Latest & Greatest – The Noble Lawyer

By William J. Chriss

Published by State Bar of Texas, 2011

KF 298 .C48 2011

Recognizing the apparent dislike and derision that much of the public feels toward the bench and bar, the author of The Noble Lawyer takes up the task of defending lawyers and explains how, despite these attacks, the profession as a whole can regain its status as a noble one. William Chriss begins his examination of the public’s perception of the legal profession by analyzing the causes of the enmity that the public has for the lawyer and why it feels the need to engage and takes great pleasure in lawyer-bashing and lawyer-hating. Positing that the jury trial and the law of torts are at the core of this anti-lawyer movement, Chriss traces the history and developments of tort law, especially with respect to negligence, and identifies some of the factors that have exacerbated this aversion to lawyers, such as the rise and prevalence of lawyer advertising and the larger jury verdicts like those found (and readily publicized) in personal injury cases. He notes, too, that circumstances in the 1970s turned the public against the law in general and eventually against the lawyers and that lawyer jokes were no longer limited to poking fun at the work lawyers did but morphed into criticisms of the attorneys themselves as individuals.

The author does present a bright side, though. He provides examples of lawyers throughout history who embodied the notion of nobility that he believes the attorneys of today could attain once again. He cites such legal icons as Cicero, Bartolomé de las Casas, and Abraham Lincoln, not to mention the most beloved fictional noble lawyer, Atticus Finch from Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. In the end, the author exhorts his fellow lawyers to become more proactive in changing the public’s perception of the lawyer as a greedy, amoral character, for, as he concludes, “the key to educating a conflicted public…is for lawyers to be nobler.”

American Association of Law Libraries presents Cool Tech Tools

This week, the American Association of Law Libraries is holding its annual meeting in Austin. Librarians across the nation (along with some international guests) will gather to connect with their peers from government law libraries, academic institutions, and private law firms. Information professionals with expert knowledge in the following areas will provide content, inspiration, and plenty of food for thought:

• Leadership
• Marketing
• Advocacy
• Research
• Teaching
• Content management
• Legal technology

One of the highly anticipated sessions each year is the Cool Tools Cafe. Presented by the Computer Science Special Interest Section, this gathering is an opportunity for all interested parties -- from the novice to the pro -- to learn about emerging or existing technologies from experienced tech users. Tech tools for legal research, collaboration, productivity, presentation, and instruction are some of the most popular. Today's blog post will take a look back at two applications that were featured in years past. Microsoft Sway was presented at the AALL Cool Tools Cafe in 2015, and Slack was presented in 2016.

Microsoft Sway is a cloud-based publishing and presentation platform that was launched in 2014. (New and updated features were added in 2017.) One year later, it was rolled out to all eligible Office 365 customers worldwide and quickly became a strong competitor to Prezi, another cloud-based presentation platform. Sway allows you to create and share interactive reports, presentations, assignments, lessons, projects and more. It gives you all the tools you need to design and deliver your content in an unconventional way. Say goodbye to the traditional slide deck and hello to a newer, more dynamic storytelling tool. Drag and drop photos, videos, or files from your computer, Facebook, YouTube, or Twitter to build impressive, polished, professional presentations.

Slack is a team communication and collaboration platform that helps you organize your digital interactions and effectively eliminates the need for email. Teams create communication channels which allow for the exchange of information and documents. To make collaboration spaces even more dynamic and interactive, Slack also allows for the integration of apps and bots, such as Skype or Trello, a user-friendly project management tool.   

Following this year's AALL Annual Meeting, we'll have new tools to share with you. Stay tuned for updates in future Tech Tuesday installments on Ex Libris Juris. 

Monthly Feature: July is Consumer Law Resource Month

July is Consumer Law Resource Month at the Harris County Law Library.

• Visit our Featured Resource Section to see new and updated resources from the National Consumer Law Center.

• Browse consumer law news, sample pleadings and other companion materials in the NCLC databases now available on the Law Library research computers.

• Stay up to date on Texas consumer law with Advanced Consumer and Commercial Law Course books from the State Bar of Texas. Courses through the 10th annual conference (2014) are available.

• Self-represented litigants can find a copy of the HBA Consumer Law Handbook, which features a variety of legal information of interest to consumers, including guidance on buying a car, dealing with debt collection, landlord/tenant disputes, and more. Download a free copy through the HBA's Legal Handbooks website today.

