FBI shares hate crime statistics
In late September 2010, as part of the FBI Citizen’s Academy in Indianapolis, agents passed around photos from a cross burning that took place four years earlier in Muncie.
Rebecca Berfanger
Articles
Indiana Supreme Court to hear arguments on victim-advocate privilege
Domestic violence victims’ advocates and criminal law attorneys are waiting on the Indiana Supreme Court’s decision in a case involving a criminal defendant’s subpoena for records from a victim’s advocacy organization.
Indiana Family courts receive more than $200,000
As the family court project of the Indiana Supreme Court’s Division of State Court Administration enters a new year, courts that participate in the program have learned they will continue to operate with about the same amount of funding they have had in recent years.
Competition concludes at finals
Following the We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution mock congressional hearing state finals, which took place Dec. 12-13 for high school students and Dec. 14 for middle school students, organizers announced that a team from Munster High School will represent Indiana at the national competition held in Washington, D.C., in April 2011.
Bar associations team up for ‘Santa’ program
The Indiana State Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Section partnered with the James C. Kimbrough Bar Association to sponsor their first program together, “Santa’s Been Sued.”
Clark County self-help center helps pro se litigants
When pro se litigants find themselves in a courthouse for the first time, there’s a good chance they aren’t quite sure what to do. In the Clark County courthouse in Jeffersonville, just across the river from Louisville, a self-help center for pro se litigants in civil cases has been operational since late May.
Indiana pro bono districts take a hit
While low interest rates can be a good thing for those looking to take out loans to buy a home, a car, or to refinance, they mean nothing but headaches and heartaches for organizations that depend on the dollars generated, such as legal aid organizations that rely on funds from Interest on Lawyer Trust Accounts.
Planning ahead for retirement
For attorneys who may be making a New Year’s resolution to consider retirement in 2011, 2012, or even 2013, it’s never too early to start planning.
Counsel reenergizes section
The immediate past chair of the Indiana State Bar Association’s Corporate Counsel Section, Stephen Landrum Due, is one member of the leadership team who made a push to make the section more active.
‘We The People’ students to witness naturalization ceremony
As part of a three-day program that includes state finals for a civics competition that the Indiana Bar Foundation oversees, students will witness a naturalization ceremony this evening in downtown Indianapolis.
7th Circuit order changes wording in public-records opinion
In an order dated Wednesday and posted on the website for the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals today, a Nov. 29 opinion from that court was amended following a motion filed by the defendants on Dec. 2 to delete a reference to the defendants as “silly” and “unprofessional.”
COA: student loan funds exempt from garnishment
The Court of Appeals today found that student loan funds that had been deposited in a personal account were exempt when it came to whether those funds could be taken from a defendant’s bank account to satisfy a judgment regarding legal fees the defendant owed to the plaintiff.
Job fair connects diverse students to jobs
To help a diverse group of 2L students find summer employment in central Indiana, and to help Indianapolis-area employers connect with diverse, qualified students looking for summer associate positions, the Indianapolis Bar Association hosted its third diversity job fair at a downtown Indianapolis hotel in August.
Free CLE offered for pro bono volunteers
Bar associations and pro bono districts are working together to encourage attorneys to sign up to participate in the annual statewide Talk to a Lawyer Today event taking place Jan. 17, 2011. Free CLE, which is offered in December and January to lawyers who volunteer their time with TTALT but is not required to participate in the event, is a video replay of a CLE that originally took place in Indianapolis in October.
Bar associations host free CLE
Bar associations and pro bono districts are working together in December and January to promote replays of a CLE for attorneys who want to participate in the annual statewide Talk to a Lawyer Today event taking place Jan. 17, 2011.
Judge’s collection inspired military museum in Vincennes
After starting his collection of World War II memorabilia as a child, almost three decades ago a judge in southern Indiana had amassed enough artifacts, including jets and tanks, to open a museum in Vincennes.
ITLA focuses on education, legislation, amicus briefs
As the year comes to a close, the president of the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association said the organization of about 1,000 members will continue its three major goals: to provide educational opportunities, to write amicus briefs when there is a broader issue that can apply to cases and clients of trial attorneys, and to track bills as they are submitted by legislators for the 2011 session of the Indiana Legislature.
Encouraging diversity at law schools
When asked if diversity played a role in their decisions on where to attend law school, a handful of minority law students in Indiana said while it wasn’t the biggest or only factor, it often was a consideration.
Attorneys help wounded warriors
Since June, a number of Indiana-based Army Reservists have been helping American soldiers in their greatest hour of need.
Annual law school event to celebrate human rights
To celebrate the anniversary of the United Nations’ adoption and proclamation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, various human rights organizations based in Central Indiana will host the program, “Human Rights Defenders: Voices from the Community,” at Indiana University School of Law – Indianapolis.