On March 18, 1963, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Gideon v . Wainwright that the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of counsel in criminal cases is a fundamental right, essential to a fair trial, as provided by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The court battle leading up to this ruling was truly a case of David v. Goliath. In recent years, there has been a push to advocate for a “Civil Gideon” – the right to legal counsel in civil cases. If Civil Gideon should ever come to pass as a universal Constitutional right, the legacy of Clarence Earl Gideon, whose own case was decided on this day 59 years ago, would be fulfilled for all so that “justice should be the same, in substance and availability, without regard to economic status” and irrespective of the type of offense.
Read moreLatest & Greatest - The Copyright Handbook
Be honest. How many of you have considered, or at least thought about, writing the next great American novel, or perhaps documenting your life and experiences in a memoir? If so, it has probably crossed your mind that you need some way to protect your creative effort from unwanted copying. This is the point where the law of copyright steps in and where confusion surfaces. Attorney Stephen Fishman, a recognized expert in the field of copyright, has created The Copyright Handbook: What Every Writer Needs to Know to help would-be writers navigate this somewhat puzzling area of the law.
Read moreFree CLE on 3/17/2022: Intermediate Legal Research on Westlaw
Go beyond the basics of legal research using Westlaw.
Read moreThe Beat Goes On: Kerouac at 100 and the Battle Over His Estate
This image was originally posted to Flickr by Ethan.K at https://flickr.com/photos/77765234@N00/3917964519. It was reviewed on 4 September 2020 by FlickreviewR 2 and was confirmed to be licensed under the terms of the cc-by-sa-2.0. It is now accessible at https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jack_Kerouac_gravestone_(3917964519).jpg
March 12 marks the 100th birthday of literary legend, Jack Kerouac. Though he died in 1969, his legacy as “King of The Beats” lives on. Today, his estate is worth millions, and the complicated fight for his fortune more than 70 years after his death is still unresolved. It’s fraught with familial infighting, righteous desperation, and outright greed, as well as an allegedly suspect signature on Kerouac’s putative will.
Read moreHarriet Tubman Day 2022
Harriet Tubman Day is observed annually on March 10, the anniversary of the freedom fighter’s death. Born enslaved, Harriet Tubman liberated herself and became a free woman who then devoted her life to helping others achieve the same freedom by guiding those escaping slavery through the Underground Railroad, a secret network of safe houses along the journey north to freedom. Tubman is famous around the world for her heroism, bravery, and commitment to the fight for abolition and racial justice.
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