f/k/a archives . . . real opinions & real haiku

Muzzle tov, to Brett and Mitchell Panter of the Miami (Florida) law
firm of Panter, Panter and Sampredo. The Florida Bar Association may
soon make the Panter brothers famous — as either heroes or martyrs
in another attorney advertising Free Speech battle waged by the Bar’s
Dignity Police.

& “panterPantherRN”
Brett & Mitchell Panter

According to a new posting at the website of Pape & Chandler, the
now [in]famous “pit bull lawyers” [many prior posts]:

“We recently spoke with the person in charge of lawyer
advertising with the Florida Bar about the propriety of the
lion’s heads in logos, and he told us something to the effect
that lions are not as vicious as American Pit Bull Terriers, but
panthers are vicious and they are investigating the panther logo.
The conversation went from ridiculous to sublime. Upon hearing
those assertions we had to ask the representative of the Florida
Bar if he would rather take his chances with a pit bull or a lion,
we heard crickets on the other end of the phone.” (emphasis
added):

In addition to a pair of similar panthers (on an urn, I believe) in their masthead,

here’s the footer on the PP&S website:

 

PANTER PANTER & SAMPREDO

 

 

Arne C. Vanstrum is Advertising Counsel for The Florida Bar. We mentioned him
in a post a couple days ago, when — with tongue meant to be in cheek — we asked
our readers to compare the ferocity-combativeness-quotient of the Panter website’s
panther images with the sleepy doggie head used in Pape & Chandler’s campaign.
Unfortunately, in the highly irrational and subjective world of the Bar’s Dignity Police,
it is darn hard to spoof reality.

We don’t know, of course, whether Mr. Vanstrum was revealing (confidential) infor-
mation about an actual investigation by FBA’s Advertising Counsel office. Although
f/k/a wouldn’t wish a disciplinary fight with the numbskulls of FBA and Florida’s high
Court on Brett and Mitchell Panter, there are a few advantages to having such an
investigation:

“PanterPantherLN”

The Florida “bar” might wake up to the silliness of all this dignity regulation
(or more likely the vulnerability of many self-respecting and even respected
firms to arbitrary investigation and aggravation) and push for the adoption of
sound, modern (constitutional) advertising rules, such as those in the ABA
Model Rules (2004), which states in Rule 7.1, the reasonable proscription:

“A lawyer shall not make a false or misleading communication about
the lawyer or the lawyer’s services. A communication is false or mis-
leading if it contains a material misrepresentation of fact or law, or
omits a fact necessary to make the statement considered as a whole
not materially misleading.”

and then cautions [Comment 3 to Rule 7.2] that “Questions of effectiveness
and taste in advertising are matters of speculation and subjective judgment,”
and warns that bans against “undignified” advertising “would impede the flow
of information about legal services to many sectors of the public” and “assumes
that the bar can accurately forecast the kind of information that the public would
regard as relevant.”

The Florida Supreme Court might come to its senses. Or, maybe
seek insight from their Carolina brethren on the topic of panthers.
[okay, not likely]

– This raises the question whether, like obscenity,
dignity is defined by local standards.

The United States Supreme Court could accept a case with less emotional
baggage than one involving pit bulls, and re-assert free speech rights for
lawyer advertising that is neither misleading nor deceptive, but which merely
offends the ego, sense of dignity, or pocketbook of certain well-placed bar
members.

There is even one advantage here for the Panter Firm that Marc Chandler and John

Pape did not have in their “pit bull” battle with the Florida Bar Association — any

“panther” advertising investigation and litigation will almost by necessity help make

“Panter” a household word (think satellite offices!).

 

“panterPantherLN” “panterPantherRN”

 

Are there any lawyers in Florida thinking about launching new animal-related branding

or marketing activities? Before you do, you better get your species and breeds in

order and — more important — make sure you don’t have any powerful enemies in the

Florida Bar Association. [See the new webpage at Pape & Chandler, describing the

genesis and evolution of their battle with FBA.]

 

“tinyredcheck” Jeffey Harlan Penneys, Esq, Philadelphia personal injury and

Dog Bite Lawyer, should be quite happy he chose to settle down in

Pennsylvania to practice law, rather than Florida. PA has the model

rules version of lawyer advertising regulation, described above. If

the Florida Bar Folk thought this little guy way “ferocious”:

 

“pitbullLogo”

 

just what would they make of this?

