Blog Posts


What You Can Do About Corporate Fraud

You may not recall the name Bradley Birkenfeld. But, I suspect, if you work for a large bank, a hospital, a defense contractor, or any of the thousands of other corporate entities that are either regulated by federal law or receive federal funds, you will never forget his name once you read this...

Judge Gleeson Bends Rules -- Gets It Right

I can never really tell when a client is serious about suicide. My hunch is that those who talk about it won’t do it. It’s the silent types who from time to time cross that dark line. It is devastating when they do so. In every case, you look back for signs, cues and portents. Sure,...

The New Racism

Some time in or about 2040, Caucasians will become a minority in North America, according to projections from the U.S. Census Bureau. This change in demographics will alter the political landscape; indeed, things are already changing. Consider the concept of "white male privilege."
What is...

Human Rights Exhaustion

In the end, when our civilization and way of life collapses, it will not be because some foreign enemy laid us low. The rot that will destroy us will be home grown.
The lingering decay was on display in Milford recently, where school officials banned Halloween celebrations in the elementary...

The Importance of Jury Duty

“How did you feel when you got your summons in the mail asking you to come to court?”
More often than not, it is the first question I ask potential jurors during jury selection. Most folks sigh, and then state that they weren’t happy. Jury service is regarded as an...

Strict Liability In Police Shootings

As of Oct. 5, 754 people, or almost three people per day, were shot to death by police officers in the United States in 2015. This information was not compiled by a law enforcement agency, although it easily could have been. Instead, The Washington Post has been gathering the data and posting it...

A Question of Competence

Dr. Lishan Wang doesn’t want to be forced to take medication. His mind is clear. He is prepared to represent himself at trial against the charge of murder. He wrote all this and more in a recent letter to the New Haven Register. He complains that the folks at the Whiting Forensic Institute in...

GM, Volkswagen -- Criminals Without Consequences

There’s a rough divide among criminal defense lawyers, distinguishing those who defend so-called white-collar cases from those who defend other crimes, such as murder, rape, robbery and child abuse. White collar cases, taking their name from the pressed and starched shirts of the power suite...

A Lawyer, A Judge and Black Privilege

It is difficult for me to understand why U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey Meyer thought it necessary to refer attorney Josephine Miller for professional discipline. It's even harder for me to comprehend why Miller thinks she can prevail in the brand new federal lawsuit she filed to prohibit...

Carpe Diem at 60

You’ve heard the syllogism:
“All men are mortal;
“Socrates is a man;
“Therefore Socrates is mortal.”
The logic is airtight, inescapable — so long as it is applied to someone else. Substitute your own name, or a personal pronoun, for...

© Norm Pattis is represented by Elite Lawyer Management, managing agents for Exceptional American Lawyers
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