Blog Posts

There's really only one good reason I can fathom for promoting United States District Judge Robert N. Chatigny to the Second Circuit: Removing him from the trial courts will make room for a breath of fresh air in the Connecticut trial courts. Besides, if Chatigny sits on a panel of at least three...

For all I know Susan Carney is one of the law’s gems, a legal genius of rarefied intellect and Solomonic wisdom. Her resume is certainly impressive. Harvard College. Harvard Law School. Federal court clerk. Counsel to the Peace Corp. Yale University legal counsel. She glitters.
Yet for...

What do you do when you discover that your judge's ear drum is connected to your ass? You try to be gracious, delicate and decorous. Remember, the man with gavel rules, even when the rules make no sense.
I was reminded of this today on a flatulent sort of day in trial. My client faces trial in...

Questions remain about the relationship between the Trial Lawyers College and the Spence Foundation. But that doesn't stop the fund-raising beat from tapping out a steady rhythm. Although the master, Gerry Spence, is retiring from the fray, he's still the college's most potent draw, and its most...

How desperate is Attorney General Richard Blumenthal in his race for the Senate? Yesterday, he unveiled his wife, Cynthia, who wrote an email to supporters asking for money.
Waint a minute! She's got a million dollar in her checking account according to financial disclosure forms. The family is...

An email arrived this evening from a relatively new lawyer. The question was simple. Where can a new lawyer go for instruction, guidance and the succor of those with like minds? The lawyer wants help finding bright stars in the law's dark nights. He asked whether I would recommend attending the...

I am trying hard to like Richard Blumenthal. I really am. Over the weekend I called for an end to Dickiegate, trying to resign myself to the fact that this would-be Senator is a liar. I stumbled under the influence of some inchoate syllogism that went something like this:
Dick Blumenthal is a...

I've begun to wonder whether flat fees for legal services ought to be prohibited. Charging them leads to an almost inevitable conflict between lawyer and client. Perhaps lawyers should be required to charge hourly fees for their services.
Here's the issue in a nutshell: Once you've practice for...

Reform of sex offender laws in each state and at the national level will only take place if those harmed by these laws speak up. Yet the sense of shame associated with the mere allegation of sexual misconduct drives many people underground. Chances to network and to learn from others are few and...

After a week filled with an unusual amount of chaos, I was drawn, naturally, to another viewing of Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers for relaxation last night. Perhaps someone out there can help me understand the film. I am not sure I get it.
I could watch Woody Harrelson cite check a legal...