Law Cartoons

Cartoon posted with permission.

Charles Pugsley Fincher, a lawyer in Texas, has a great collection of cartoons and comic strips on law-related themes. His current series is "Scribble-in-Law," a strip reminiscent of Jules Feiffer's work. Check out his LawComix collection of past projects, too. In addition to being a talented artist and a keen observer of the legal and political scene, Fincher is a litigator with the Allison Law Firm in Brownsville, Texas.

Categories: cartoons, Fincher, cross-examination, humor, cool-website

Indexing for Trial Ad Notes

This blog has been running for over a year, so it's gotten harder to plow through old posts to find what you want. I've wanted some sort of index, but hadn't found a reasonably easy way to do it until a few days ago. Now, thanks to FreshBlog (whose URL, confusingly is blogfresh.blogspot.com) and FreshTags (code by Greg Hill, a doctoral student in Austrlia), I've been able to assign "tags" to posts. So far, I've tagged posts from Sept. 2005 to present. As time allows, I'll go back in time.

If you see a post on, say, med-mal and you'd like to see more on that topic, just click on the med-mal "Category" link. Or if you'd like to look for, say, empirical studies or something on voir dire, go to the drop-down menu on the right and scan for the category. I hope this is helpful. As always, I welcome feedback.

Categories: notes-about-the-blog, FreshBlog, FreshTags

Mardi Gras killer is sentenced again

Five years after Seattle's "Mardi Gras riot," Jerell Thomas, a young man who was convicted of killing another young man during the melee, was resentenced by Judge Theresa Doyle. The Seattle Times: Local News: Mardi Gras killer is sentenced again

Resentencing was necessary because Thomas was convicted of felony murder. Since then, the Washington Supreme Court ruled that assault cannot be a predicate crime for second degree felony murder. Personal Restraint Petition of Andress, 147 Wash. 2d 602, 56 P.3d 981 (2002), legalwa.org, Westlaw. Following that precedent, Division 1 vacated the felony murder conviction and remanded for further proceedings. State v. Thomas, 127 Wash. App. 1004, 2005 WL 984781 (April 25, 2005), Westlaw (unpublished decision).

In 2001, Thomas was sentenced to 15 years. Yesterday, after he pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter, Judge Doyle sentence him to 10 years, the maximum allowed.

Categories: felony-murder, Personal-Restraint-of-Andress, sentencing, Thomas, Doyle, cases, news

Zags Retire Judge Burgess's Number

Judge Franklin D. Burgess (W.D. Wash. - Tacoma) was a star basketball player in college, averaging 32.4 points a game in his senior year. Last week, Gonzaga honored him in a ceremony at which his number was officially retired. SR.com: A fitting tribute for Burgess Judge Burgess took senior status in the Western District of Washington (Tacoma) last March, eleven years after his confirmation. He is a Gonzaga Bulldog twice over, with a BA and a JD.

Today is just Feb. 28, but there's already a little March Madness in the air. Go Zags.

Categories: Burgess, judges, sports, Gonzaga, news

Supreme Court Debates Defendants' Rights to Blame Others

[CASE] Should a defendant always be able to present an argument that someone else committed the crime? That's an issue in Holmes v. South Caroline (04-1327), a case before the U.S. Supreme Court. Law.com - Supreme Court Debates Defendants' Rights to Blame Others, AP, Feb. 23, 2006.

The question on which cert. was granted is:

Whether South Carolina's rule governing the admissibility of third party guilt evidence violates a criminal defendant's constitutional right to present a complete defense grounded in the Due Process,
Confrontation, and Compulsory Process Clauses?

The case below is at 605 S.E.2d 19 (S.C. 2004).

Categories: Holmes-v-SC, SupremeCourt, criminal-law, cases, other-suspect-defense

Law.com - Bankruptcy Attorneys Fight for Status

[NEWS] Lawyers are challenging a requirement in the new bankrupcty law that says they must advertise themselves as "debt relief agencies." Bankruptcy Attorneys Fight for Status, National Law Journal, Feb. 23, 2006.

