John G. Browning News
Legally Speaking: A Judicial Career Up in Flames? The Strange Case of David Medina
Justice David Medina seemed to have it all.
Legally Speaking: Life imitates art, even in the law (Part 2 of 2)
In last week's column, I discussed a lawyer who's installing a shark tank in his office, straight out of the John Grisham movie "The Rainmaker." More and more, however, it seems that's no isolated instance of life imitating art in today's wacky legal system.
Legally Speaking: Life imitates art, even in the law (Part One of Two)
I remember watching the movie "The Rainmaker" (adapted from John Grisham's bestseller of the same name), and being bemused by the first meeting between neophyte lawyer Rudy Baylor (played by Matt Damon) and his soon-to-be employer J. Lyman "Bruiser" Stone (Mickey Rourke, who has perfected playing sleazy into an art form).
Legally Speaking: "He Ain't Heavy � He's My Client"
Whether you've put on a few extra pounds after succumbing to holiday temptations, or if you've struggled with weight issues for years, one of the last places you want to be reminded of your size is the workplace � especially if your physique has nothing to do with your job performance.
Legally Speaking: Legal Year In Review
As 2007 mercifully draws to a close, I cannot help but reflect on the many legal milestones that distinguished this past year � pivotal court decisions, groundbreaking legislation, etc. But what about those moments in the legal realm that were just plain wacky? Don't they deserve a little recognition, too? I think so.
Legally Speaking: Santa Claus is coming to town, and he's bringing a lawyer
Children everywhere rejoice in the idea of jolly old St. Nick arriving on Christmas in his reindeer-powered sleigh laden with presents. But if things keep moving in the direction they're heading, the fat man in the red suit is going to need more than elves to help him out � he's going to need a lawyer.
Legally Speaking: Gunning For a Change-The Court Takes Aim At The Second Amendment
They are simple words � "the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed" � that liberal commentators have called "maddeningly ambiguous," even while justifying constitutional rights (like privacy) that go unnamed in the Constitution.
Legally Speaking: Not your everyday lawyers
Law school tends to attract all types of people, even if they don't always make it all the way through to graduation.
Legally Speaking: Compensating the Exonerated
The NBC television drama "Life" centers around a wrongfully convicted policeman who-after serving years for a crime he didn't commit-is released and rejoins the force to help solve crimes. He does so from a luxurious mansion and a sleek sportscar, the byproducts of a multimillion dollar civil settlement stemming from his unjust incarceration.
Legally Speaking: The food poisoning lawyer
If you're still snacking on Thanksgiving leftovers, this column just may jumpstart your diet plans.
Legally Speaking: Weird laws and lawsuits are universal
This Thanksgiving, I will offer thanks for many blessings: good health, a loving family, and a successful career. But most of all, I am thankful to live in the United States, where there are enough wacky laws and weird lawsuits to keep lawyers busy and to provide a never-ending supply of material for columns like this.
Legally Speaking: When valor is stolen
As we prepare to remember America's veterans, take a moment to honor some of the greatest in our nation's pantheon of heroes: Sgt. Alvin York, Audie Murphy, David McClanahan ... David McClanahan?
Legally Speaking: Truth is stranger than fiction
I recently wrote that as bizarre as the plots may get on legal dramas like "Boston Legal," the real-life happenings in the legal world are stranger than any fiction. Some readers challenged me to support that argument. Like any good lawyer, I'm happy to do so.
Legally Speaking: Every rose has its legal thorns
For most of us, the sight of a bouquet of flowers is a happy one, guaranteed to brighten our day. Ask certain individuals, however, and the idea of flowers conjures up only one image � the courtroom.
Legally Speaking: Lights � Cameras � Lawyers
One of the recurring questions I seem to get at most social functions concerns my TV viewing habits � do I watch shows like "Boston Legal," "Law and Order," and the like?
Legally Speaking: When a Lawyer Goes Too Far
The firestorm of controversy ignited by Columbia University's decision to provide Iranian president Ahmadinejad with a public forum for his hate-mongering has barely subsided, but another controversial speaking invitation in New York has largely escaped public scrutiny.
Legally Speaking: Brand Name Bullies
As a lawyer who represented companies on both sides of trademark infringement cases, I understand why trademarks can be so vital to a business.
Legally Speaking: Faces You Never See -- The Hidden Costs of Litigation
We are all familiar with some of the obvious costs of living in a litigious society. We pay higher insurance premiums and higher prices for certain products and services because of the legal costs that a company has had to incur, or believes it might incur, to bring those goods and services to the market.
Legally Speaking: I speak lawyer
In a recent column, I discussed the importance of trained court interpreters. But some readers have reminded me that when they visit a lawyer, they feel the need for an interpreter just to understand their attorney or the legal documents put before them!
Legally Speaking; Sue the bulldozer company, and get crushed by common sense
The family of a woman killed trying to prevent the demolition of a Palestinian home in 2003 has been trying-to date unsuccessfully-to sue Caterpillar, Inc., the American manufacturer of the bulldozer used in the demolition.