Brooklyn Law School students interested in competing for cash prizes in connection with Securities Arbitration and Securities Law can enter the James E. Beckley Securities Arbitration and Law Writing Competition being sponsored by the PIABA Foundation. The mission of the PIABA Foundation is to promote investor education and to provide the public with information about abuses in the financial services industry and the securities dispute resolution process. The Beckley competition is open to all law students. Eligible topics include any aspect of securities law, securities arbitration, the Federal Arbitration Act, or the FINRA Code of Arbitration. Winners get their submissions published in the PIABA Bar Journal and receive cash prizes for first place ($1,000), second place ($750), and third place ($500). The deadline for entries is September 19, 2014.
Category Archives: BLS Students
Episode 090: Conversation with Gideon Martin
Episode 090: Conversation with Gideon Martin.mp3
This podcast interview of Gideon Martin, Brooklyn Law School Class of 2014, focuses on his article Allergic to Equality: The Legislative Path to Safer Restaurants, 13 Appalachian Journal of Law 79 (2013). Gideon received his J.D. degree this year graduating with honors. While attending BLS, Gideon was selected for the law school’s competitive Edward V. Sparer Public Interest Fellowship and was the recipient of a Peggy Browning Fund Fellowship for work on labor and employment issues. Most recently, he spent the summer of 2013 working at the Major League Baseball Players Association. While at BLS, he interned for United State Magistrate Judge Cheryl Pollak of the Eastern District of New York. He was also a member of the Moot Court Honor Society and served as Notes and Comments Editor on the Journal of Law and Policy.
BLS Commencement 2014
Brooklyn Law School held its 113th Commencement Ceremony on May 28, 2014 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Howard Gilman Opera House. The featured student speakers were Class of 2014 Valedictorian John David Moore and Class of 2014 Student Graduation Speaker Sabrina Margaret Bierer. Brooklyn-born and raised Barry Salzberg, Class of 1977, delivered the 2014 Commencement address and received an honorary doctor of laws degree. Salzburg, Chief Executive Officer of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (DTTL), the largest professional services organization in the world, is an outstanding BLS alumnus, philanthropist, and highly respected business leader. All three speakers stressed that law students and lawyers do not work in isolation but are most effective when working together.
The Class of 2014 totaled approximately 400 students awarded either LL.M. of J.D. degrees. The Class of 2014 had 97 students graduating with honors: five Summa Cum Laude awards to Rebecca Jane Gannon, Douglas R. Keeton, John David Moore, John H. Runne, and Stephen A. Savoca; there were 36 students graduating Magna Cum Laude and 56 students graduating Cum Laude. For the complete list of students graduating with honors, see this link.
In his Remarks to the Graduating Class, Dean Nicholas Allard noted that this year marked a return of the BLS Commencement Ceremony to Brooklyn after 50 years saying that the last time Brooklyn Law School had its Commencement in Brooklyn was in 1964 when Judge Henry J. Friendly of the Second Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals spoke at the exercises held at the Hotel St. George in Brooklyn. Dean Allard also spoke of famous people who appeared at the Brooklyn Academy of Music including Mary Todd Lincoln who attended an opera in 1863, Mark Twain who gave a reading in 1884, Booker T. Washington delivering a speech in 1891 calling for full emancipation, a 1940 appearance by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 1962 debut of Rudolf Nureyev, and this year’s appearance by Justice Antonin Scalia. A timeline of appearances by notable persons at the Brooklyn Academy of Music is available here.
Read the Latest Issue of BLS LawNotes
The spring 2014 issue of BLS LawNotes is available. Read it here: http://www.brooklaw.edu/~/media/PDF/LawNotes/LawNotes_SP14_FULL_ISSUE.ashx
CRS Turns 100
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) is celebrating 100 years of service this year.
In 1914, the Library of Congress established the Legislative Reference Service (LRS). As its name implies, the purpose of the LRS was to provide reference information to assist Members of Congress in their legislative work. Over 100 years, LRS evolved into today’s Congressional Research Service (CRS), with a staff of 600 that exclusively provides Congress with authoritative, confidential, objective and nonpartisan policy analysis.
CRS is known for its reports, but what makes CRS is its people—analysts, attorneys, information professionals, and management and infrastructure support staff. These staff members carry out services in support of the modern mission: to provide objective, authoritative and confidential legislative research and analysis, thereby contributing to an informed national legislature.
In recent years there has been a push to make these CRS reports freely available to the American public. Thanks to several organizations , departments and libraries many of these detailed reports are now available electronically.
Below are some recent reports on topical issues.
Nigeria’s Boko Haram: Frequently Asked Questions
Ukraine: Current Issues and U.S. Policy
Marijuana: Medical and Retail—Selected Legal Issues
Abortion: Judicial History and Legislative Response
Study Room Reservations and Library Hours for Reading/Exam Period
During the reading and exam period, you must make a reservation to use a library study room. Mandatory study room reservations will begin Friday, May 2, at 8:00 am; at that time all study rooms will be locked and you must go to the first floor circulation desk when your reservation time begins to charge out the key to the room. The link to the study room reservations is on the library homepage under Related Links.
Study Room Policies:
· Study rooms are for the use of groups of two or more students
· Study rooms may be reserved only for the current day and two days ahead
· Study rooms may be reserved for periods from 30 minutes up to four hours
· Students are permitted to reserve a room for no more than four hours per day
· Reservations violating these policies will be deleted
· Instructions for making reservations and a list of rooms available are on the study room reservations page
Library hours for the Reading and Exam period:
· Friday, May 2 – Thursday, May 15: 8:00am – 2:00am
· Friday, May 16: 8:00am – 10:00pm
· From May 2 – May 15, the Circulation Desk will close at Midnight; no books can be checked out after Midnight
Library hours for Writing Competition weekend:
· Saturday – Sunday, May 17–18, 8:00am – 2:00am
Reminders:
· Please limit all conversations in the library – remember that your colleagues are studying too.
