On O.J.

I'm sick of news stories about the man Fred Goldman supposedly refers to only as "the killer," but I must confess that over the years, I have read many books about the lawyers from the O.J. Simpson case, of which the most compelling is the later edition of the Schiller book that includes the chapters on the civil case.

While the O.J. criminal trial was going on, we had a client who was on trial for sex harassment, call him "James." He claimed to be a big O.J. fan, watched the replays of the trial every night on cable. So I told him I had an idea for his defense that he would surely appreciate - we would declare to the jury that "James" was just as innocent as O.J.!

The client vetoed this brain wave.

Progress

From this ranking of law reviews, I surmise that the William & Mary Law Review has long since escaped the effect of its association with me, but perhaps retained the same as regards Dawn Figueiras.

Waldo takes on judicial selection

In this cvillenews.com post, Waldo Jaquith tries to figure out who will replace retiring Circuit Court Judge Peatross and how will he or she be selected. And, the commenters don't like one of the names being bandied about.

Does the mineral rights owner own the plain old rocks, too?

The Charlottesville paper had this interesting story, which says in part:

"In Tennessee, a mineral-rights owner has declared common rocks as his property and intends to harvest them although the owner of the land objects. The landowner and his neighbors are fighting the precedent in court.

The case might have implications for those parts of Virginia where mining and mineral rights have a history.

. . .

But coal mining is no longer a major force in the region north of Chattanooga, Tenn., where Ed Lewis lives. So Mr. Lewis never expected that anyone would exercise an option on the mineral rights on his property.

But the former owner retained those rights and now claims that the rocks on the property are his to be mined.

It’s not coal that he wants, but a newly fashionable form of resource wealth: building stone. Sandstone, flagstone, fieldstone have become popular for building or decorating fireplaces, walls, fences. Tennessee stone is now shipped all over the country."

On Hughes v. Moore

On the front page of this week's Virginia Lawyers Weekly is an article about the decisions by Magistrate Judge Sargent and Judge Glen Williams in the Hickman case from the W.D. Va.

The article points out that the leading case in dealing with the exception to the physical injury requirement for negligence claims is Hughes v. Moore. Judge Williams' opinion attempts to harmonize Hughes and the Virginia Supreme Court's later decision in Myseros v. Sisler.

What the article does not mention is that the lawyers in Hughes v. Moore, decided back in 1973, were Glen Williams for the plaintiff and Charles Flannagan for the defense. Judge Williams (as a lawyer) convinced Lee County Circuit Court Judge Cridlin at trial to allow recovery for the plaintiff, and Judge Flannagan (as a lawyer) appealed. The plaintiff's verdict was $12,000, where the medical bills were $112.

Right up there with Wilt Chamberlain

This USAToday profile of Dawn Staley is great.

It says in part:

By basketball standards, it has been hard for the 5-6 Dawn Staley to measure up.

She was always told she was too short, too little, too slow. But the more she was told she couldn't, the more determined she became.

"I grew up in the projects of North Philly," Staley says, "and the mentality of growing up there has helped me to maintain a certain level of aggressiveness, mental and physical toughness."

Staley, 36, is a three-time Olympic gold medalist, a five-time WNBA All-Star and made three Final Four appearances at the University of Virginia, where she was two-time NCAA player of the year.

. . .

The diminutive Philly kid is now using her basketball knowledge to make her mark in the coaching community.

After leading Temple to four NCAA Tournament berths, she was named an assistant on the 2006 USA women's world championship team. The two-time Atlantic 10 coach of the year hopes to be an assistant on the 2008 Olympic team and possibly the head coach at the 2012 Games. And there could be a WNBA head coaching position in her future.

. . .

Staley's impact on the women's game hasn't been limited to the basketball court. She has made a difference through her foundation.

Beginning next season, the WNBA's annual community award will be named the Dawn Staley Community Leadership Award.

"She is the face of women's basketball right now because of her big heart," says Cynthia Cooper, the four-time WNBA champion and currently women's basketball coach at Prairie View A&M University. "She constantly gives back to the community. I think her heart comes from her parents, her background and the trials and tribulations she had not only growing up, but excelling at basketball."

The Dawn Staley Foundation at the Hank Gathers Recreation Center in Philadelphia focuses on academics and athletics and provides middle-school children with positive influences in their lives.

