Criminal Law Library BlogTop Ten Stories of the Week ending June 5, 2009:
Law Practice Management
MoFo’s NYC Office Tells Troops: Be Here By 9:30 a.m., Jumping Jacks Optional Jun 2, 2009, 02:53 pm CDT
Articles Posted in Commentary and Opinion
Q&A: Trends in Funding of Court and County Law Libraries*
QUESTION:
Recently, Connecticut and New Jersey have sought to remove funding completely for their county and court law libraries through budget bills and separate legislative actions. Has anyone experienced this threat from their state legislature recently?
SOME RESPONSES:
Cybersecurity: Reviews and Iniatives of the Obama Administration
Web based criminal justice issues cannot be addressed in a rational manner without also the establishment and ongoing maintenance of a trusted and resilient information and communications infrastructure. Realizing the paramount importance of these objectives the Obama administration has been engaging in a mumber related activities including President Obama’s recent call for the creation of a cybersecurity coordinator who will orchestrate and integrate federal cybersecurity policies and agendas, and the release by the White House of a Report: Cyberspace Policy Review: Assuring a Trusted and Resilient Information Infrasturcture
These measures could not be more timely. The increasing rate that information on the web is being compromised in many ways including identity theft, willful distortion of information,and illegal wiretapping to name a few. Other organizations such as the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) have long been concerned with issues related to the continuing integrity or authenticity of information on the web and are actively engaged in developing recommendations and helping others understand the importance of achieving and maintaining information authenticity of the web but additional help and support is needed. It is therefore most encouraging to see indications that the Obama administration is interested in taking an active role in addressing these and related issues.
The following are links to documents and articles discussing recent cybersecurity initiatives of the Obama administration.
ABA Journal Weekly Newsletter. May 29, 2009.
Top Ten Stories of the Week ending May 29, 2009:
Layoffs 2009’s Toll: More Than 10,000 Law Firm Layoffs and Lower Pay Trend
May 28, 2009, 10:43 am CDT
Internet Society Posts Report on Internet Governance Survey
The Internet Society conducted a survey of members on the topic of
Internet Governance in April and May 2009. The purpose was to assist
ISOC in addressing Internet governance issues in the discussion up to
Judge Sonia Sotomayor: Background Documents, LC Materials, Two Opinions, And Completed Questionnaire
To help those who are interested in information beyond that available in the popular news media regarding Judge Sotomayor we have assembeled two background documents, two of Judge Sotomayor’s opinions, one from 2002 and another from 2008. Also included is a completed copy of the questionnaire of Judge Sotoamyor prepared for and delivered to the Senate Judiciary Committee. All judicial candidates such as Sonia Sotomayor are required to complete and submit a questionnaire as part of the confirmation process. You can view these documents from the links below. The links contain brief title descriptions of the respective materials:
Background on Judge Sonie Sotomayor Prepared by the White House, May 2009
Sir Tim Berners-Lee Honored With Webby Lifetime Achievement Award
“The Webby Awards is thrilled to announce that Sir Tim Berners-Lee is scheduled to attend the 13th Annual Webby Awards Gala on June 8, where he will be honored with a Webby Award for Lifetime Achievement in recognition of his enormous contribution to the world of Internet technology and communications. Widely known as the inventor of the World Wide Web, Berners-Lee created the first versions of the technologies — including HTML, URL, and HTTP — that turned the Internet into a mass medium. Since he invented the Web twenty years ago, Berners-Lee has remained its most active and passionate advocate, working tirelessly to ensure that it remains open, free, and a tool for helping humankind…”
Review: Dreams From the Monster Factory: A Tale of Prison, Redemption and One Woman’s Fight to Restore Justice to All
Dreams from the Monster Factory: A Tale of Prison, Redemption and One Woman’s Fight to Restore Justice to All by Sunny Schwartz, with David Boodell Scribner, 204 pp., $24.00
Reviewed by Helen Epstein in a forthcoming issue of The New York Review of Books (Volume 56 Number 9 June 11, 2009).
Here is an excerpt from that review:
ABA Journal Weekly Newsletter. May 22, 2009.
Top Ten Stories of the Week ending May 22, 2009:
Trials & Litigation
‘Reply All’ Was a Mistake, Peeved Partner Tells Quinn Emanuel Associate May 19, 2009, 03:53 pm CDT
Who Were the Most Important Legal Thinkers in American Law in the Past Century?
Brian R. Leiter the John P. Wilson Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Law, Philosophy and Human Values at the University of Chicago has conducted a poll to determine who people think were the most important legal thinkers in american law in the past century. There were 180 votes cast. Professor Leiter has post the top 25 on his blog, Brian Leiter’s Law School Reports. When looking at the list don’t forget to scroll down and read the comments which are also thought provoking. As one would expect on such a list there are always questions about why so-and-so was or was not included.