Latest & Greatest – Representing People with Mental Disabilities: A Criminal Defense Lawyer’s Best Practices Manual

Edited by Elizabeth Kelley

Published by American Bar Association

KF 9240 .R47 2018

Photo Credit: Helen Hartman

A criminal defense lawyer’s job is never easy, and that job can become even more challenging if the client is one with a mental disability. In such cases, many more issues can arise. Not only does the lawyer need to be well versed in criminal law but also he should have some understanding of how those laws can affect a mentally disabled client.  Sound intimidating? It can be, but editor and criminal defense lawyer Elizabeth Kelley has been in your shoes and can offer some guidance in the form of a new book, Representing People with Mental Disabilities: A Criminal Defense Lawyer’s Best Practices Manual. Written by criminal defense lawyers and mental health experts, Representing People with Mental Disabilities delves into some of the unique issues faced by defendants with mental disabilities, such as competency to stand trial, criminal responsibility, and the use of mental disability as mitigation. In addition, there are discussions about forced medication, jail and prison conditions, and special courts, such as mental health courts and veterans treatment courts. On a more personal note, the editor has included chapters devoted to practical tips and advice for working with clients, families, and experts. 

Each chapter begins with an introduction by the editor, and in the back of the book, you will find a list of suggested works for further reading. These titles are arranged according to chapter and include books, articles, and websites. Representing People with Mental Disabilities is meant to be a practical guide and is “the resource [Elizabeth Kelley wishes she had when she] started practicing.” You can find it in the Criminal Law section at the Harris County Law Library.

Houston Bar Association's 2020 LGBTQ Community Symposium

The Houston Bar Association’s 2020 LGBTQ Community Symposium takes place today at The Montrose Center. This learning opportunity will address the unique legal concerns of LGBTQ individuals. A full day of programming will include information on the topics listed here:

• Criminal Law – Hate Crimes and Domestic Violence

• Family Law – Gender marker identity changes, adoption, marriage, custody, and emancipation

• Immigration Law – Human trafficking

• Labor and Employment – Workplace protections

A representative from the Harris County Law Library will be in attendance to promote the library’s resources and services. Research guides created by the Law Library are linked below. Click on the thumbnail images to view and download the complete PDF documents.

Latest & Greatest – The Lawyer’s Guide to Collaboration Tools and Technologies: Smart Ways to Work Together

By Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell

Published by American Bar Association. Section of Law Practice Management.

KF 320 .A9 K 46 2018

Photo Credit: Helen Hartman

Using the tools discussed in their book, The Lawyer’s Guide to Collaboration Tools and Technologies: Smart Ways to Work Together, authors Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell created a guide for making the most out of collaboration tools and this future of legal technology. Collaboration tools and technologies by their very terms refer to means and methods, in this case electronic, which allow people to work together in a joint or common effort. The authors separate these tools into two types: those used inside the office and those used outside the office. The tasks and/or processes are the same, but there are distinctions between the two because of the obvious fact that the people who are communicating outside the office are not necessarily in the same physical location.

Moving beyond the basic discussion of the use of collaboration generally, the authors get into some specifics related to collaborating on documents, e.g. creating a document online and working simultaneously on a document, and working together on cases, transactions, and projects using such means as scheduling tools, conference calls, and real-time meetings.

The next part of the book focuses on commonly used collaboration platforms, including email, SharePoint, Adobe Acrobat, and Slack. Specialized collaboration platforms also merit some discussion by the authors. These include some practice management programs and knowledge management software. The authors conclude with recommended choices for some law practice scenarios, such as solo lawyers, government law departments, and legal services organizations.

Written by an information technology lawyer and a technology consultant and former litigator, The Lawyer’s Guide to Collaboration Tools and Technologies: Smart Ways to Work Together is a must-read for lawyers, legal professionals, and anyone who wants to discover the vast array of collaboration technologies available and how they can be implemented. You can find it here at the Law Library in our Legal Tech Collection.

From Picture Books to Board Books – Bridging the Justice Gap

Like most law libraries, Harris County Law Library is dedicated to bridging the justice gap and providing its patrons with access to the legal resources and materials they need to navigate the legal justice system. In a previous post, “How Children’s Books Promote Access to Justice,” we highlighted how the Law Library’s partnership with Harris County Public Library fostered access to justice by including children’s books in the Law Library’s collection. We were thrilled to learn that our friends at the Hamilton County Law Library in Cincinnati, Ohio, have followed our lead by partnering with the Public Library of Cincinnati to provide visitors with age-appropriate reading material, including children’s picture books as well as fiction and nonfiction offerings for adults.

Now, we’ve taken it one step further by adding board books to our collection. For those of you who may not know, board books are children’s books that are printed, not on regular paper, but on much thicker paperboard or cardboard. They are perfect for small children, typically for those up to age 3. They are designed to withstand the less than gentle touch and handling of toddlers. We have a large array of picture books for children between the ages of 4 and 8, but we were seeing more and more people coming to the library with toddlers. We knew we needed something more appropriate to keep these little ones busy while their moms, dads, or caregiver managed their legal business.

Latest & Greatest – The Constitutional and Legal Rights of Women

By Leslie F. Goldstein, Judith A. Baer, Courtenay W. Daum, & Terri Susan Fine

Published by West Academic Publishing

KF 4758 .A7 G66 2019

Photo Credit: Jessica King

On August 26, 1920, the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment was certified, and women were assured the right to vote. The passage of this amendment marked the culmination of a women’s rights movement that began nearly a century before with the abolitionist movement. The feminist movement really gained traction with the Women’s Rights Convention in 1848, twenty years before the passage of the Fourteenth Amendment. It is in this era that The Constitutional and Legal Rights of Women begins its analysis of the evolution of women’s rights and the judicial doctrines that shape the laws affecting women.

From the first case challenging a sex-based classification (Bradwell v. Illinois) to a 2017 case challenging different residency requirements for conferring citizenship (Sessions v. Morales-Santana), the authors examine women’s quest for constitutional equality. They discuss the constitutional and legal rights afforded women in the workplace and look at issues such as Title VII and gender discrimination, equal pay, and the worker as mother. How the courts have handled a women’s right to reproductive freedom provides the backdrop for an enlightening discussion on the evolution of the right to privacy, a right not specifically enumerated in the Constitution but which forms the basis of many freedoms that the Supreme Court has inferred from the spirit of the law, including the right to contraception and the right to abortions. In the same vein as a woman’s right to reproductive freedom is an individual’s right to marry the person of his/her choice, regardless of sex or gender. Both are extensions of the implied right to privacy.

Another area in which women were traditionally denied rights was that of education. Here, the authors talk about Title IX and its application to educational equality and how it relates to sexual harassment, retaliation, and gender identity.

The authors round out the book with a discussion of women and crime. This section is not a discussion of the Roxies and Velmas, who entertained us from their cell blocks in Chicago the Musical but rather the focus is upon sex bias and how crimes are defined and prosecuted. From spousal abuse and marital rape to the Violence Against Women Act, the authors look at how the laws have changed as a result of feminist efforts.

As we approach the centennial of the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment, it is a good idea to look back and see how women have gotten to where they are today and how much further they have to go.