Video depositions can be a compelling trial tool
The ability to catch the nonverbal messages and vocal inflections made by witnesses and experts is the biggest benefits to videotaping depositions, attorneys say.
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Articles
On the Move – 7/30/14
Read who’s recently joined Indiana firms or been appointed to a board.
Metrics create benchmarks for ‘granular’ evaluations of lawyer performance
Metrics measuring attorney and law firm performance have exploded in recent years, and trend watchers say the implications for the industry are only beginning to be felt.
Bell/Gaerte: 3 things to know about ethical advocacy in closing argument
Recently, several published decisions have found attorneys to have engaged in improper advocacy. Here are three things to know about ethical advocacy in closing argument.
Retired attorney’s interpretation of famed Hoosier poet is a labor of love
Henry Ryder has portrayed James Whitcomb Riley for more than 30 years, with his last appearance at the Indiana State Fair Aug. 9.
Inbox – 7/30/14
A reader responds to a recent article about employment after graduating law school.
DTCI: Mentoring – taking care of lawyering business
Guess what? Unless you keep your office door closed, don’t talk on the telephone and don’t use email/Facebook/Twitter, you mentor every working day.
New partnerships require a shared vision, bit of nerve
Lawyers who’ve teamed up to start firms as partnerships say putting their professional names and reputations on the line together takes mutual trust, respect, a shared vision, and a fair amount of nerve.
State agencies claim information protected by deliberative process privilege
An acrimonious fight between an Indiana businessman and the Indiana Department of Revenue has not only forced the Indiana Tax Court to take the unusual step of getting involved in the discovery process but also created a case of first impression.
Supreme Court committee studying alternatives to bail
The Committee to Study Evidence-Based Pretrial Release was established by Indiana Chief Justice Brent Dickson in December 2013. The Supreme Court wants a study and evaluation of the risk-assessment tools that are available to determine when pretrial release is appropriate and under what conditions.
ABA releases tool to assess cognitive impairment
To help attorneys who are concerned about the intellectual fitness of another lawyer or judge, the American Bar Association has recently released a cognitive assessment tool. The “Working Paper on Cognitive Impairment and Cognitive Decline” is a questionnaire designed to give attorneys guidance in determining whether a partner or friend is just having a bad month or is suffering from something more serious. It also provides recommendations for talking to a colleague who is exhibiting troublesome behavior.
Decision against travel bureau over domain name draws sharp dissent on appeal
An Indiana Court of Appeals judge recently wrote that her colleagues who formed the majority to rule against a local tourism board were “out of touch,” and she suggested a case over an Internet domain name presented a novel issue that no court in the country has addressed.
Same-sex couples ask Social Security Administration to recognize their Indiana marriage
A pair of Indiana same-sex couples who were married in June have asked the U.S. Social Security Administration to recognize their marriages.
Justices to review denial of shooter’s insanity defense
The Indiana Supreme Court will hear the appeal of a man whose 120-year sentence on conviction of four counts of attempted murder was reversed by the Court of Appeals.
Warrantless search based on smell does not violated 4th Amendment
Despite the absence of danger to the public, the strong odor of raw marijuana provided the probable cause a police officer needed to conduct a warrantless search.
COA rules grandparent visitation order prejudiced father
A father who asked the trial court for a continuance to hire a lawyer after he realized his child’s grandparents had hired an attorney was prejudiced when the request was denied, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Monday.
Opinions July 28, 2014 ILD
Indiana Court of Appeals
Uriah M. Levy v. State of Indiana (NFP)
34A04-1402-CR-67
Criminal. Affirms revocation of Levy’s probation.
In the Matter of the Involuntary Termination of the Parent-Child Relationship of K.S., D.S., and N.S., Minor Children, and Their Father S.S., S.S. v. Indiana Department of Child Services (NFP)
49A02-1312-JT-1051
Juvenile. Affirms juvenile court’s order terminating father’s parental right to his three minor children.
Charles E. Decker v. State of Indiana (NFP)
84A01-1401-CR-19
Criminal. Affirms revocation of Decker’s probation and the trial court’s order that he serve the remaining four years of his sentence in the Indiana Department of Correction.
Henry Lewis v. State of Indiana (NFP)
49A04-1307-PC-342
Post conviction. Affirms denial of Lewis’s petition for post-conviction relief.
The Indiana Supreme Court and Indiana Tax Court did not post any opinions by IL deadline. The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals did not submit any Indiana opinions by IL deadline.
Opinions July 28, 2014
Indiana Court of Appeals
Bobby Alexander v. State of Indiana
49A04-1207-CR-351
Criminal. Reverse one of two convictions for Class B felony aggravated battery. Rules the state incorrectly asserted in the charging information and during closing arguments that Alexander’s actions of shooting at a car created a substantial risk of death. Remands with instructions to enter judgment of conviction for battery as a Class C felony and to resentence accordingly.
Prisoner wins right to recruit counsel in federal civil suit
A prisoner was improperly denied counsel to help with discovery in his federal lawsuit that claimed a medical provider was deliberately indifferent to glaucoma that ultimately required removal of part of his eye.
7th Circuit rejects prisoner’s ineffective assistance appeal
A man convicted of attempted murder failed to convince a panel of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals that he suffered sufficient prejudice to warrant relief from a 90-year sentence imposed after a brutal crime.