 

“dogBiteJD”

[via Blawg Review Ed]

 

 

While we’re talking about lawyer self-image and the image

of lawyers, let me point out that Overlawyered‘s Ted Frank

and Legal Underground‘s Evan Schaeffer continue to trade

jabs relating to the Don’t Feed the Trial Lawyers campaign

of the Chamber of Commerce. They both call for Commentors

to be polite, however, for which I am grateful. Although I still

refuse to take sides on “tort reform as we know it,” put me

in the group that thinks the Don’t Feed billboards and ads

are ugly as sin and needlessly tasteless.

 

For my own Don’t Feed the Lawyers Campaign, I have always

preferred the tasteful t-shirts once available from Nolo.com.

 

Yes, self-helpers: – “don’t feed the lawyers — just say Nolo” –

 

 

(from cover of Poetic Justice, edited by

Jonathan and Andrew Roth, Nolo Press, 1994):

 

 

 

spring-like day
the cat grapples
with a catnip bird

spring rain the cat’s pink nipples

wilderness trail
the manicured poodle
still on a leash

Carolyn Hall

“spring-like day” – The Heron’s Nest (Vo. VI, 2004)

“spring rain” – 2003 Henderson Haiku Competition, Hon. Men.; Frogpond XXVII: 1

“wilderness trail” – The Heron’s Nest (II:11, Nov. 2000)

 

 

 

 

 

 

traffic jam

a plastic dog

keeps on nodding

 

 

 

 

 

evening silence

cat food for the stray

untouched

 

 

 

 

Yu Chang–
“snow drift” Upstate Dim Sum (2004/II)
“traffic jam” – Upstate Dim Sum (2002/II)
“evening silence” – Upstate Dim Sum (2003/I)

 

 

“BullG”

 

 

it’s not swearing

it’s the only language

those cows understand

 

 

my best moo

all the cows

stop and look

 

 

 

long summer day
a hawk holds its place
between the clouds

DeVar Dahl

“it’s not” & “my best moos” – A Piece of Egg Shell (Magpie Haiku Poets anthology)

“long summer day” – New Resonance 3: Emerging Voices; Presence 15

 

 

 – FoxNews: Cheeta – 2003

p.s. Happy Birthday to Cheeta, Tarzan’s little buddy, who

turned 74 yesterday — the oldest chimpanzee in captivity.

Cheeta made me laugh a lot in my younger years (and, no,

I didn’t see the movies when they premiered).

 

 

The Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression

has announced its 2006 Jefferson Muzzles awards, and one of the biggest

“winners” is the Florida Supreme Court, due to its decision banning

Pape & Chandler‘s pit bull logo and 800 phone number.  [many prior

posts]  (Charlottesville, VA, Daily Progress, “Center Names Muzzle

Winners,” April 11, 2006) 

Only Pres. George W. Bush (for warrantless NSA wiretapping),

The Department of Justice (for its COPA search engine inquiries), and
the Federal Communications Commission (for seeking to restrict cable
and satellite programming deemed “indecent”) came in ahead of the
Pit Bull Court, which placed 4th out of thirteen winners.

                                                 

The Muzzles are announced each year near Thomas Jefferson’s April
13th birthday anniversary, “as a means to draw national attention to abridg-

ments of free speech and press and, at the same time, foster an apprecia-

tion for those tenets of the First Amendment.”    This year, there is a special

podcast of the Awards.

 

Taking aim at the Florida Supreme Court’s November 17, 2005 decision

in Florida Bar v. John Pape and Marc Chandler, the Muzzles board

noted that lawyers have been granted First Amendment protection for

their advertisements.  Nonetheless:

                                                                                               

“Florida specifically restricts attorney advertising that is ‘sensational’

and that uses ‘slogans’ even to convey factually accurate appeals to

prospective clients.  It was on this basis that the Florida Supreme

Court ruled in November, 2005, that two Fort Lauderdale lawyers,

John Pape and Marc Chandler, must stop airing a TV commercial that

featured a pit bull in a spiked collar and listed the firm’s phone number,

1-800-PIT-BULL.  Such an ad, wrote Chief Justice Barbara Pariente,

implied that lawyers would ‘get results through combative and vicious

tactics that will maim, scar or harm the opposing party.’  Given the

inherently vicious nature of the pit bull, added the Florida high court,

if such ads were permitted ‘images of sharks, wolves, crocodiles and

piranhas could follow.’ 

 

“PitBullLogo”

In response, The Thomas Jefferson Center concluded:

“Regardless how one feels about the tastefulness of such advertising,

the claim that prospective clients could be misled to their detriment by

the pit bull commercial seems outlandish.  None of the recognized

Constitutional exceptions to the status of attorney advertising seem to

apply here. For failing to recognize the First Amendment rights of lawyers

to use unconventional appeals in seeking legal business, the Florida

Supreme Court earns a 2006 Jefferson Muzzle.”

