If you haven’t seen these 2 articles in your news feeds then you’re not doing your consumer law education reading:
New York Times articles, by Jessica Silver-Greenberg and Michael Corkery, November 2015:
Beware the Fine Print, Part I: Arbitration Everywhere, Stacking the Deck of Justice
On October 16th, Amazon filed a a follow-up to its King County Case No. 15-2-08579-4 SEA (filed April 8, 2015): King County Superior Court, 15-2-25395-6 SEA, for:
Breach of contract, unjust enrichment, and other causes of action.
BBC News story: Amazon targets 1,114 ‘fake reviewers’ in Seattle lawsuit
As of yesterday, .law domains are available for purchase, but only by licensed attorneys. This new top level domain is an attempt to provide verification to lawyer websites. For the first week the domains will be costly, although the price drops significantly each day. So expect to see big law firms gobble up the prime “real estate” first. Solo practitioners and small firms will likely get in the game as prices go down.
If you’re a lawyer, you can purchase through an authorized registrar. If you’re seeking a lawyer, you’ll see these domains pop up over the following weeks.
Source: “New .Law Domains Go on Sale Today – Here’s How to Buy One” by Robert Ambrogi.
“Ethics and the Law in Oregon, spotlighted by a local lawyer,” editorial, The Bee, July 2015 (Vol. 109, No. 11)
Excerpt: “We have heard comments for quite some time, from folks in the legal profession, suggesting that large law firms in Oregon get preferential treatment by the Oregon Bar Association over the small firms and individual practitioners. Comments like that are easy to dismiss as simply sour grapes – but now, a lawsuit claims the same thing.
In a news report dated Friday, February 27, 2015, and filed by reporter Annie Ellison under the headline “Federal Suit Against Oregon State Bar Alleges Favoritism and Discrimination”, it is stated that “Software developer and former VP of Marketing for Oracle Corp. James Reilly and Victoria Jelderks filed the suit Feb. 26 against the Oregon State Bar Association and general counsel Helen Hierschbiel. ‘If you are from an influential firm in the State of Oregon, you can do whatever you want and the bar can dismiss it,’ Reilly said. ‘As a consequence, these big firms are breaking the law with impunity.’”.…” Link to full editorial at The Bee.
“The Fastcase 50 for 2015 highlights entrepreneurs, innovators, and trailblazers — people who have charted a new course for the delivery of legal services….“
“Understanding the MOOC moment,“ by Prof. Randal Picker (guest-blogging) July 10 at Volokh Conspiracy. (Professor Picker’s website, or maybe this website.)
Excerpt:
“Next Monday, I am launching a new free online course, Internet Giants: The Law and Economics of Media Platforms. In it, we will wrestle with questions relating to Microsoft, Google, Apple, Amazon and the other great companies that define the online platforms we spend so much time with. These companies are involved in important antitrust, copyright and patent cases, both in the United States and Europe, but around the world generally.
Two recent articles worth reading if you want to research online and recall the past:
Net for Lawyers: Google’s News Search is in Even Worse Condition Than we First Thought, Another in an Unfortunately Growing Series of Articles about Google Search Problems
“The Cobweb: Can the Internet be archived?“ by Jill Lepore, New Yorker, Jan. 26, 2015 issue.
From Library Link of the Day (July #7 post) or direct link to OnMilwaukee dot com article):
“Is it stealing if you empty a Little Free Library?,” Molly Snyder’s Blogs, OnMilwaukee dot com, June 30, 2015.
Oregon Legal Research Blog