This shouldn’t really be “news,” but it is! And it may be really big news when it can be said of all appellate court judges, not just federal court judges.
From the Law Librarian Blog:
Justice Scalia Uses an iPad, Justice Kagan a Kindle to Read Briefs
The Sunlight Foundation releases a beta version of a House (Congressional) Staff Directory.
(Note: Clicking on the Members List (at bottom of the search screen) seems to work better right now, at least for me.)
The have a lot of additional news on government transparency at their blog.
(If you want to call your federal and/or state Legislator(s), use the Find Your Legislator tool at the Oregon Legislature’s website.)
I always wince a bit when I hear people say that someone in “Washington D.C.” steals their tax dollars. Yes, sometimes it’s true that a crime against us taxpayers has been committed, but sometimes our communities get a lot of those dollars back, though only after Congress takes out money for fighting wars, national security, diplomatic missions, economic development, social security, medicare, corporation subsidies, international medical aid, etc., etc., etc.
If you’re at all curious about which states get how much “return” on the federal tax dollars sent to federal coffers, here are a few places to start off your research. More serious and thorough research will take more work:
1) Federal tax dollar to D.C. and federal tax dollar back to Oregon: The Tax Foundation has this chart that shows Oregon, in 2005, received back $.93 of the federal tax dollars they paid in federal taxes.
The Willamette Law School’s “United States Supreme Court News: Willamette Law Online” service, with case summaries and law updates, tells us about this latest U.S. Supreme Court decision:
“On December 13th, 2010 the United States Supreme Court issued a decision in the case sumarized below:
Copyright Law (The first sale doctrine of 17 U.S.C. §109(a) does not apply to goods manufactured abroad and later imported into the United States).
I love reading consumer news, whether it’s sad stories or great tips in my local newspapers, consumer lawyer websites, or the multitude of consumer protection sites offered up by state and federal governments, e.g. Oregon’s DOJ and the U.S. FTC.
You always learn something, though in the process you may become a bit jaded. But, better jaded than a sucker!
Here are some additional links I’ve collected recently from reading or listening to a few of my favorite consumer law sources:
“Prisoners’ Right to Read: A New Interpretation to the Library Bill of Rights,” posted on July 12th, 2010 by Nanette Perez
There is also a Prison Law blog (thank you to Tom Mighell and his Inter-Alia newsletter for the lead.)
Check out GPO’s MetaLib:
“Welcome to MetaLib, a service of the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications! MetaLib is a federated search engine that searches multiple U.S. Federal government databases, retrieving reports, articles, and citations while providing direct links to selected resources available online. To learn more, view additional brief or detailed search information.” (Link to Metalib homepage.)
To learn more about GPO (the Government Printing Office), link to their homepage and to FDSys, the Federal Digital System, and don’t forget visiting their award winning Government Book Talk Blog.
If you’re a history buff or just (!) a bibliophile, this Government Book Talk Blog is for you.
What award did they win? The Silver Inkwell Communications Award.
Visit SCOTUS blog for a report and links: New Policy on Tapes Release
In Oregon, CD’s of the Oregon Supreme and Appellate Courts’ oral arguments are usually available the day after the hearing, depending on the bailiff’s work flow. To obtain a copy of the CD, contact OJD at 503-986-5553. The cost is $10 per argument (as of today). A form must be completed and payment is required in advance unless an attorney is requesting, in which case the attorney can be billed.
If you’re not an attorney, call and ask for specific instructions. Don’t try and find the information on the OJD website, unless you have a lot of time. There is a lot of information on the OJD website, but it’s difficult to find specific information. (All of us who work on websites know and understand the problem! We just have too much information to post for our customers, patrons, constituents, etc. and it seems not enough time to organize it all properly.) Sometimes THE TELEPHONE is your Best Friend!
Gallagher Law blog has a great post on last Friday’s Constitution Day and it links to this wonderful quiz:
“You know those silly Facebook quizzes where you answer a series of questions to learn what breed of dog or which Gilligan’s Island character you most resemble? The National Constitution Center offers a quiz to find out which Framer of the Constitution you most resemble. No kidding!” (Link to the full Gallagher Law blog post.)
Gallagher Law blog also reminds everyone that other countries have constitutions, too. Who knew?!
Oregon Legal Research Blog