                                                                                                     

 

No other courts were on the 2006 Muzzles List.  Here are the

13 awardees:

1) President George W. Bush 
2) The U.S. Department of Justice 
3) FCC Chairman Kevin Martin 
4) The Florida Supreme Court 
5) New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg 
6) Hecklers of the Ann Coulter Speech at UConn
7) The Yelm (WA) Town Council
8) The U.S. Department of Homeland Security
9) The Command Authority of the U.S. Army Base at

Fort Bragg, NC
10) The School Administrations of Tennessee’s Oak  

Ridge High School, Florida’s Wellington High School,

and California’s Troy High School
11) Orange County (FL) School District Superintendent

Ron Blocker
12) William Patterson (NJ) University Administration
13) U.S. Representative Joe Barton 

 

Former awards back through 2000 can be accessed at the Center’s website.

The only other judicial winner came in 2004, when the First Place Muzzle went 

to Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum for closing the Martha Stewart trial to the

press.

update (5 PM): Pape & Chandler have updated a webpage describing their

experiences since choosing the Pit Bull logo and becoming targets for the

Florida Bar Association.  It has links to many relevant documents, plus a

photo of Siegfried & Roi.

 

 

invisible fence
. . .
no sign of the dog 

 

 

 

cat’s purr

too loud

for poetry

 

 

 

 

spring morning

my dog marks

a clump of dandelions

 

 

 

 

     Hilary Tann   

     “invisible fence” – The Heron’s Nest (Aug. 2003)         

    “cat’s purr” & “spring morning” – Upstate Dim Sum (2005/II)

                                                    

 

Tomorrow, April 11, 2006, is Blawg Review’s first anniversary (see

Blawg Review #1, at The Legal Underground).  Congratulations to

the named and nameless ones who have made it possible, and

nurtured BR into an institution that (a) gave this weblog a very nice

(stress-inducing) award, and (b) gave f/k/a the honor of rounding out

the first-year run of the original law[yer] weblog “carnival.”  If there are

further horns to be blown about this Blawg Review milestone, we should

let its Editor do it.

 

digital age —

aging digits

at the keyboard

 

    dagosan

 

 

 

If you’ve been here often, just skip down to that little picture of

Carolyn Elefant for Blawg Review substance.  If you’re new here,

click on the About page to learn how we evolved from ethicalEsq

to f/k/a and came upon “our” [Your Editor and his often unruly alter

egos] three-pronged mission:

(1) Nudge lawyers to put their client’s interests first for real —

rather than riches or “dignity” (see the ethicalEsq  archives)

 

(2) Bring the pleasures of real haiku to folk who never knew,

forgot, or just want more. 

 

(3) Allow the clowns, curmudgeons, and other characters inside

the Editor to express themselves, despite thirty years lugging

around a law degree. (for example, see Prof. Yabut’s Favorites)

 

tagging along

with an ice cream cone

the senior partner

 

 

 

 

the accused teen
and his lawyer…
dressed for spring  

 

Barry George, J.D.

 

first date

she groans with pleasure

. . . at my puns

 

       dagosan

 

                                                                                          

 

Scrolling down our homepage will give you a good taste of what it’s like

around here (except that the four-part series on Contingency Fees is even

more thoughtful and provocative than usual).   This Blawg Review edition

is set up like most of our posts: a lot of white space, a little organization,

some graphic images for contrast, and a bunch of haiku (which relate humans

to nature) and senryu (which focus on human nature), touched off with occasional

insights and/or wise-cracks from the alterred egos.  So, don’t expect techno-

wizardry, cinematic or literary erudition, or even naked bodies.

 

Spring arrives —

peeps

melting on the dashboard

 

   dagosan – Simply Haiku (Winter 2005)

 

 

Here we go Blawg Review #52:

 

General Praise:  Bob Ambrogi and Carolyn Elefant are doing a great
job with their new assignments at Law.com’s Inside Opinions.  They
cull the most interesting-substantive posts from the Law.com stable,
plus other weblogs, giving helpful excerpts, often along with their
own reaction to the issue or news.    I wish they would leave posts on
the homepage longer, for those who can’t get back as often as we’d like. 
(And, is that Comment function working, or is it just me?)  In between

Blawg Reviews, Bob and Carolyn help keep us focused on the best in

lawyer weblogs.

 

using his nose
the dog searches
the violets

     Kobayashi Issa

       translated by David G. Lanoue

 

  When I grow up, I’d like to have a weblog like the Volokh Conspiracy. 

