Shortly after my bar mitzvah, I interviewed one of my beloved spiritual leaders, Rabbi Solomon Aidelson, a survivor of Auschwitz, for a class project about the Holocaust. To prepare, I studied a great deal about the topic, beginning with Hitler’s rise to power, which unleashed a surge of antisemitism throughout Nazi Germany, including the boycotting … Continued
It is half a world away, but the conflict in the Middle East has led to a dramatic increase in hate crimes against Muslims in the United States, and state and national leaders are calling for swift action to reverse the surge. Two of the attacks – which are being investigated as hate crimes – … Continued
Hate is taught as Nelson Mandela reminded us. We are not born with animosity toward other human beings any more than we are born with the ability to take care of ourselves. Instead, prejudice is passed on from generation to generation and, if left unchecked, it is deadly. The stories throughout this edition remind us … Continued
With the holiday season over, most of us can count the days until we break one or more New Year’s resolutions. Adding to the ubiquitous “I will lose 10 pounds” or “I will give up bacon” we resolve each year to make fewer mistakes in the practice of law. And yes, we make mistakes, less … Continued
The solution often turns out more beautiful than the puzzle. – Richard Dawkins As all litigators know, confronting summary judgment on any issue is a daunting undertaking. When one is either a movant or respondent, a near categorical knowledge of the record facts, and a deep understanding of the applicable law – pertaining to both … Continued
Richard Lewis, president of the New York State Bar Association, issued the following statement about the Commission on Legislative, Judicial & Executive Compensation approval of its report for increased judicial salaries: “Judicial compensation reflects the value that we place upon the critical work that our judges perform. A properly funded judiciary is the foundation of … Continued
After hearing about the deadly “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Va., New York attorney Roberta “Robbie” Kaplan’s first instinct was that lawyers had to stand up to the white nationalists who intimidated and attacked counter protesters. One protester, Heather Heyer, was killed when a self-proclaimed white nationalist rammed his car into a crowd of … Continued
Richard Lewis, president of the New York State Bar Association, issued the following statement about the death of Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor: “As the first female justice on the U.S. Supreme Court, Sandra Day O’Connor occupies a special place in our nation’s history. On every critical issue — affirmative action, abortion, voting rights, … Continued
The United States Constitution contains provisions that support the right to a trial by an impartial jury in both criminal and civil cases. As the Sixth Amendment explicitly states, “[i]n all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein … Continued
For many decades, courts have bemoaned the frequency at which they are presented with ill-conceived copyright infringement claims predicated “upon that obsessive conviction, so frequent among authors and composers, that all similarities between their works and any others which appear later must inevitably be ascribed to plagiarism.”1 This problem has been compounded by the digital … Continued