: They've created their own system that lets lawyers nominate peers, who then get subjected to some subjective scrutiny that results in the recognition of a legal elite in advertising-rich, magazine-style publications across the country. Look at the listed "Super Lawyers" or "Rising Stars" and their cred can be hard to argue. And now the brand and marketing has been extended to a law school ranking system, based upon how many of the "Super Lawyers" attended what institution. By this measure, the Bruins are the most notable Southern California law school, ranking No. 14 nationally, with Loyola at No. 29, USC at No. 41, Southwestern at No. 82., Whittier Law at No. 159 and the University of LaVerne College of Law at No. 169. In this ranking, the top three are Harvard, Michigan, UT Austin. An interesting multimedia aspect of the Super Lawyer law school rankings: the capacity to see the Super Law alums from each school.

Loyola Law touts its 'Super Lawyer' ranking (which puts it ahead of USC)

OK, law school alums: Click here to argue about the full list of law school rankings 

This week: public interest law, global affairs, poetry, Numb3rs, LA and climate change

From Southwestern Law, Claremont McKenna, Pepperdine, Harvey Mudd, Zocalo

In the week ahead, lots to take in -- on public interest law, global affairs, poetry, the Numb3rs television show and Los Angeles and climate change:

In downtown, a leading legal advocate for children will speak Monday as Southwestern Law launches its public interest law week. Leslie Starr Heimov, the event's keynoter, is executive director of the Children's Law Center of Los Angeles, which represents more than 22,000 children in one of the nation's largest foster care systems and provides a voice for young clients in dependency court. Her 12:30 p.m. talk is free and open to the public as part of the week-long events to encourage law students to take up public interest careers

*Full disclosure: I'm consulting with the law school (free-lance editing and writing)

Leading LA children's legal advocate to lead off public interest law week

In Claremont on Tuesday, Fareed Zakaria, an author,n Newsweek editor and CNN show host, will take on global affairs, analyzing what the rise of nations like China, India, Brazil and other countries will mean to the world's lone superpower, the United States. His discussions at Claremnt McKenna College will spring from his best-selling book, "The Post American World." His 6:45 p.m. lecture will be free and open to the public but seating will be limited and preference will be given to members of the college community.

Noted foreign policy analyst to discuss 'Rise of the Rest: the Post American World'

In Malibu on Tuesday, W.S. Merwin -- a Pulitzer Prize-winning poet, environmentalist and translator -- will read from his own works, discuss poetry and answer questions as part of Pepperdine University's W. David Baird distinguished lecture series. The event, which will begin at 7  p.m. in the Smothers Theater in Malibu for members of the university and local communities, will be made available on a streaming video archive.

Pulitzer winner presents an evening of poetry

In Claremont on Thursday, Gary Lorden, a Caltech emeritus mathematician, will talk about his role as adviser to the popular television detective show Numb3rs. In that show, a brilliant young prof at a school that looks like Caltech helps his FBI agent brother fight crime by using an array of mathematical concepts, techniques and applications. The 7:30 p.m. talk at Harvey Mudd is free and open to the public on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Retired math prof to discuss his role as advisor to Numb3rs TV show

In San Marino on Thursday, a panel of experts, including Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Usha McFarland and professors from Caltech and UCLA, will discuss how climate change might transform L.A. Though this metropolis is seeing some of the lowest pollution levels in 75 years, its existence might be especially precarious as global warming may cause droughts or rising ocean levels. The 7:30 p.m. session by Zocalo and the Huntington- USC Institute on Calfornia and the West, is free and open to the public but space is limited and reservations are required.

Environmental experts to consider 'How Will Climate Change Transform L.A.?'

Program set on First Amendment rights, practices

*From Southwestern Law

Two Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists and the media critic for the Los Angeles Times will be among the speakers at a Saturday session for journalists, lawyers, scholars and others interested in the First Amendment and current, best practices and impediments to the free gathering and dissemination of information of societal concern. The California First Amendment Coalition's 14th annual Free Speech and Open Government Assembly will include an array of panels on journalism, law, public policy and technology. The speakers will include: Alexandra Berzon, who won the 2009 Pulitzer for Public Service with the Las Vegas Sun for exposing unusually high rates of construction deaths on the Vegas Strip and lax enforcement of worker safety rules and Alex Jones, a Pulitzer-winning media historian who heads Harvard's Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy. Berzon, now with the Wall Street Journal, will be interviewed by Jim Rainey, the Times' media critic. The day-long program is free and open to the public but reservations are required and they should be made as soon as possible.

*Full disclosure: I'm now consulting (editing, writing) for Southwestern Law

Pulitzer winners to speak to journalists, lawyers, scholars

Click here to register and to see more about program

New programs, degrees, advisors at law schools

*From UCLA, USC & Southwestern Law

Just catching up with developments at the city's law schools: In Westwood, the Bruins team up with the scholars at RAND to provide training exclusive to the law school for students interested in tackling empirical studies with course work in research methods, statistics and data analysis followed by a seminar for original research. In Exhibition Park, practicing attorneys and recent graduates now can take on further specialized training and education in tax law, 24 units of study that will lead to an L.L.M. in Taxation. The Trojans say they already have some of the leaders in thetax field on their faculty so adding the degree and the learning, which they say will be invaluable in the current economic crisis, made sense; they say only six law schools nationwide offer the advanced tax law degree. And in downtown, the folks at Southwestern expand the executive board advising and overseeing the Donald E. Biederman Entertainment and Media Law Institute, adding more industry legal heavyweights

*Full disclosure: I'm now consulting for Southwestern -- free-lance editing and writing.  

In Westwood, new empirical law program teams up Bruin, RAND expertise

Trojans add an L.L.M. for specialists in taxation law

Southwestern expands board of Biederman Institute on media, entertainment law

For DA's Office in LA, a Tilt for School's Externs

From Southwestern Law

There's a tale of a successful summer told in some numbers from the Los Angeles District Attys. Office. It says it got 700 applications from law students across the region for the 300 externships it offered across its operations; 46 of those who were  chosen and who completed the hands-on, legal experience program for academic credit came from one school -- Southwestern. District Atty. Steve Cooley noticed the school's placement success and had praise for the students and their labors, penning a commendation letter to the dean.

School Places 46 of 300 Summer Externs in LA Dist. Atty.'s Office

 

Journal for Law Teachers Finds New Home in LA

From Southwestern Law

Shifting from a home at the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C., a 70-year-old scholarly journal focused on legal education has found a new home in Los Angeles. The Journal of Legal Education, which has more than 10,000 law teachers as subscribers, will be edited by Dean Bryant Garth, Prof. Angela Riley and Dr. Molly Selvin. Its debut West Coast edition features articles on reforms in legal education in China and the importance of addressing gender and sexual orientation issues in tax courses since, the author argues, the current tax system discriminates against lesbians, gays, bisexuals and the transgendered.

Journal of Legal Education Leaves D.C. for L.A. 

Summit to Tackle 'Clean Tech' Law, Energy Policy

From Southwestern Law

Experts and leaders from business, industry, government, legal, science, private investment and other fields will convene next month for a planned school summit on "clean tech law" and energy policy. They'll figure the legal and financial incentives for the development of wind, solar, biofuels, hydropower and other alternative energy supplies aimed at reducing the nation's "carbon footprint." The Obama Administration has committed billions of dollars to such "green" alternatives and various levels of government and private industry and investors are sorting out future opportunities. There's a fee for the program, which also carries continuing legal education credits.

Summit Set on 'CleanTech'

Click Here for More Information, Registration