Every single day, you can find interesting, substantive posts on topical

law issues, written by Prof. Eugene and his distinguished cabal.  They

don’t just toss out opinions or quips; you get reasoning and even legal

citations.  If I could read only one weblog for legal substance, it would

be VC — even though I tend to think of myself as more liberal (and sen-

sitive) than most of the contributors.  [my alter egos are aghast at their

Editor gushing; it does not happen often]

 

“eschewSN”  eschew obfuscation

bumper sticker

After learning about Georgia’s lewd language law last week,

it was a relief to find out from Prof. V that the DeKalb County 

prosecutor realized the statute had been declared unconstitu-

tional in 1990, and dropped the case against Denise Grier,

whose bumper sticker read “I’m Tired Of All The BUSHit.”

 

General Prays: More weighty, is Eugene Volokh’s discussion of the

March 14, 2006 Resolution by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors,

which urges “Cardinal William Levada, in his capacity has head of the

Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican, to withdraw his

discriminatory and defamatory directive that Catholic Charities of the

Archdiocese of San Francisco stop placing children in need of adoption

with homosexual households.”  Thomas More Law Center has filed a

lawsuit, on behalf of Catholics in S.F., seeking to strike down the Reso-

lution under the First Amendment, as an attack on a particular religion

or religious belief.  (also, see Religion Clause & Mirror of Justice)  This

raises important and difficult legal and political issues.  While others have

merely stated the claims on both sides, Prof. V. explains both why he

believes the Resolution is constitutionally permissible and why he none-

theless finds it troubling. 

                                    “tracyMarchInherit”

 

What would Henry Drummond or 

Matthew Harrison Brady say?

        

good friday

the scarecrow gets

a new straw hat

 

   ed markowski

 

  Grace Plays:   Speaking of Catholics, RiskProf Martin Grace wonders

Do Catholics Get a Better Deal on Life Insurance?  Having recently covered other

insurance risk classification issues, Martin uses his customary humor to explore

the ramifications of a new study showing “a positive relationship between regular

church attendance and life span.”   Naturally, he weighs the opportunity costs of

Church attendance and exercising to increase life span — and combining the two. 

[exorcising is not explore, however]

 

squinting to see him —

another generation

sent to right field

dagosan – Roadrunner Haiku Journal 

 

 

Gosh, Professor:  Christine Hurt, at the Conglomerate Law Blog, brought up an

intriguing professor-student issue this week, in On Poaching & Transfer Law Students,

asking:

“Does anyone out there have a policy of not writing letters

of recommendation for students seeking transfers to higher

ranking law schools?  I do not, but I have heard strong argu-

ments from people I admire that they have begun refusing

writing these letters of recommendation.”

The Comments, from professors and students, are quite varied. 

William Henderson of Indiana Law does some major axe grinding,

and is quite willing to keep law students right where they are, in

order to stop those evil Top 15 law schools from poaching.

                                                               

                              What would Charles W. Kingsfield say?

 

Good Point/ Good Pointer:  A number of webloggers pointed us to articles

or studies of interest this past week. 

Solo Cheerleader-in-chief Carolyn Elefant reminds readers in the post

“The Solo Majority“ that “a majority of firms in the U.S. are solo and small

practices, a whopping 89 percent in fact.”  Carolyn points to the article

Small Shops Do the Heavy Lifting  (NYLJ, April 6, 2006), by Lovely Dhillon

who explains why “Solo and small-firm practitioners, who comprise so

much of our legal profession and perform so much of the legal work for

people in every nook and cranny of America, deserve to be adequately

trained, supported and mentored.”

 

 

  Evan Schaeffer’s Illinois Trial Practice Weblog summarizes

and points to “Video Can Be Risky Business“– an article at Law Technology

News, by James McKenna and Jo Haraf.   Brandon Bass offers a calming

Comment. What would Vincent Gambini say? 

 

 

At Overlawyered.com, Walter Olson does a round-up on wrongful birth cases,

and Ted Frank points to a guest post at Legal Underground that clearly rankled

him.  The anonymous young writer was complaining about people who

complain about lawyers.  Ted replied (sounding a lot like ethicalEsq —

for example, see here and here):

“I’ve long said that attorneys upset that their profession is held

up to ridicule would have much less of a problem if attorneys were

more concerned about the behavior that led to the ridicule than about

the ridicule itself.”

 

There are scores of Comments at the Legal Underground

post.  Not much fun, though. 