The statutory definition is 11 USC § 101:

(12A) The term "debt relief agency" means any person who provides any bankruptcy assistance to an assisted person in return for the payment of money or other valuable consideration, or who is a bankruptcy petition preparer under section 110 [11 USCS § 110], but does not include--
[(A) employees of the agency; (B) nonprofits; (C) creditors; (D) banks and credit unions; (E) authors, publishers, etc.]

Sound like lawyers?

The advertising restrictions are in 11 USC § 528.

One of the lawyers mentioned in the article is Jay S. Jump, of the Jump Law Group in Seattle. The firm's website currently states: "Proudly Designated as a Debt Relief Agency in the Eastern District and Western District of Washington by authority of the Congress of the United States and President George W. Bush."

Categories: bankruptcy, practice-of-law, news, legislation

The Buzz About Med Mal Reform

[LEGISLATION] On Monday, Governor Christine Gregoire announced that she had brought together representatives of various groups -- often bitterly opposed -- to negotiate a compromise bill on medical malpractice. Here's some of the coverage:

• Governor's press release.


• David Postman, Doctors, lawyers make deal on medical-malpractice bill, Seattle Times, Feb. 21, 2006.


• Chris McGann, Lawyers, doctors agree on malpractice reform, Seattle P-I, Feb. 21, 2006.


• Carol M. Ostrom, Malpractice deal is a "first step," but many tough issues remain, Seattle Times, Feb. 22, 2006.


• Editorial, Gregoire herds cats to malpractice law, Seattle Times, Feb. 22, 2006.


• Editorial, Capitol Watch: Good medicine, Seattle PI, Feb. 22, 2006.

The compromises worked out have been incorporated in HB 2292, currently pending in the legislature. I believe the current version is in the Senate Committee Amendment, which passed the Senate unanimously today.
Today's Senate committee report (from the Committee on Health & Long-Term Care) is here.

Categories: med-mal, news, legislation, Gregoire

Jurors believe tax protester defrauded the government | TheNewsTribune.com | Tacoma, WA

[NEWS] A federal jury convicted a Tacoma man of conspiring to defraud the federal government by marketing sham trust packages that he told customers would shield them from taxes. Jurors believe tax protester defrauded the government TheNewsTribune.com Tacoma, WA

Categories: tax, criminal-law, news,

Cross Examining a Witness without Alienating the Jury

[TIP] A snarly cross-examination might trap the witness in an inconsistency -- but it might also make the jury think you're a jerk and create sympathy for the other side. Here are more great tips from Elliott Wilcox. Cross Examining a Witness without Alienating the Jury.

Categories: cross-examination, tips

Child Hearsay - Testimonial or Not?

[CASE] A trial court allowed testimony by the mother and a family friend of a three-year-old about the child's statements relating to the defendant's sexual conduct with her. Did this violate his confrontation rights under Crawford v. Washiington? The Washington Supreme Court says no. State v. Shafer, --- P.3d ----, 2006 WL 307904 (Wash. Feb. 9, 2006), Westlaw.

The issue turns on whether the statements were "testimonial." Chief Justice Alexander, writing for the majority, says that the declarant -- the child -- did not believe that the statements would be used in an investigation or prosecution. Justice Sanders, in dissent, says that the majority's approach is subjective, and instead urges an objective test, looking at a reasonable person. The majority responds in a footnote (note 8):

The proper test to be applied in determining whether the declarant intended to bear testimony against the accused is whether a reasonable person in the declarant's position would anticipate his or her statement being used against the accused in investigating and prosecuting the alleged crime. The inquiry focuses on the declarant's intent by evaluating the specific circumstances in which the out-of-court statement was made. * * * Applying this standard, it defies logic to think that T.C., as a three-year-old child, or any reasonable three-year-old child, would have an expectation that her statements about alleged sexual abuse could be used for prosecutorial purposes. Thus, whether one looks to T.C.'s subjective appreciation of the legal ramifications of her statements, as the dissent incorrectly asserts we do, or whether one objectively looks to what a reasonable, competent person in T.C.'s position would understand to be the import of the statements, which is the proper determination, the outcome of this case would not change. A three-year-old child, whether T.C. or a fictional reasonable one, who tells her mother and a family friend in a private setting about sexual abuse is not making the statements in anticipation that the statements will later be used to prosecute the alleged sexual abuse perpetrator.