Staley's background and world travels prompted her to start the foundation and are what helps her recruit and relate to players from all backgrounds.

By the numbers

An SAT-style question - what's the next number in this sequence - 1984, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1997, 1998, 2003, ?

Hint:

Nov. 25, 2006: ?
Nov. 19, 2005: Tech, 52-14
Nov. 27, 2004: Tech, 24-10
Nov. 29, 2003: U.Va., 35-21
Nov. 30, 2002: Tech, 21-9
Nov. 17, 2001: Tech, 31-17
Nov. 25, 2000: Tech, 42-21
Oct. 2, 1999: Tech, 31-7
Nov. 28, 1998: U.Va., 36-32
Nov. 28, 1997: U.Va., 34-20
Nov. 29, 1996: Tech, 26-9
Nov. 18, 1995: Tech, 36-29
Nov. 19, 1994: U.Va., 42-23
Nov. 20, 1993: Tech, 20-17
Nov. 21, 1992: U.Va., 41-38
Nov. 23, 1991: U.Va., 38-0
Nov. 24, 1990: Tech, 38-13
Nov. 11, 1989: U.Va., 32-25
Oct. 29, 1988: U.Va., 16-10
Sep. 19, 1987: U.Va., 14-13
Oct. 25, 1986: Tech, 42-10
Oct. 19, 1985: Tech, 28-10
Sep. 29, 1984: U.Va., 26-23
Nov. 19, 1983: Tech, 48-0

Law books I'd like to get for Christmas

In no particular order,

1. Evan Schaeffer, Deposition Checklists and Strategies
2 and 3. Pozner & Dodd, Cross-Examination: Science and Techniques, Second Edition and Herb Stern, Trying Cases to Win: Cross-Examination
4. Ruggero Aldisert, Winning on Appeal: Better Briefs & Oral Argument
5 and 6. Bryan Garner, Garner's Modern American Usage and The Winning Brief: 100 Tips for Persuasive Briefing in Trial and Appellate Courts
7. Cliff Atkinson, Beyond Bullet Points: Using Microsoft PowerPoint to Create Presentations That Inform, Motivate, and Inspire
8 and 9. Antonin Scalia, A Matter of Interpretation: Federal Courts and the Law and Stephen Breyer, Active Liberty: Interpreting Our Democratic Constitution
10 and 11. Andrew Kaufman, Cardozo, and Gerald Gunther, Learned Hand: The Man and the Judge
12. Mark Steiner, An Honest Calling: The Law Practice of Abraham Lincoln

Somehow I've managed to get by without these before now.

Old dog's last road trip

We took the old dog to Midlothian for the long weekend.

I can't say that she had a good time, but in this picture she has her ears up and is ready to see what's going on in the world.

To walk outside, she uses a "rear-end leash" bought from HandicappedPets.com. To walk inside, well, she can't really walk inside any more.

Watch what you ask for

From the Winchester paper comes the following tale of the retrial of a wrongful death case, resulting in a sharply reduced verdict for the grieving widow:

Widow of motorcycle crash victim gets $1 for sorrow, nothing for economic losses

By Erica M. Bush
The Winchester Star

Winchester — The widow of a motorcycle accident victim will receive $1 for her sorrow and nothing for her economic losses, a jury decided on Thursday.

The Frederick County Circuit Court jury made its ruling in the retrial of a wrongful-death suit that had awarded $961,065 to the survivors of the crash victim.

Another jury previously found Minnick’s Auto Repair of Winchester liable for the July 25, 2004, death of 32-year-old Anthony Wright.

....

The wrongful-death lawsuit — filed by Wright’s widow, Christa — claimed that the Minnick’s tow truck driver, Bernard W. Everhart Jr., drove recklessly and backed into the road without looking for traffic, which caused Wright to crash after trying to avoid the truck.

....

On March 31, jurors in the first wrongful death trial awarded the plaintiffs — Christa and Anthony’s brother, Michael Wright — $10,534 for hospital expenses, $7,996 for funeral costs, and $942, 535 for the loss of income, services, protection, and care that had been provided by the victim.

A new trial was ordered after the jurors failed to award an amount to the plaintiffs for their sorrow.

Legally, the jurors should have awarded some amount, which could have been as low as $1.