 

new paperback —
the sun sets
without me

 

  dagosan – The Heron’s Nest  (March 2005) 

 

 

Responding to student requests, Prof. Steve Bainbridge has listed

a dozen “books dealing with big corporate law litigation or deals,”

with the idea of putting class learning about corporate law and

governance into a real-world context.

 

after the verdict
the tireless lawyer speaks
in falling snow 

 

Barry George

 

HR Lawyers’ Blogger Chris Mckinney points to an npr story on the “Importance of

. . . . Slowing Down.”  The “rest step” practice of a professional mountain climber

has a haiku-vian feel to it. 

 

Prof. Bainbridge also gave of this photograph this week.

 

 

school photo

the frown my sister

grew into

 

 

Roberta Beary, Esq.

penumbra 2004 haiku contest, hon. men

 

 

law office picnic —

the ump consults

his Blackberry

 

     dagosan

 

 

[More] Good Posts:

 

“superManBeanball”

via The Comic Treadmill.

Using his head at Declarations & Exclusions, George Wallace fills us in

on three Appellate cases from California that deal with assumption of risk

in sports activities.  “espn meets courtTV” discusses the Avila intentional

beanball case, plus a ski hydrant decision and a personal trainer suit.

 

April chill —

Wakefield’s knuckleball

unhittable

 

           Paul David Mena

 

                                                                                                         

 

In Katrina Revisited, Robert Ambrogi reminds us of the importance of disaster

planning, with a pointer to Steve Terrell’s Hoosier Lawyer, which focuses on the recent 

mess in Indianapolis, and another to both a special issue of Law Technology News,

on Katrina’s impact, and to this week’s Coast to Coast, podcast, which focuses on

New Orleans’ legal community.

 

the city recovers
restaurant
by restaurant

 

blown away by the hurricane
every stripper
I knew

 

David G. Lanoue

 

                                                                                                    

 

Michael Harris at George’s Employment Blawg has put together the latest in a series of

posts on OFCCP’s Internet Applicant Definition and the Implications for Companies.  

Forget the Search Engine Optimization strategies of the big law firms, Michael has made

their website the search engine favorite for anyone interested in  “OFCCP Definition Internet

Applicant.”

  My only plea to George and Michael: “Help the ignorant

who aren’t familiar with your acronyms.”  Clicking on 5 posts

did not reveal the meaning of “OFCCP,”  so I finally Googled

it. (For the similarly clueless: it’s The Department of Labor’s

Employment Standards Administration’s Office of Federal

Contract Compliance Programs.

 

 

“spiltwine”

 

 

one glass of wine –
Google keeps asking
“Did you mean _____?”

 

          dagosan

 

  It’s great seeing the wonderful placement weblogs can

achieve in search engine results. Our Inadvertent Searchee

pages are filled with amazing examples of 1st place results

for f/k/a — from weblog culture>, lawyer value billing>, and

how to get out of the legal profession> to italian word gumba>,

tax-whiner> and boomers blind date>.

 

 

blossoms

past their peak –

boomers’ first date

 

   dagosan

 

 

In Fight Brewing over Net Neutrality, Not Political Neutrality, Kevin A.

Thompson of Cyberlaw Central voices his hope that the important

Net Neutrality issue can be resolved based on a discussion of its merits,

rather than stereotyping it as a “Republicans versus Democrats” fight.

Kevin gives a quick description of the actors and issues. [the skeptics

here at f/k/a haven’t seen any reasons yet to think that Kevin’s noble

wish will come true]  

 

                                                                                                    

 

Up to PAR is the weblog of the Project for Attorney Retention, in Washington, D.C.   

On March 31, Cynthia Calvert posted “New Partner Classes: Good News and Bad News.”

The Project has been taking a close look at whether firms are actually retaining and

advancing women lawyers.  They see mixed evidence this year.  Firms say they are

trying to retain and advance women, but are they really doing it?  Evidence from the

number of women promoted to partner this year is mixed.   The latest report states

“If the women aren’t staying at the firms long enough to make partner, the

issue isn’t the pipeline but rather the culture at the law firms. “

[The f/k/a gang continues to believe that women refusing to stay in large law firms

may be a sign of their wisdom and advanced priorities.  And see Prof. B.] 

 

“witherspoonAsWoods” What would Elle Woods say” 

 

fallen blossoms —

soon

just another tree

 

 

 

 

mom’s arthritis

acting up again–

I take two Advil

 

 

 

 dagosan  – Roadrunner Haiku Journal (V:4, Nov. 2005) 

 

 

 

In “Burn in the U.S.A, “Norm Pattis of Crime & Federalism gives us a criminal

defense lawyer’s perspective on the death penalty — seen through the smokey

glass of the Zacarias Moussaoui case.  As usual, Norm has a unique way of

looking at issues he cares about greatly.