And to that, Justice Sanders says that a reasonable person is a reasonable person, not a person with the subjective experiences of a three-year-old.

Justice Chambers concurs in the result, but writes separately to observe that the state constitution may in some circumstances provide greater protection than the U.S. Constitution's Sixth Amendment.

(By the way, students: All three writing Justices are graduates of the UW Law School -- Chief Justice Alexander in 1964, Justices Chambers and Sanders in 1969. Will you be sitting on the bench with a classmate in 35 years? Which one(s)?)

Categories: hearsay, evidence, Crawford-v-Washington, cases, UW, Alexander, Chambers, Sanders

Asst GC Fighting Plaintiffs' Lawyers

Steven Hantler, an assistant general counsel of DaimlerChrisler AG, is aggressively fighting plaintiffs' lawyers, trying to get fee awards reduced, vigorously defending class action suits instead of settling, and even suing some lawyers for fraud. He has also campaigned against judges up for re-election. Here's a profile of him and his crusade: Fighting Against Big Tort Awards in Court and Beyond, American Lawyer, Dec. 28, 2005.

Categories: tort-reform, practice-of-law, news,

What Should You Do When Jurors Have Special Expertise?

What should you do when jurors have special expertise? If there's an accountant on the jury, would you want her in the jury room adding to what the experts testified about the standards of the profession? If there's a nurse, would you worry about his assessment of the medical experts' testimony being given too much weight by other jurors? The National Law Journal discussed various issues, including whether there should be special jury instructions. Law.com - Dealing With Jurors' Expertise, Nat'l L.J., Dec. 23, 2005.

How about lawyers? A prosecutor from Oregon says that the only murder trial he lost had a lawyer on the jury. "They're terrible jurors -- I should hit myself in the face with a stick if I ever let a lawyer on a jury again."

Categories: juries

Law.com - Judge Lectures Counsel on Request to Make Documents 'Disappear'

[NEWS] A federal judge in New York expressed doubts about sealing a TRO after the parties had reached a settlement. In the case, two financial executives had been accused them of stealing client information from AIG Capital Partners. The case settled the day after a forensive computer specialist reported that one of the defendants had accessed thousands of documents on the company's computers after he was no longer working there.

Judge Lewis A. Kaplan said that he understood the argument that sealing documents may encourage pivate settlements. But, on the other hand,

'That may be defeated where a private settlement deprives the public of information that has been placed before a federal court, and that indicates a risk of harm to members of the public, and I wondered whether that analogy isn't present here.'

The judge also wondered whether sealing the TRO would really keep the allegations about the defendants' conduct under wraps:

The judge * * * told [the defendants' attorney] he understood the defendants' 'PR concerns' but he also questioned the value to them of sealing the temporary restraining order while keeping the complaint, the evidence, and the fact the defendants had 'put up a mighty fight to keep the [TRO] language secret' in the public record.

'[W]ith all due respect,' the judge said, 'I think what I would say if I were representing your clients is what are you doing here? You're making it so much worse for yourself.'

Law.com - Judge Lectures Counsel on Request to Make Documents 'Disappear', N.Y.L.J., Feb. 14, 2006.

Categories: settlements, sealed-records, news

How to Ask Leading Questions

[TIP] Here are some tips on cross-examination -- How to Ask Leading Questions -- from Elliott Wilcox of Trial Theater. One fun example illustrates how a lawyer could ask Wile E. Coyote a series of leading questions to tell the story of the rocket skates.

