Oregon Legal Research Blog

Part II of the League of Women Voters of Oregon report on “The Oregon Judiciary” is out (previous reports are here.) Apart from the fact that county law libraries aren’t mentioned even once in the discussion of the “unmet legal needs” of a significant percentage of the population (public libraries either and that is where a lot of people go to ask questions when they don’t go to lawyers) and that the wrong picture is used for Washington County Courthouse (it seems to be the Wasco County Courthouse, maybe?), the report is interesting.

Update: Apparently the pic for Josephine County isn’t right either (maybe Marion County) and the jury is out, so to speak, on the Jackson County Courthouse pic.

We’re a tough bunch, aren’t we 🙂

You didn’t know there was such talent amongst the lawyer-classes, did you? For a sampling, see the April First Blawg Review Prequel, which also links to our very own (Oregon, that is) David Rossmiller’s (from Dunn Carney) well crafted and respected Insurance Coverage Law Blog. And thanks to David Giacalone at f/k/a (baseball haiku and lawyer advertising news- all in one blog posting – what more could you want for a Monday morning wake-up jolt?).

You can find State v Sandoval (S53457) here:

“Defendant appealed his conviction after a jury trial on a charge of intentional murder, ORS 163.115(1)(a), contending that the trial court improperly instructed the jury to the effect that a person is justified in using deadly force in self defense to defend against imminent use of deadly force by another only if there is no opportunity to escape and no other means of avoiding the combat. A panel of the Court of Appeals affirmed defendant’s conviction without opinion. State v. Sandoval, 204 Or App 457, 130 P3d 808 (2006). We allowed defendant’s petition for review and now conclude that the instruction was an incorrect statement of Oregon law and that the trial court’s error in giving the instruction was not harmless. Accordingly, we reverse the decision of the Court of Appeals, reverse defendant’s conviction for intentional murder, and remand the case to the circuit court for further proceedings.”

I try to keep up with the activities of the Oregon Legislature and have started compiling a list of legislative blogs and related bill-tracking web sites. Here are a few – yes, I know I’ve missed a few. There are also other multi-purpose political and/or community blogs that have excellent coverage of specific bills and politicians. I’m trying to restrict my list here to those web sites and blogs that track the Oregon Legislature only. Feel free to let me know of others.

The Oregon Catalyst

The Statesman-Journal Legislature Watch

A new Bedsworth is always worth celebrating (as if Friday wasn’t enough AND April First just 2 days away!). Prepare to laugh with our favorite California appellate court justice.

I’m not a “DOT edu” employee (sound of “DOT gov” teeth gnashing), but that’s not to say those who are shouldn’t know about this free subscription offer from the New York Times Select service. (Law librarians are good about sharing, even if we don’t get a piece of the pie for ourselves 🙂

Thanks to Rob at Boley Blogs for alerting me, and now you, to this! I don’t know the terms of the deal (Remember, TANSTAAFL), but that’s for you to find out so don’t sign without reading all the small print.

Check out the latest Oregon Supreme Court and Court of Appeals cases at the OJD Media Releases site or from their Opinions page.

Ater Wynne’s Oregon Business Litigation Blog is still going strong.