Sam Glover is the founder and co-owner of Lawyerist. He is also a Minnesota business attorney for geeks and a consumer rights advocate, and an espresso snob. On Lawyerist, Sam writes primarily about law practice productivity and technology, but he dabbles in writing about everything else that goes into lawyering, just for good measure.
The Dell XPS 13 is a great-looking, well-built, and well-integrated ultrabook. One of the last ultrabooks to market, Dell used its time wisely to put together what is definitely the best ultrabook I’ve reviewed. I’m kind of in love with it, actually.
And while it certainly takes some styling cues from the Macbook Air, it doesn’t feel like a knockoff. In fact, I kind of prefer the XPS 13′s carbon fiber base and soft-touch palm rests to the Air’s sharp edges.
Why in the world would anyone combine a stylus and pen? Why in the world would anyone put the stylus nib where the eraser ought to be? Why in the world would you put a cheap ballpoint cartridge in a $35+ pen?
The Alupen Pro iPad stylus poses all of these questions, but it doesn’t provide any good answers.
Minnesota consumer lawyer Bryan Battina got this letter from his nephew, Charlie, who is interested in suing Skyzone, which is apparently an indoor trampoline park.
Two things. First, Charlie’s letter is adorable. Second, INDOOR TRAMPOLINE PARK! Why was I not aware of this?
Pro se litigant Kyle Greene, like many pro se litigants before him, felt put upon by the judicial system. Determined to do something about it, he filed a “Motion for Disclosure of Chamber of Papers,” demanding U.S. District Court Judge Patrick Schiltz’s bench memo because he “suspect[ed] he was the victim of a law clerk usurping the function of an Article III judge.”
It didn’t work. In his opinion (PDF), Judge Schiltz explained:
Greene has not cited — and the Court has not found — a single statute, regulation, rule, or judicial opinion holding that a litigant has a right of access (under the First Amendment, the common law, or anything else) to communications between a judge and his or her law clerk, including draft opinions and orders. Rather, all of the authority of which the Court is aware is to the contrary.
(Thanks, Deb and Jess!)
Internet marketing & advertising company Yodle has been off our radar for a while. I first wrote about Yodle back in May 2009, I got a call from a pushy Yodle salesperson, and I expressed my annoyance on Lawyerist:
what Yodle actually does, as far as I can tell, is employ a bunch of jerks to call me (four times last week, plus an email for good measure), insult me, and try to bully me into becoming a client
Commenters reported similar experiences. Yodle responded by offering three months of its services to prove its worth. We called it the Yodle Challenge, and bankruptcy attorney Brea Buettner agreed to take part. In the end, Yodle did generate some profit for Brea, who called the campaign a success even though she decided not to stick with it.
But recently, the comments thread has gotten lively again (we’ve also discussed Yodle in the LAB), and it sounds like not much has changed in Yodle’s sales department over the last few years.
Alison Monahan, writing at Ms. JD, certainly thinks so. As the father of two little girls, I’m on high alert for anything that could get in the way of them being whatever they want to be. But as I reflect on my own law school and law practice experiences, I have to admit I’ve seen evidence of attitudes that could lead to the kind of sexism and harassment Monahan has experienced.
While women who find themselves in such situations do have some options, men can make a big difference just by speaking up when we see these attitudes and behaviors on display: “Hey dude. Not cool.”
Ambir makes document scanners that are apparently widely used in the healthcare industry, and the company is just starting to push into the legal industry. It sent me the ImageScan Pro 820i when I asked for a scanner comparable to the Fujitsu ScanSnap S1500, and at first glance, that’s exactly what it is: a compact, desktop scanner with a simplified user experience.
While there are things to like about the Ambir ImageScan Pro 820i, it didn’t deliver the performance I expected.
According to the ABA’s law school placement survey, “Nearly two-thirds of new grads who go into the private sector are going to small law firms rather than BigLaw, an analysis of ABA data shows.”
I’m not surprised, really. Big firms aren’t hiring, so new lawyers are left with few options. Not that going solo out of desperation is a particularly good idea. (Via Greedy Associates)
The Griffin iPad stylus is essentially identical to the Boxwave stylus. The only noticeable difference is the clip on the Griffin, which is a bit heavier, and feels more sturdy. Whether or not they are actually the same, the similarity is a good thing. As I noted in my in-depth review of the Boxwave, it is a “solid, durable stylus for a great price.” So is the Griffin.
To the extent it is known at all, Thomas Cooley law school is mostly the butt of jokes, often about its independent law school ratings in which it appears second every year. (Apparently, Cooley doesn’t think its rankings would be credible if Cooley came out ahead of Harvard.) But now, Cooley has a new hobby sure to raise its profile: attempting to silence its critics by serving them with subpoenas. At least, that’s what happened to Paul Campos, who writes Inside the Law School Scam. In response, Campos went ahead and outlined Cooley’s abysmal value proposition. It’s enlightening reading, especially for those who are considering Thomas Cooley Law School. (HT Simple Justice.)
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