Clerkship Opportunity: Justice Goodwin Liu, California Supreme Court

Associate Justice Goodwin Liu of the California Supreme Court is hiring two law clerks, each for an 18- to 24-month term. One position will begin in January 2012; the other will begin in fall 2012. Applicants must have a strong academic record, excellent research and writing skills, and demonstrated ability to learn quickly and work collaboratively. Applicants who are one to five years out of law school and who have previously clerked for a federal appellate court are strongly preferred. The position is based in San Francisco.

Interested applicants should send (in PDF format) a cover letter, résumé, law school transcript, and writing sample via email to [email protected]. Applications will be considered immediately upon receipt, until the positions are filled. Questions may be directed to Justice Liu’s judicial assistant, Ms. Pat Sheehan, at (415) 865-7090. For information about the California Supreme Court, see http://www.courts.ca.gov/supremecourt.htm.

NYCLA Forum on November 2 to Focus on Judicial Independence

NYCLA Forum on November 2 to Focus on Judicial Independence

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On Friday evening, October 21, Hofstra Law School APALSA hosted the first Chris Chan exam writing workshop of the season. Law students from Hofstra, St. John’s and Touro were in attendance. They experienced the Chris Chan method of breaking down and analyzing law school exams to help demystify the process of taking law school exams and excelling at them. The next one will be the Upstate Roadshow taking place at Syracuse Law School.  Thanks to Liza Sohn, Student Outreach Committee Co-Chair, for the great shots.

(Source: http://bit.ly/)

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More than 40 law students and lawyers attended the Fall Networking Event at Slate on Thursday, October 20.  Students from Rutgers, Brooklyn, Columbia, New York Law School, and Cardozo were there, along with a mix of lawyers in private practice and the public sector.  Thanks to Irene Tan and Jonathan Li for putting it together! And thanks to Liza Sohn, Student Outreach Committee Co-Chair for the wonderful photos.

Judges Needed for Thomas Tang Moot Court Competition

Hemanth Digumarthi from the Host Committee of the 2011 NAPABA National Convention in Atlanta sends this message asking for AABANY members to volunteer time at the convention to serve as judges in the Thomas Tang Moot Court Competition finals:

Judges are needed for the Thomas Tang Moot Court competition in Atlanta.  The rounds will take place, Friday, November 18 from 10:00 to 11:30 and from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.  You can judge one or both rounds. If there are any AABANY members planning  to attend the  NAPABA convention and would like to volunteer, please contact Hemanth Digumarthi at [email protected].

The issues in this year’s Thomas Tang Moot Court Competition are:

I. WHETHER THE PRESERVING AMERICAN VALUES IN EDUCATION (PAVE) ACT VIOLATES THE FIRST AMENDMENT’S GUARANTEE OF FREEDOM OF SPEECH.

A. Whether the deferential standard of review articulated in Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier, 484 U.S. 260 (1988) for assessing high school curricula should be extended to universities.

B. Whether the PAVE Act’s curricular restrictions violate the free speech clause of First Amendment under either a strict scrutiny or a rational basis standard of review.

II. WHETHER THE PRESERVING AMERICAN VALUES IN EDUCATION (PAVE) ACT VIOLATES THE FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT’S GUARANTEE OF EQUAL PROTECTION.

A. Whether the PAVE Act’s curricular restrictions constitute a racial classification subject to strict scrutiny.

B. Whether the PAVE Act’s curricular restrictions violate the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment under either a strict scrutiny or a rational basis standard of review.

3rd Annual Pitch Sessions: One-on-One Partner Presentations and Interviews with In-House Counsel

Members of the NAPABA In-House Counsel Committee are accepting submissions from eligible partners of Solo and Small Firms for private one-on-one firm pitches during the 2011 NAPABA Annual Convention in Atlanta, Georgia taking place November 17-20. 
 
To be eligible, for firms with 25 or less attorneys, each partner who intends to participate in the pitch program must be an individual direct Platinum/$500 member of NAPABA. In addition, you must be registered to attend the 2011 NAPABA Convention.

How to participate: Review the pdf list of IHCs (click on the link), which includes brief descriptions of company industry and IHC specialty. Please note that some companies chose to display an anonymous profile. If you or one of your firm’s partners matches the industry and specialty, you may submit the following information:

1.       Name
2.       Firm name
3.       Direct phone number
4.       Email
5.       Specialty/practice area
6.       State whether your firm is minority and/or women-owned
7.       Indicate by IHC ID Number, the IHCs with whom you wish to meet.
 
Please send all items to NAPABA Programs Associate Azizah Ahmad at [email protected] by October 30, 2011. Incomplete information will not be considered.
 
All submissions will be delivered to the IHCs on November 1st.  If selected, you will be contacted by the IHC directly.  Unfortunately, due to demand, not all law firm partners will be selected for a pitch.

FAQs

When will the Pitch Sessions take place and what is the format?
• IHC and partners can determine the date, time, and length of each Pitch Session, as long as the pitch takes place during the 2011 NAPABA Convention.
 
Is this just a practice pitch for the law firms?
• No.  In-House Counsel will not view these sessions as practice.
 
Will each In-House Counsel have work to give out?
• No.  As work needs are difficult to predict, there is not a requirement that In-House participants have work needs at the time of the pitch.  However, In-House Counsel will have full discretion to engage (or strongly recommend) outside law firms as needed.
 

CUP 2nd Annual Lawyers Forum 10/27

The Council of Urban Professionals (CUP) invites you to its Second Annual Lawyers Forum, taking place on October 27 at the Eventi Hotel (Ventana Ballroom) starting at 6:30 pm (cocktails; dinner follows at 7:30 pm).

Here’s more about the event from Elisa Espiritu, Director of Leadership Development:

The Council of Urban Professionals (CUP) works to connect, empower and mobilize the next generation of diverse business and civic leaders. We are a network of over 800 members across New York that works through a series of programs and forums to offer professional development, access to powerful decision makers and institutions, and civic engagement and service opportunities for diverse leaders. Specifically, we match our members with impactful nonprofit and public sector board placements; we train and empower emerging leaders through our Fellows Program; we work to generate access to capital for minority and women led businesses; and we educate and mobilize our communities through our dynamic Distinguished Leadership Speaker Series.

The 2nd Annual Lawyers Forum will once again convene over 120 senior level professionals of color and women partners from law firms as well as general counsels and associate general counsels from New York based investment firms and corporations for a dynamic evening of networking, high level discussions, and business generation. Major themes of the evening include key strategies and approaches to building a division and leading a team, revenue generation, the importance of cultivating and maintaining a network, and the effect of the recession on diversity and inclusion.

Our keynote speakers for this year are John Page, Corporate Vice President, General Counsel for Golden State Foods and President-elect of the National Bar Association; and Louise M. Parent, Executive Vice President and General Counsel for American Express, who will give remarks during dinner in a moderated ‘fireside chat’ format.

For more information, click on the image below.

2nd Annual CUP Lawyers Forum

USCIS presents E-Verify: “Know Your Rights: Employee Rights and Responsibilities”

USCIS presents E-Verify: “Know Your Rights: Employee Rights and Responsibilities”