 

                                                             What would Arthur Kirkland say?    

first murder trial–
the D.A. arrives
in new gloves  

 

 

 

his quiet funeral—

a man who did

most of the talking

 

Barry George, J.D.

 

 Two thoughtful posts dealt with a topic frequently discussed at this weblog —

alternatives to the billable hour.  Of course, we’re a little bit skeptical that changing

the pricing format will make much difference without changing the profit goals of

law firms and their lawyers.  [see, e.g., the value-billing babysitter (March 23, 2006)

and chronomentrophobia (Jan. 7, 2005)]   But, I digress. 

 

                                                                                                              

 

Greatest American Lawyer, who always takes a balanced approach to the subject, wrote 

“Is It The Hourly Bill Or The Lack Of Budget Which Is Most Harmful To The Client Relation-

ship?”  GAL tells us how his firm handles billing various matters and explains why he’s

come to believe that maximum bugets on projects may be the solution to the hourly

billing crisis.

 

                                    What would Atticus Finch say? 

 

Meanwhile, Dan Hull at What About Clients? writes about Exemplar Law Partners,

the fixed-price-only Boston law firm.  The post Catching Up With Exemplar Law:

“No Hourly Bills, No Hourly Bull,” is quite up-beat, and starts up a lively debate

in the Comments section on the viability of a fixed-price model in a world where

good talent is very expensive (and not much interested in taking risks or less

income).

 

 

her eyes narrow,

seeing for the first time

my little house

 

John Stevenson

 

 

   Before we go, here are a few pointers from the f/k/a Gang.  Prof Yabut

is always complaining about being stuck here in Schenectady, NY.  He found the

series this week from Scotland and Wales by J. Craig Williams to be a great

change of pace.   We all learned some interesting history, too.

 

the train picks up speed

in a paper coffee cup

concentric waves

 

  John Stevenson  – Some of the Silence 

 

       haikuEsq is usually reluctant to delve into poetry that has more than three

to five lines.  However, he recommends the humorous, PG-13-rated, “constitutional

law” poetry of the anonymous Canadian law student who haunts the Lawyerlike weblog.  

The Annual Joel Bakan Constitutional Poetry Contest is the inspiration.

 

city lights —

the brightest are all

selling something

 

   John Stevenson – Upstate Dim Sum (2005/1)

 

       Your humble editor thinks Are Law Firms Manageable? at David Maister’s Passion

deserves the attention of many of the folk reading this weblog.  Some of you might also

want to check out the Whisper weblog’s discussion of the difference between branding

and advertising.  [Then, check out our rather jaundiced perspective on law firm branding

in Brand LEX — just how is the client better-served?]

 

up late update (3PM): Just got back to my keyboard after my

first “all nighter” in a very long time.  A few things are clear, now

that I’ve had my first mug of coffee of the day:

(1) Ben Cowgill’s soloblawg did finally go public very

early this morning (it hadn’t the last time I looked). Ben’s

reputation for putting together excellent content and

resources, bodes well for this new venture, which will

provide information of interest to solo and small firms, 

and “focus to a large degree on legal technology and

the Internet-leveraged practice of law.”  Best wishes

to Ben on this newest venture (and thanks for your

kind words about this edition of Blawg Review).

 

early Alzheimer’s

she says she’ll have . . .

the usual

 

  John Stevenson

   from Quiet Enough

 

(2) I forgot to mention my hope that 3L Epiphany will

reconsider the decision to leave “inactive” weblogs out

of its very helpful legal weblog taxonomy.  With the internet

being as close to eternal as things get on this planet, even 

“inactive” sites can be the source of useful information and

historical perspective.  Sure, indicate that a weblog has been

“inactive since ______”, but don’t leave sites like BeldarBlog 

or The Curmudgeonly Clerk out of the main categories of

the Taxonomy.

 

(3) You should see “Court TV’s 15 Most Memorable Movie Lawyers“

and our related post.

 

                                                                     the verdict   

 

(4) BWD: Blogging While Drowsy leads to many infractions, inclu-

ding my omitting a pointer to Dennis Kennedy’s April 4th post on

associates’ salaries and the Wired GC’s hyphenated word “price-

fixing.” [Related post: check out the results to Adam Smith, Esq‘s

poll “Are Associate Salaries Justified?] Although I wish Dennis

had not added “I’m just raising the question to see what people

think, not necesarily as a reflection of my own opinion,” I am

pleased to see him point out examples of recent  “ratcheting up

of the ‘protections’ of the legal profession from within” — leading to

[and, sorry Carolyn, but I refuse to use the newest cliche “money

quote”] the question:  

“Is the legal profession begging for outside (governmental)

investigation, intervention and antitrust regulation?”