"Your name is Wile E. Coyote, isn't it?"
"On March 23rd of last year, you placed an order with the Acme Co, right?"
"Three days later, a package arrived, didn't it?"
"A box from the Acme Company."

... and so on.

He also recommends practicing your leading questions on your dog, who is much less likely to take offense than your spouse or date.

Categories: cross-examination, tips, dogs

Judge Frank "Don" Howard Dies

[NEWS] Judge Frank "Don" Howard died on Jan. 29. A 1956 graduate of the University of Washington School of Law, Judge Howard served on the King County Superior Court from 1969 to 1988 and the United States Bankruptcy Court from 1988 to 1996. The Seattle Times: Obituaries: Frank "Don" Howard, 74, "a true judge's judge".

Categories: judge, obituaries, Howard, news, UW

"Voir Dire" - UW Drama

[EVENT] The UW School of Drama is putting on "Voir Dire" Feb. 23 - March 5.

The play, by Joe Sutton, is described like this:

Voir Dire: to speak truly. That's what six jurors are asked to do when a prominent black high school principal is arrested for buying crack cocaine. Sutton's explosive look at the American justice system was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, and asks the question posed to every potential juror - can you be fair?

The production is directed by Prof. Valerie Curtis-Newton.

Categories: event, juries, UW

Lawyer Shot by Rival Dies

[NEWS] Kevin Jung, the lawyer shot in the head by William Joice in 2004, died yesterday of complications from his injuries. The Seattle Times: Local News: Bellevue lawyer shot by rival in 2004 dies

Categories: Jung, Joice, news

AFTER INNOCENCE

[EVENT] I just saw AFTER INNOCENCE at a benefit for the Innocence Project Northwest. This amazing documentary looks at the lives of several men after they were released from prison after being proven innocent (most by DNA evidence, one by the perpetrator's confession).

The film is at the Varsity through this weekend. If it does well, its run might be extended. They told the audience there tonight that if we were moved and impressed by the film we each should tell 8 or 10 people to go see it this weekend. I was, and so I'm following up right now!

If you don't live near enough Seattle to go to the Varsity, check out the film's website to see when it will show near you.

Categories: event, Innocence-Project, UW, films

Trial of Saddam Hussein

[COOL WEBSITE] The Law Library of Congress has put up a website with materials concerning the Trial of Saddam Hussein. The site

is intended to provide the viewer with essential information related to the relevant trials. It will also set out a selection of reference materials that will further explain important aspects of the trials. In making this selection, the Law Library of Congress does not endorse or attest to the authenticity of any such referenced materials or information.

Categories: famous-trials, saddam-hussein, cool-website

Bill to Limit State Liability

[LEGISLATION] Attorney General Rob McKenna has proposed a bill (SB 6215) that affecting the state's liability for tortious conduct. The state would be liable to conduct that is comparable to private activities for which private persons may be liable. However, the government would not be liable for implementing policy in areas of governmental function requiring discretionary judgment, licensing, failure to enforce law, failure to apprehend people violating laws, or deteminations of eligibility for benefits -- except in certain defined circumstances.

See the Attorney General's briefing sheet about SB 6215, the "Responsible Liability Act" and the law review article he co-authored: Michael Tardif & Rob McKenna, Washington State's 45-Year Experiment in Government Liability, 29 Seattle U.L. Rev. 1 (2005) (abstract) (LexisNexis) (Westlaw).

Trial Ad instructor David Moody wrote an editorial opposing the bill: Stand up for State's Fragile Citizens, Seattle Times, Jan. 31, 2006.

In a letter responding to Moody (Feb. 7), Sen. Adam Kline, one of the bill's sponsors, explains that he does not support the bill, but is obligated as chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee to be the prime sponsor of bills that are requested by the attorney general or state agencies.

Categories: state-liability, legislation, UW, Moody