Welcome to First Impressions, a place for sharing your thought about legal news and issues in Indiana and beyond. I'm your host, Jennifer Nelson, Web editor for Indiana Lawyer. Just like in the courtroom, we encourage everyone to interact with civility.
Recent Blog Posts
Firm heads south
April 6, 2009
Comments(0)What’s Barnes & Thornburg’s secret? In today’s economy when firms are letting go staff and attorneys, and some around
the country are even dissolving, Barnes & Thornburg expands into a new market. The firm announced today that it opened
a new...
MoreIowa’s surprising decision
April 3, 2009
Comments(0)I’ll admit it, I’m surprised the Iowa Supreme Court unanimously ruled civil marriage isn’t only for a man and woman. Iowa
is in the Midwest and many people in this part of the country have deep-seated, often religious influences on their...
MoreClient files trashed
April 1, 2009
Comments(0)In the course of their job, lawyers find out some pretty personal stuff about their clients. Information that I’m sure the
clients want to remain confidential and protected. Imagine my surprise when I read a news article today about an attorney...
MoreLaw firm first
March 30, 2009
Comments(0)An Indiana law firm has said it let some employees go because of the economy. Bose McKinney & Evans in Indianapolis sent out
a press release last week saying 10 attorneys, two paralegals, and 13 support staff had been let...
MoreRequired law school
March 27, 2009
Comment(1)I know I’m a little late on this one, but has anyone else seen The Onion article, “Year of law school now mandatory for nation’s
25-year-olds?” The article ran in the satirical paper March 11, but I remember seeing it recently...
MoreCat paws & baby formula
March 25, 2009
Comments(0)From IL reporter Michael Hoskins : Every so often, court rulings offer hidden treasurers that tickle the mind with intrigue
rather than simple legalese and legal theory. Take Wednesday's two examples from the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. Neither
appeal...
MoreTwitter in the courtroom
March 23, 2009
Comments(0)Can Twitter cause a mistrial or possibly taint a trial? Yes it can, if you’ve read any recent news stories about jurors using
the social networking tool to “tweet” about their experience on the jury. Some guy in Arkansas sent messages...
MoreMarch distractions
March 19, 2009
Comments(0)Today kicks off the NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball tournament, much to the joy and excitement of many (including myself).
Instead of having to take time off work to keep up with your favorite teams or scores, many people can just...
MoreJudicial ethical code
March 18, 2009
Comments(0)The Judicial Conference of the United States adopted a revised Code of Conduct yesterday, with one revision focusing on judicial
impropriety and the appearance of impropriety. The revised code expands a little on when the appearance of impropriety occurs,
but the...
MoreIrish justice visits Indy
March 16, 2009
Comments(0)From IL reporter Rebecca Berfanger : While it’s one thing to hear from a law school that it is internationally recognized,
it’s a little different to hear that from the Chief
Justice of Ireland . “I was glad...
MoreDisaster plans at firms
March 12, 2009
Comments(0)A fire in downtown Indianapolis has made two firms thankful they have disaster plans already in place. I spoke with John Trimble
at LewisWagner and Peter Pogue at Schultz and Pogue this morning about the fire, and both reiterated the...
MoreGeneration Y and job loss
March 11, 2009
Comment(1)Is the Generation Y/ “highly praised” generation taking job loss worse than other attorneys or even others their same age
in different professions? You definitely have to have a certain type of personality and work ethic to become an attorney:
hard...
MoreNo coffee = firm trouble?
March 9, 2009
Comments(0)If you came to work one morning to find out that your company no long provided free coffee because it wanted to save money,
would you be angry, worried, or indifferent? One Chicago firm has reportedly
cut free coffee...
MoreProsecutor misconduct cases
March 6, 2009
Comments(0)For those current and aspiring prosecuting attorneys out there, read two of today’s Court of Appeals opinions to learn what
not to do while at trial. The appellate court dealt with two cases of prosecutorial misconduct but found both were harmless...