 

the son who

argues everything

I study his face in a puddle

 

     George Swede – Almost Unseen

Sadly, we think, in a nation with such a fragmented system of attorney

regulation (and with so much politcal influence held by the legal profes-

sion over many of the consumer advocates most likely to otherwise lead 

a charge), outside intervention — such as that recently begun in UK –

seems highly unlikely. 

 

 

me in one hand

a belt in the other

dads sings a lullaby

    roberta beary – Taboo Haiku

 

“PriceReducedN”

 

(5) If this old trustbuster had been more awake, he would have pointed

his arthritic digits at Dan Crane’s Antitrust and Presidential Politics post

at Antitrust Review.  Dan points out that one Italian candidate for Prime

Minister, Romano Prodi (an economics professor, I believe), has made 

antitrust law a major campaign issue.  Dan then goes on to show how 

little antitrust comes up in the public discourse of American presidents.  

“dgITsm”  Let me take this opportunity to point out yet again

that the Editor of f/k/a is NOT the David Giacalone who worked

for Mr. Berlusconi and is alleged to have “received a personal 

payment of more than $300,000 for his part in having the so-called

Mammi Law enacted favoring Berlusoni’s media empire. (The Nation, 

“Emperor of the Air,” Nov. 11, 1999) [even The Nation misspells our

name!]  Berlusconi’s Giacalone has a website, policamente scorretto,

which means “politically incorrect” in Italian. 

 

                                                                                DAG71g

                                                                                                              pre-dagosan

 

On the other hand, Berlusconi’s Giacalone has been known to

insist that, back in 1971, he was not this David Giacalone.

 

one button undone

in the clerk’s blouse    I let her

steal my change

 

 

 

 

sunrise

I forget my side

of the argument

 

 

 

 

stepping on

sidewalk ants     the boy

everyone bullies

 

 

 

George Swede – Almost Unseen (Brooks Books, 2000) 

 

 

                                                                                                         “TaxDayN”

 

   Next week’s Host will be tax professor Jim Maule of Mauled Again.  Jim has taken

a good look at the issue Is It Time to License Tax Return Preparers?, setting out many

of the pluses and minuses of regulating these service providers.

 

 

The beetle I righted

flies straight into

a cobweb

 

George Swede – Almost Unseen

 

old dog and master

jostling

for the tiny spot of shade

 

 

 

storm alert

every kind of cloud

in one sky

 

 

white to pink–
who painted the clouds while
we shopped for wine?

 

          David A. Giacalone – Legal Studies Forum XXIX:1 (2005) 

 

 

“tinyredcheck”  Blawg Review has information about next week’s host, and instructions

how to get your blawg posts reviewed in upcoming issues.

 

p.s. Sorry we got this posted so late.  Sure hope no one was

inconvenienced (other than your very sleepy Editor).

 

his death notice . . .

the get-well card

still in my briefcase

 

Roberta Beary – A New Resonance 2: 

 

 

baby-boomer

all-nighter —

not the fun kind

 

     dagosan

 

     

 

                                                                                             

 

 

This post is part four of a 4-part essay. It has been moved to contingency fees (part 4 of 4): ethical duties (April 7, 2006).  Don’t miss the rest of this series:

• contingency fees (part 1 of 4): market failure April 2, 2006
• contingency fees (part 2 of 4): risk matters April 3, 2006
• contingency fees(part 3 of 4): do “standard” fees still exist? April 5, 2006

 

 

At f/k/a, you get all the haiku you deserve —

Every visit is free.  No contingencies.  No fine print.

 

Here’s your reward today from andrew riutta:

 

“snowflakeSN”

darkening more

and more in morning light,

one crow

 

 

 

snow melt . . .

her only footprint

touches the earth

 

 

 

 

holding her umbilical cord

at the middle . . .

each end already taken

 

andrew riutta

“darkening more” & “snow melt” – Acorn 2005

“umbilical cord” – Presence 2005

 

  Not enough?  Try a few Tanka by Andrew, from

Simply Haiku (Spring 2006) Click for more.

