If you’re following the Honda Civic Hybrid Lawsuit, that Small Claims Court vs. Class Action Settlement case, you can find updates at the plaintiff’s website and twitter feed.
If you want to read about a Small Claims Court advocate, visit the HALT website.
If you want Oregon Small Claims Court information specifically, no, there isn’t a book or a guide, yet (one is coming later in 2012), but there are other research resources, including Oregon attorneys who can serve as Small Claims coaches:
Measures for the 2012 Oregon Legislative Session are now available. You can link to the Legislature’s homepage for more information.
(Note: As of today, the “index” and the “list of sections affected” links on that page are to the 2011 bills, not the 2012, so don’t get confused. These will all be updated in good time, but pay attention to the dates on the PDFs. For example, if the document is dated August 2011, it will not include the 2012 bills – at least we hope not – some nifty time shifting going on, perhaps?)
See OJD Media Release, dated 1/20/12*
‘The Honorable Thomas A. Balmer has been elected as the 42nd Chief Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court, the court announced today. Balmer will succeed Chief Justice Paul J. De Muniz, who will step down as Chief Justice on May 1, 2012 before retiring from the bench in January 2013.
“Chief Justice De Muniz has been an innovative leader and a tireless advocate for open and accessible courts and promoting timely justice for the people who rely on courts to protect their rights and safety,” Balmer said. “I will continue his important initiatives and do everything I can to ensure that Oregonians can rely on their state courts for prompt and impartial decisions in the thousands of cases that come before Oregon judges every day.” …‘ [See OJD Media Release, dated 1/20/12]
If you’re an Oregon city official and need some expert guidance on how to get legal advice regarding a government matter, call the League of Oregon Cities (LOC) Legal Services office.
Visit their website to read about the services they provide:
“Every day at the League we get calls from city officials who believe they are alone in experiencing confusion over municipal law issues. We’re here to tell you that you’re not alone. Cities throughout Oregon call the League daily on simple and complicated matters. One of our most important functions is to respond quickly to municipal law inquiries fromour cities, which includes questions on open meetings, public records, council procedures and ethics….
….
Andy Zimmerman, of Zimmerman’s Research Guide, brings us this update:
All things must pass: the demise of the free Social Security Death Index
You can read more about this story by using these keywords – social security death index free (and making sure you read stories from late 2011 to the present).
Legal Research Plus brings our attention to the California Office of Legislative Counsel’s report on: “Authentication of Primary Legal Materials and Pricing Options, December 2011″
“Gallagher blogs” brings us “A Tour of Eight Famous Cases,” highlighting the new book:
“Is Eating People Wrong: Great Legal Cases and How They Shaped the World”
The next time someone tells you that “it’s all online” or that they don’t need law libraries or law librarians, ask why it is that the smartest guys on the block, the U.S. Supreme Court Justices (with apologies to excellent law professors and lawyers everywhere), still have a law library and professional law librarians (plus support staff).
U.S Supreme Court appoints new Law Librarian (January 17, 2012, press release).
Robert Ambrogi’s LawSites blog brings us “Five Tips for Starting Your own Blog” and other law practice tips.
Jim Calloway’s Law Practice Tips and Carolyn Elefant’s myShingle are favorites, too.
Stephen Elias, lawyer to the people, died last month. You can read an obituary at the Nolo website and a Nolo blog.
Law librarians knew Stephen as a mentor, a role-model, and as the writer of Nolo’s “Legal Research: How to Find & Understand the Law.”
