Sometimes a seemingly small gesture can turn into something bigger. Or at least that’s the thinking with various so-called pipeline programs aimed at high school and college students with a goal of increasing diversity in the legal field.

When he was named to the Madison Circuit bench late last year, Judge Rudolph “Rudy” Pyle III made history in that he became not only the county’s first African-American jurist but also the first Indiana Conference for Legal Education Opportunities graduate to be elevated to the state’s judiciary at that level.

All that is known about funding for Indiana’s 14 pro bono districts is that no one yet knows exactly how much the districts will receive in October for their 2011 budgets.

The Indiana Supreme Court published an order April 26 on the fees the state's appellate courts clerk can charge for miscellaneous services.

The Indiana Department of Correction will use technology to analyze DNA samples from prison contraband, thanks to a pilot project believed to be the first of its kind in the U.S.

High school students who represented Indiana at the 23rd annual We the People congressional hearing competition placed eighth among the teams competing on the national level in Washington, D.C., April 22-27.

The Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission brings charges against attorneys who have violated the state's rules for admission to the bar and Rules of Professional Conduct.

Usually being served by a lawyer is a bad thing. That is, unless the lawyer is offering a cool martini or a warm plate of shrimp and grits.

Being an attorney wasn't always the plan for Jeremiah J. Shives, in-house counsel for Pendleton-based Remy International.

On an occasional Saturday, you may find attorney John Daly teaching a workplace safety course in front of construction workers.

The first year of a federal e-discovery program is now complete in the 7th Circuit, and despite its success one clear message sets the stage for how the pilot project moves forward: More Indiana judges and attorneys need to step up and get involved.

A Marion Superior Judge declined to immediately decide on the state's request to set aside a partial settlement in a dispute about East Chicago casino revenues.

This year's 7th Circuit Bar Association and Judicial Conference for the 7th Circuit featured a more historic tone because of the high-profile roster of legal community leaders who attended, as well as offering tidbits about how the Indianapolis federal courthouse will soon be going green, how the state's Southern District is hoping for a new full-time magistrate, and a call to action for Hoosier judges and attorneys to get more involved in a new e-discovery program under way.

It’s never easy to handle an emergency when it comes to someone’s health, on a personal or professional level. But some early planning can help, especially when it comes to knowing who will take over the workload.

For the past few years, groups of students at Indiana University School of Law – Indianapolis’ International Human Rights Law Society, with encouragement from the school’s Program in International Human Rights Law, have been working on and presenting various reports on human rights issues to experts who work for the United Nations.

A Terre Haute lawyer made his sixth argument before the nation’s highest court April 28, and he describes the hour-long experience to be the most intense of those he’s had before the Supreme Court of the United States.

If Judge G. Michael Witte hadn't tried for the appellate bench about two years ago, he might not be in the position now to be Indiana's newest chief of lawyer ethics.

Advocates of domestic-violence victims and gun owners have their sights set on an upcoming oral argument at the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago. The case of interest raises the issue of whether someone who has been convicted of a domestic-violence misdemeanor should be able to have a gun for hunting purposes.

We've all been there. Driving the same route day-in and day-out, a hundred times before, with little to differentiate one trip from another. Then there's that one moment when something unforeseen occurs requiring you to instantly maneuver your vehicle and test how good your reflexes and anti-lock brakes really are - making this all-too-routine trip very different from the rest.

Who says that hard work and persistence don't pay off? Well before the E-Trade talking baby commercials, our local judges were exerting their energy in formulating the framework of a plan to bring efficiencies to court filings.

A Marion County deputy prosecutor's striking of potential jurors has divided an Indiana Court of Appeals panel, with judges disagreeing about whether it should second-guess a lower court's finding that no racial discrimination was in play in striking the African-American jurors.

Indiana University School of Law - Indianapolis student Erin Albert released her fifth book, “Indianapolis: A Young Professional’s Guide, Second Edition,” at a book launch party and signing April 8.

While most of the country is concentrating on March Madness, my thoughts have turned to America's national pastime - and the concept of the curve ball (and not just because I had picked Kansas to win the NCAA Championship). What happens when life is humming along just fine and suddenly you're up to bat and the unanticipated curve ball causes you to strike out?

The Indiana Supreme Court disbarred a northern Indiana attorney April 1 for violating the terms of a previous suspension, entering into an improper business transaction with a client, and engaging in dishonest conduct.