19 Tuesday Jun 2018
Posted in Acronyms, Appellate Law, Benchslap, Humor, Intellectual Property, Judges, Legal Ethics, Legal Writing, Oral Argument, Patent Law, Proofreading
≈ Comments Off on Six Judges Let The Benchslaps Fly.
Six Benchslaps to Brighten Your Day, by Lisa Needham, Lawyerist.com
https://lawyerist.com/six-benchslaps-will-brighten-day/
As Ms. Needham describes it, “[f]or the unfamiliar, benchslap originally referred to one judge snarking at another, but now refers to any time a member of the bench crushes an attorney with wit, rage, or both.” It is also an excellent example of what not to do. -CCE
19 Monday Oct 2015
Posted in Bad Legal Writing, Legal Writing, Legalese
≈ Comments Off on The Worst Legal Writing Ever?
We Created the Worst Piece of Legal Writing Possible, by Sam Glover, Lisa Needham, and Sam Harden, Lawyerist Blog (with hat tip to Raymond Ward!)
https://lawyerist.com/91373/we-created-the-worst-piece-of-legal-writing-possible/#disqus_thread
I have to admit that it’s a good effort at legalese, but is it the worst legal writing you have ever read? Does it deserve a place in the Legal Writing Hall of Shame? You be the judge! -CCE
Legalese is awful. To prove it, we forced three lawyers (Sam Glover, Lisa Needham, and Sam Harden) to combine their skills to write the worst piece of legal writing imaginable. Here’s what they came up with:
Clarity in Legal Writing: Unattainable Goal or Necessary Component of Effective Advocacy?
The issue of clearness and conciseness in writing and preparing legal documents, e.g. court filings, pleadings, and motions and all other possible legal and ancillary documents is often a topic of discussion among judges and legal scholars. . . .
01 Monday Dec 2014
Posted in Android Phones, Apple, Blackberry Phones, Clouds, Confidentiality, Emails, Encryption, iPad, iPhones, Legal Ethics, Legal Technology, Malpractice, PC Computers, Technology
≈ Comments Off on Is Email Between You And Your Client Safe? No, And This Is Why.
Tags
ABA Legal Ethics Opinion, Allen Mihecoby, Email, Encryption, Gmail, Hacking, Internet, Lawyerist Blog, Lisa Needham
How to Encrypt Attorney-Client Communications, by Lisa Needham, Lawyerist Blog (with hat tip to Allen Mihecoby, CLAS, RP!)
If you have decided you need to get serious about client data protection, you will need to consider encrypting both your data and your communications. We have previously covered how to encrypt your data and will focus here on how to encrypt your email communication.
What Is Encryption?
Simply by using the Internet, you are probably using some sort of encryption scheme during some activities, whether you know it or not.
Encryption is simply the act of turning your data into unreadable gibberish. If your data is intercepted or hacked, the thief now has nothing but a pile of garbage.
End-to-end encryption is a must for transferring sensitive data across the internet. In end-to-end encryption, your data is encrypted while it travels towards your intended location and the same encryption occurs on the reverse trip. Your bank (hopefully) uses end-to-end encryption. Your practice management software (hopefully) uses end-to-end encryption if it stores and syncs data remotely. This sort of encryption is done for you without any effort on your part, as it is just a standard feature of the infrastructure you are using to bank or update client data or similar activities.
Why Do You Need to Care?
A few years ago, the ABA issued a formal ethics opinion stating that if there is a significant risk that a third party might gain access to the email, attorneys have to warn clients about that risk.
This poses a problem, because unlike your bank and practice management software, email is usually unencrypted. This is true whether you are using a desktop client or a web-based email like GMail. . . .
The Researching Paralegal 
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