 

 

days
become months
become years . . .
in moonlight
my beer stays cold

 

 

drunks stumble in and out of her
like cartoon characters—
wet with fallen leaves
this dark road home

 

 

 

peeking into
this wormhole in my apple
I see a poet
thirty years from now
still dressed like a plumber

 

 

 

at my age
falling in love
with the person
she thought I was—
autumn graveyard

 

“snowflakeSN”

 

 

yesterday
I bought myself a new hat
with ear flaps . . .
today, myriad thoughts
muffle the falling snow

 

 

 

one lone cricket
louder than all the others—
not one of us
has ever found the words
to comfort the living

 

                                                          

 

Woe is me.   I spent a sunny, brisk Spring day, at my

laptop writing about contingency fees.  Even if you had

more fun than that, you get to enjoy five poems from

Peggy Willis Lyles, along with the (re)tired haikuEsq.

 

 

watermark

            the way the master’s brush

strokes the wings

 

 

 

 

 

 

dawn light

on white camelias

the fever breaks

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

attic sun

from Grandmother’s gown

a grain of rice

 

 

 

 

a backhoe

stalled in goldenrod–

low sun

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the net

into deep water

clearing sky

 

 

 

 

peggy lyles 

“attic sun,” “dawn” & “watermark” – To Hear the Rain (2002)

“a backhoe” & “the net” –  Roadrunner Haiku Journal (VI:1, Feb. 2006)

 

 

 

the roof sweeper
stands still…
evening cherry blossoms

 

  Issa,

    translated by David G. Lanoue

The Major League Baseball 2006 season opened yesterday (April 3),

as many readers surely know.  No matter how enthusiastic or indiffer-

ent you (or we) may be about MLB, we hope you’ll agree that f/k/a‘s

Baseball Haiku Page still inspires and delights both young and old.

G.W.Bush

Charles Dharapak/AP

The Detroit Tigers, Ed Markowski‘s homeboys, won their opener,

but the lifelong fan in Ed is not yet ordering World Series Tickets.

Like last year, Ed continues to be inspired by baseball, when he

switches to his haijin hat.

                      snowflakes tumble & curve

                            the baseball season

                                      begins

                                       today

“snowflakeSN”

                         “snowflakeSN”

      April snow

         the home team falls

             7 games back

April chill

the hitter blows

on his batting glove

ed markowski

“InfielderF”  You’ll find about 20 ed markowski baseball poems

on the Baseball Haiku page.   Here are a few samples from

three other Honored Guest Poets:

warm beer–

heat lightning flickers

beyond the outfield

       frogpond (2004)

nearly dark–

snow deepens

on the baseball field

      

  Billie Wilson – “nearly dark” – Acorn 15 (2005)

sting

of the old man’s

fastball

my so-called friends
send in my sister
to pinch-hit for me

          

 John Stevenson   – “extra innings” – Quiet Enough

two outs in the ninth–
the reliever bangs the ball
against his cup

behind barbed wire
the banter of baseball
in two languages

jim kacian

“potluck”

  You may recall that Joel Schoenmeyer of Death & Taxes and

I had a debate last month on making probate court more user-friendly

for pro so litigants.  See probate and pro se: whose court is it?  On

a related front, the legal reform group HALT announced yesterday, in

its April 3, 2006 e-Journal that the Consumer Federation of America

has endorsed the following proposal:

Enhancements to Probate Web Sites
CFA urges states to improve the content and user-

friendliness of their probate court Web sites. Consumers

should be able to go online and easily find plain-language

information and forms for settling a small estate.

[thanks to Prof. Gerry Beyer of the WT&EProfBlog for

linking to this post and covering the topic of probate websites.]

“spiltwine”  You might want to ponder, along with Tom Wark of the

Fermentation Daily Wine Blog, “Why Are Drinkers Smarter?” (tip

from A Fool in the Forest and his Blawg Review 51 Prequel)  Plus,

see Tom’s blurb — Divorce and Wine — pointing to Jeff Lalloway‘s

California family law weblog and its discussion of taxes, wine & divorce.

this body of mine

part temple

part tavern

        the old priest dines

                his wine

                just wine

David G. Lanoue 

“this body” – Dewdrop World (2005)

“old priest ” – the thin curve:; Modern Haiku XXX: 1

  Some poor soul Googled how to get out of the legal profession> 

yesterday (and again today).  Out of 152 million results, the first two

are from us.  You could do a lot worse than reading them this

gray (and even snowy) afternoon, if you need inspiration or better

priorities:

Law As Daily Passion, Not Default Profession (quotes from New

Jersey Appellate Judge Jose L. Fuentes)  and

is Canada’s legal profession different? (probably not)

                                                                                                        “snowflakeSN”