Lawyer’s jab at judge not protected speech

By

Over on my Media Law blog, I report on a case today from Massachusetts’ highest court holding that the First Amendment does not protect against discipline for a lawyer who criticizes a judge in a pending case unless the lawyer has “an objectively reasonable basis” for the criticism.…

Gallup: Lawyers rank low in ethical standings

By

Gallup has released its annual poll asking Americans to rate the honesty and ethical standards of those in various professions, reports Editor & Publisher, and lawyers rank near the bottom of the list. The good news: lawyers rank higher than senators, congressmen, labor union leaders and car salesman. But they rank behind funeral directors,…

C-SPAN to air Rumsfeld v. Fair arguments

By

At 11 a.m. ET today, C-SPAN will stream the oral arguments in Rumsfeld v. Forum for Academic & Institutional Rights, involving the constitutionality of the Solomon Amendment, requiring universities to allow military recruiters on campus or lose federal funds.…

Search terms as evidence of murder

By

In the days leading up to his wife’s murder, Robert James Petrick used Google to search the terms “body decomposition,” “rigor mortis,” “neck” and “break.” He also went online to research the depth, currents and underwater topography of the lake in which his wife’s body was found. This evidence helped lead to Petrick’s conviction in…