Author Archives: admin

Supreme Court Weakens 4th Amendment Traffic Stop Requirements

By admin | Published: April 22, 2014

The U.S. Supreme Court today upheld a defendant’s conviction for possession with intent to deliver a substantial quantity of marijuana. At the heart of the case is whether the police lacked the probable cause necessary to conduct a traffic stop. During the traffic stop, the California Highway Patrol officers noted a strong odor of marijuana […]

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Billing a 29 Hour Day

By admin | Published: September 20, 2013

From the ABA Journal, there is an attorney in Ohio who billed the state for a 29-hour work day. According to the story, he also billed for a 23, 21, and 21.5 hour work-days. Even more incredulous is that he claimed to have worked the hours while representing the indigent poor. While he may be […]

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Google and the Wiretap Act

By admin | Published: September 13, 2013

In a recently released opinion, the Ninth Circuit decided that Google was not entitled to the protection under the Wiretap Exemption of the Wiretap Act. When collecting the pictures and other data necessary for Google Street View, Google collected data from open home and business wifi accounts. Google tried to hide behind the Wiretap Act, […]

Posted in Recent Appellate Decisions, Wiretaps | Leave a comment

A PR Catch-22

By admin | Published: September 12, 2013

Here is an interesting case: The Pittsburgh Zoo has been sued by a mother whose child died at one of the exhibits. The mother stood her child on the railing of the African Painted Dog exhibit and turned her back. The child fell into the display, bouncing off the safety net into the exhibit, and […]

Posted in General, Jurisprudence, Legal Strategy | Leave a comment

Thoreau and Emerson on Government

By admin | Published: July 9, 2013
Posted in Historical Quotations | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

William Blackstone and Soldiers

By admin | Published: July 8, 2013

“In a land of liberty it is extremely dangerous to make a distinct order of the profession of arms. In absolute monarchies this is necessary for the safety of the prince, and arises from the main principle of their constitution, which is that of governing by fear: but in free states the profession of a […]

Posted in Common Law, Historical Quotations, Legal Maxims | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

What is a Violation of the Third Amendment?

By admin | Published: July 6, 2013

In an interesting case discussed by the Daily Caller, a family from Henderson, Nevada is suing the local police for violating their Third Amendment protections and right to privacy. By way of review, since the subject is so ubiquitous in today’s plethora of Constitutional litigation, the Third Amendment provides that “No Soldier shall, in time […]

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Purpose of Law

By admin | Published: July 2, 2013
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Federal or State Jurisdiction in Tax Exempt Challenge?

By admin | Published: July 2, 2013

Should federal regulations and engaging in “foreign” company management defeat a plaintiff’s attempt to keep a challenge to tax exempt status in state court? That is the question Judge Joy Flowers Conti of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania must answer. The City of Pittsburgh has challenged the tax exempt status […]

Posted in Commerce, Jurisdiction, Tax Law, Trial Courts | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Supreme Court Narrows Employment Discrimination Claims

By admin | Published: June 25, 2013

In tandem decisions, the Supreme Court constricted Title VII lawsuits against employers. In the first decision (University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center v. Nassar), the Supreme Court ruled that an employee alleging a retaliatory firing must prove that the employer’s discriminatory conduct caused the termination; in the second decision (Vance v. Ball State University), the […]

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