· There is no eating in the library; please go to the student lounge or dining hall for all snacks and meals.
· Do not leave valuables unattended. If you step away from your study table or carrel, take anything of value to you with you.
Good luck on your exams!
Career Guidance for New Lawyers
The 57 titles in the Brooklyn Law Library April New Books List cover a wide range of topics from constitutional law, global internet law, the legalization of marijuana, marriage equality and practice and procedure in asset forfeiture. There are several items that should interest graduating law students and aspiring lawyers.
Anatomy of a Trial: A Handbook for Young Lawyers by Paul Mark Sandler (Call # KF8915 .S24 2014) is designed for young trial lawyers eager to gain an appreciation of how to handle real problems encountered during jury trials. The second edition examines key phases of jury trials (voir dire, opening statements, direct and cross-examination, and closing arguments) in the light of two particular cases, one criminal and the other civil. The criminal case involves highly complex subjects and law campaign finance, national politics, and Hollywood fundraising, among others and necessitates simplifying and storytelling for the jury. The civil case illustrates the reality that most cases hinge on the credibility of witnesses, and also showcases the critical importance of experts in trials of a technical nature. This new edition also includes an all-new third case, a non-jury civil trial.
Entertainment Careers for Lawyers
by William D. Henslee (Call # KF299.E5 H46 2014) discusses entertainment law, a popular area of study for law students and a desired career path for practitioners. Yet the glamor of working with actors, production companies, musicians, writers, and others to create works of art comes with long hours, hard work, and fierce competition for jobs. This Third Edition will dispel many of the myths surrounding the practice and help lawyers and law students gain an understanding of the realities of entertainment law. The book will help readers gain an overview of the substantive law areas included in entertainment law, from intellectual property and litigation to contract negotiations and estate planning; understand the pros and cons of specializing in entertainment law; learn about the career trajectories available in four major entertainment genres: music, theater, film, and television; land a first job as an entertainment lawyer as a law student; and understand the day-to-day realities of working as an entertainment lawyer.
Introduction to Advocacy: Research, Writing and Argument by Harvard Law School Board of Student Advisors (Call # KF281.A2 I57 2013) is a clear, concise and accessible introduction to legal research and writing. The Eighth Edition includes examples and helpful tips about effective writing as well as warnings about common mistakes students should avoid. In addition, there is a new chapter on rule synthesis. The book also includes a new, full-length memorandum and two updated briefs.
Law Firm Job Survival Manual: From First Interview to Partnership by Nancy B. Rapoport (Call # KF297 .R37 2014) will help new lawyers run the gauntlet of their legal careers faster and smarter. Written with humor and sensitivity, this concise handbook demystifies the etiquette and ethics of the law firm environment while providing essential survival skills. The book spans law careers from summer job interviews through the first year of partnership.
Storytelling for Lawyers by Philip Meyer (Call # K181 .M49 2014) offers a narrative tool kit that supplements the analytical skills traditionally emphasized in law school and practical tips for practicing attorneys to help craft their own legal stories. Good lawyers have an ability to tell stories, whether arguing a murder case or a complex financial securities case, explaining a chain of events to judges and juries so that they understand them. The best lawyers are also able to construct narratives that have an emotional impact on their intended audiences. The author begins with a pragmatic theory of the narrative foundations of litigation practice and applies it to a range of practical illustrative examples: briefs, judicial opinions and oral arguments. Intended for legal practitioners, teachers, law students, and even interdisciplinary academics, the book offers a basic yet comprehensive explanation of the central role of narrative in litigation.
BLS Library Hours for Passover and Good Friday
Changes in the BLS Library hours for the week of April 14th are as follows
Tuesday, April 15th 9:00 am – Midnight
Friday, April 18th 9:00 am – 10:00 pm
Preparing Your Oral Argument? We can help!
If you are a first year, you are most likely preparing for your oral argument. It can be pretty intimidating and scary. (At least it was for me.) But the library can help you prepare and shake off some of those jitters.
The library has many resources to help, including a new Technology Collaboration Lab that will allow you to record and watch yourself practicing your arguments. The Tech CoLab, Room 111, is located on the ground floor of the library by the copy machines/scanners. To use the Tech CoLab, you need to reserve the room, using the library’s study room reservations system. When it is time for your reservation, you will check out the key to the Tech CoLab from the circulation desk.
We also have several books trial and appellate advocacy to assist you. Listed below are a few of the available titles.
Thomas A. Mauet, Trial Techniques and Trials (9th ed. 2013).
Charles H. Rose III, Fundamental Trial Advocacy (2d ed. 2011).
Ursula Bentele, Mary Falk, & Eve Cary, Appellate Advocacy: Principles and Practice (5th ed. 2012).
Student Writing Competition – First Prize $10,000
Have a particular legal issue you are keen on? Interested in writing about it? If so, then submit your paper to be considered for the annual Brown Award given by the Judge John R. Brown Scholarship Foundation.
The Award is in recognition of Excellence in Legal Writing in American Law Schools. There is no limitation as to topic; only that the writing must be on a legal subject.
Any student wishing to submit a paper must have a letter of recommendation from a faculty member. Specific details regarding the competition may be found here.
Some topics from last year’s winners.
First Place: Information Traps
Second Place: Beneath the Surface of the Clean Water Act: Exploring the Depth of the Act’s Jurisdictional Scope of Groundwater Pollution
Third Place: Lien on Me: The Survival of Security Interests in Revenues from the Sale of an FCC License