On Thursday, the new jury awarded Christa $10,534 for hospital expenses and $7,996 for funeral expenses. She received $1 for her sorrow and nothing for her economic loss.

“They killed him and that’s it!” she said as she dropped to the floor screaming and crying in the hallway of the courthouse after the verdict was read.

Taking the stand on Thursday, Christa Wright fought back tears as she told the court she and her husband of 12 years were soulmates.

....

But James T. Bacon, the attorney for Minnick’s, argued that Anthony was separated from Christa at the time of the accident and that she should not profit from his death.

Witnesses testified that the couple were estranged at the time of the accident.

....

Bacon asked the court to award Christa $1 for her anguish and nothing for the loss of income.

He also said Christa was with a boyfriend at the time of the accident.

Christa admitted that she stayed with the man the defense described as her boyfriend after Anthony’s death, but said they were just friends.

She also admitted having an intimate relationship with Anthony’s brother, Michael, after her husband’s death.

Michael, who Plofchan called to the stand on Thursday, said his brother and Christa had mentioned going to see a divorce attorney, but had called it off.

....

In his closing arguments, Bacon asked the jurors not to award Christa the $1 million the prosecution was asking for. “The plaintiff would not have profited while her husband was alive, and she should not profit from his death,” he said.

Bedford judge goes fishing

Here is a story about a Virginia general district judge in a fishing contest.

Fascinating stuff

Via Blog 702, the Tenth Circuit in Sims v. Great American Life Ins. Co. takes on the interplay between the Erie doctrine and the Federal Rules of Evidence.

The gist is that Erie does not apply to matters covered by the FRE, but nevertheless state policy informs the application of the FRE.

On democracy in action

Judge Posner has this interesting commentary on the 2006 election - the gist being, the system works.

Balkin has this interesting post on how it's not over yet for the conservatives - the gist being, conservatives never quite got control, but their fortunes can be somewhat retrieved in 2008.

The Richmond paper points out that changes in the Congress will mean less clout on the Hill for Virginia, although they might mean more clout for Southwest Virginia with Boucher back on the majority side.

Chad packs it in

My good friend Chad Dotson is going to stop blogging, going the way of past favorites Jaded JD, Have Opinion, and Sic Semper, among others.

I've known Chad for several years and he's had his fun with the blog but I think that it has also made some history. I've learned a lot reading his blog, and met a lot of people who read it and had something to say about it.

Well done, Chad.

Here was my first Chad Dotson post, and here was more of the same.

Friday night lights

Hey, I made it to the senior's last game.

Should there be a U.S. District Court for Technology?

This piece from ZDNet speculates on the need for a specialized federal court to deal with technology issues.

Still voting paperless in the Commonwealth

This note says nobody knows the vote count in Virginia, because the technology is still wrong.

Bunch of clowns

The Senate Republicans responsible for the failure to get nominees confirmed to vacancies on the Fourth Circuit and elsewhere are the dumbest bunch since whoever was responsible among the Democrats for not confirming Judge Jones to the Western District of Virginia back in 1980.

On the Minors of Virginia

Here is the legislation that made my alleged ancestor Doodes Minor a citizen of Virginia, in 1673, as it says:

WHEREAS at a grand assembly holden at James Cittie the twentieth day of September, in the twenty-third year of the raigne of our Soveraigne Lord the King that now is, and in the yeare of our Lord 1671, it was enacted and ordained that any stranger desireing to make this country the place of their constant residence, might upon their petition to the grand assembly, and takeing the oaths of allegiance and supremacy be admitted to a naturalization. Whereupon John Peterson, Rowland Anderson, Michaell Vanlandigam, Minor Doodes, Doodes Minor, and Herman Kelderman, aliens, makeing humble suite as aforesaid, Bee it therefore enacted by the governour, councill and burgesses of this grand assembly and by the authority thereof, that the said John Peterson, Rowland Anderson, Michaell Vanlandigam, Minor Doodes, Doodes Minor, and Herman Kelderman, and every of them be and are by vertue hereof, and the afore recited lawe, whereon this is grounded capable of free traffique and tradeing of takeing up and purchaseing,

True Minor Wisdom

Ray says one space is enough.

I have said the same, here and here and here.

I look for such things, as noted here by Professor Bainbridge.