MoreUpdate on lawyers leaving law
March 4, 2009
Comments(0)I wrote a post a few weeks back that said 75 percent of respondents to our online poll at that time said they had considered
leaving the practice. After two more days of voting, the number went down to 65 percent....
MoreRacing star\'s trial begins
March 2, 2009
Comments(0)Helio, what were you thinking? You are a high-profile guy thanks to your wins at the Indianapolis 500 and disco ball trophy
from “Dancing with the Stars.” Did you think you and your attorney’s attempts at tax evasion wouldn’t get caught,...
MoreTuning out layoff news?
February 27, 2009
Comments(0)If you read any publication geared toward the legal community, you’ve undoubtedly encountered numerous news stories about
law firm layoffs. It’s a topic we’ve covered both in IL and here in the blog and one that should be talked about. The...
MoreStudy results no surprise
February 25, 2009
Comments(0)The National Association for Law Placement has issued a report that confirms what most law students already know: student
recruiting slowed last year as a result of the economy. I won’t go over all the details of the report here; you...
More2009 bills update
February 23, 2009
Comments(0)This is do-or-die week for some bills in the legislature. The third reading deadline is Wednesday and those that don’t make
it out in their current form will die. A few will be folded into other bills in an attempt to...
More1982 case shows election issue
February 19, 2009
Comment(1)As lawyers, you understand the legal nuances and issues in cases that appear before our appellate courts. The general public
often does not. They don’t understand why convictions are overturned or cases are remanded for retrial. Now imagine the power
the...
MoreSneaky vote at Statehouse
February 17, 2009
Comments(0)We think the election of Indiana’s Supreme Court justices is a pretty big deal, so we’ve been closely watching House Joint
Resolution 9, which proposes that we do away with the merit selection and retention system. So imagine our surprise today...
More3/4 of attorneys want out
February 16, 2009
Comments(0)Based on an unscientific, informal poll on our Web site, 75 percent of you have said you are leaving the practice of law to
pursue another career or you are at least considering it. The sample of this question is small,...
MoreBig dreams, small salaries
February 13, 2009
Comments(2)Update: The jobs in politics seminar has moved from March 11 to April 8. From IL reporter Rebecca Berfanger, who attended
a session of the Alternative Legal Career series at Indiana University Maurer School of Law - Bloomington this week. During...
MorePriced out of the market
February 11, 2009
Comment(1)A handful of partners and attorneys are leaving Bingham McHale in Indianapolis to start their own insurance litigation firm
because as one partner said, “We were pricing ourselves out of the market.” The amicable split between the attorneys and the
fifth-largest...
MoreFlexibility key for students
February 9, 2009
Comments(0)Some advice for law students struggling to find summer work: be flexible and think broadly. That’s what the director of the
career and development office at Indiana University Maurer School of Law – Bloomington told Indiana Lawyer Friday. Comments
from our...
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Qualified immunity, means that if you wear a badge, you are exempt from law and free to do anything you please! The courts will back badge toting individuals, because they think they are above the law as well. They think, they have judicial immunity, they do not.
Deeply, deeply concerned? I'll bet if it was the judge's money that had been swindled we'd see deep concern with actual consequences. First a Ponzi scheme, then a shell game with the assets…c'mon, hasn't Conour abused the judicial system and his clients long enough? I say enough already.
Wow, just wow.
Forcing a defendant to wear a stun belt, in court or otherwise, is a violation of american principles! It is also unconstitutional!
So, if I save $100.00 cash per week, from my $500.00 per week paycheck, for 50 years, at which time, I will have saved $260,000.00, the government can raid my home and take my money, just by saying it is drug money! Shouldn't the government, have some kind of evidence of drugs, rather, than just saying we are the government and we will take anything you own, anytime we choose? Tyranny is upon us! If you don't know your rights, you don't have any!