For more information on Consumer Law and Protection, visit these websites:

• Attorney General of Texas - Consumer Protection

• Federal Trade Commission: Consumer Information
  • FTC Consumer Information Videos
  • IdentityTheft.gov
  • Consumer Complaint Assistance

• University of Houston Law Center: Center for Consumer Law

MICROSOFT EXCEL FOR LAWYERS: POTENTIAL PITFALLS AND THE PROMISES OF PROFICIENCY

On Thursday, July 13, the Legal Tech Institute at Harris County Law Library will offer a free CLE program called Excel Essentials for the Practice of Law. In anticipation of that event, we are reposting an older Tech Tuesday blog post that discusses the importance of Excel proficiency for lawyers. For details about Thursday's program and to register for the course, please visit the LTI Course Catalog. 

Excel is a data management tool used for organizing, calculating, graphing, and sharing tabular information. The importance of developing proficiency in the use of Excel cannot be overstated. Knowing how to manipulate spreadsheets is just as important as properly formatting a written document, and without a firm understanding of how Excel works, embarrassing and potentially costly errors can result. Consider the following: 

When Barclays sent over its offer to buy up Lehman Brothers in the immediate wake of the firm's September 2008 collapse, it did so with an Excel spreadsheet. The makers of the spreadsheet, which detailed Lehman's assets and what Barclays was willing to buy, hid, rather than deleted, nearly 200 cells. But when a junior law associate at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton converted the Excel file to a PDF and e-mailed it over to the bankruptcy court, the hidden parts of the spreadsheet reappeared. The result: Along with the parts of Lehman Barclays wanted, the British bank was also forced to swallow losses on an additional 179 toxic deals it never intended to buy.

 -- From Stephen Gandel, writing in Fortune magazine, April 17, 2013

This cautionary tale is just one example of how Excel has been used improperly, with very negative consequences. This is obviously a mistake of greater magnitude than most attorneys encounter on an average day, but nonetheless, it does illustrate the perils of using software improperly.

If you're interested in learning how to use Excel in the practice of law, visit the LTI Course Catalog to register for our upcoming CLE. In the meantime, visit the website of Excel Esquire, where you will learn many practical tips for generating Bates numbers, using pivot tables, sorting metadata, and much more.

Monthly Feature: Summertime and the Law

During the month of July, Harris County Law Library is celebrating summer! Our exhibit, Summertime and the Law, will be on display all month long. On your next visit, pause for a moment in the Law Library lobby to view the exhibit and take a whimsical look at law and some of the hallmarks of summer -- sunshine, swimming, theme parks, barbecue, swimming, and more.

Featured items in the exhibit, along with a few additional sources, are listed here:

Cases

Gabriel Gomez v. The State of Texas, Unpublished

Gabriel Gomez appealed his conviction for aggravated assault asserting that he was denied a fair trial. In his complaint, Gomez described the State’s closing remarks as childish, improper, and prejudicial, and “an embarrassment to the legal dignity of the Court.” A portion of the prosecutor’s closing statement, which referenced various Disney characters, including Mickey Mouse, Peter Pan, Snow White, and the Seven Dwarves, is quoted in the opinion. See pages 6 and 7.

Animal Legal Defense Fund v. U.S. Department of Agriculture, 789 F. 3d 1206 (2015)

Living in captivity at a Florida theme park called Seaquarium, an orca named Lolita was exposed to persistent ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Seaquarium tried to combat the harmful UV rays by applying a black-colored zinc oxide to Lolita’s skin, the physiological effects of which were untested and unknown. Plaintiffs argued that the park should be denied renewal of its operating license for violating the Animal Welfare Act. 

Kingsford Products Company v. Kingsfords, Inc., 715 F. Supp. 1013 (1989)

The plaintiff, a manufacturer of charcoal briquettes, brought action against the similarly named Kingsfords, Inc. seeking to enjoin the defendant’s further use of the Kingsford mark on their barbecue sauce product. The District Court held that, despite the plaintiff’s aspirations to one day produce and sell a barbecue sauce under the Kingsford name, they were not entitled to trademark protection. The defendant had already established its product, developed from a family recipe, and the associated brand, so the plaintiff’s arguments went up in proverbial smoke.

Federal Regulations

Code of Federal Regulations, Title 21 - Food and Drugs, Part 135 - Frozen Desserts, Subpart B, Section 135.110

Code of Federal Regulations, Title 7 - Agriculture, Part 58 - Grading and Inspection, Subpart B, Section 58.649

State Statutes

Amusement Ride Safety and Inspection and Insurance Act, Vernon's Texas Code Annotated, Occupations Code, Chapter 2151. Regulation of Amusement Rides

Patents

Water Wings (1918), Patent No. 1,262,296

Water Wings (1928), Patent No. 1,677,083