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Intimidation And The Culture Of Avoidance: Gender Issues And Mentoring In Law Firm Practice, Elizabeth K. Mcmanus Jan 2005

Intimidation And The Culture Of Avoidance: Gender Issues And Mentoring In Law Firm Practice, Elizabeth K. Mcmanus

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Essay looks at gender issues in law firm practice. The author tries to dispel the notion that just women are gaining equal access to the legal profession at the ground level does not mean that they are achieving similar entrée to the upper echelons of law firm practice. The author considers the factors that challenge women's progress at law firms. The article also looks at the mentoring issue with law firm work and how that affects this the same issue.


Toward A Small Donor Democracy: The Past And Future Of Incentive Programs For Small Political Contributions, Thomas Cmar Jan 2005

Toward A Small Donor Democracy: The Past And Future Of Incentive Programs For Small Political Contributions, Thomas Cmar

Fordham Urban Law Journal

The author begins by stating the importance of monetary contribution to a campaign and points out that most of the money for campaigns comes in the form of large donations. It then goes the introduction of campaign contributions as federal tax credits and its effects until the repeal of the tax credit by Congress. The articles then discusses state implementation of tax credits for political contribution, and compares the effects of different state programs. The article then introduces the principle that contribution incentive programs can be part of a strategy for campaign finance reform and gives several ideas how this …


The Mccain-Feingold Coordination Rules: The Ongoing Program To Keep Politics Under Control, Robert F. Bauer Jan 2005

The Mccain-Feingold Coordination Rules: The Ongoing Program To Keep Politics Under Control, Robert F. Bauer

Fordham Urban Law Journal

The article begins with a brief introduction to McCain-Feingold which restricts "coordination" and intends to enforce limits on contributions to candidates and parties. It then goes through a history of coordination. It then goes through some aspects of McCain-Feingold and concludes by stating the aftermath of McCain-Feingold and how its rules are meant to provide order to politics.


Could Terrorists Derail A Presidential Election?, Jerry H. Goldfeder Jan 2005

Could Terrorists Derail A Presidential Election?, Jerry H. Goldfeder

Fordham Urban Law Journal

The article begins by expressing surprise that there is no safeguard for regularly scheduled elections and that if an election would have to be cancelled or postponed it is unknown what would happen. It then discusses what happened to elections during 9/11/2001 and the lack of statutory guidance ensuing from there, and discusses how some states have addressed the problem of an affected election, and questions what would happen to the presidential election in the face of such events. It questions whether Congress should attempt to legislate for such an event and gives a suggestion for what can be done …


An Analysis Of The 2004 Nader Ballot Access Federal Court Cases, Richard Winger Jan 2005

An Analysis Of The 2004 Nader Ballot Access Federal Court Cases, Richard Winger

Fordham Urban Law Journal

The article begins by stating that voters ability to vote for minor party candidates for presidential elections have generally been protected by federal courts as long as they have gotten some media exposure, and Ralph Nader, after not having received this protection attempted to file for injunctions in federal courts. It then goes through Naders claims and suits, including against a discriminatory number of signatures, whether out of state circulators may work, his North Carolina and Ohio write-in lawsuits. The articles conclusion is that federal courts did a poor job in deciding whether to grant Nader injunctive relief and how …


Automobile Leasing And The Vicarious Liability Of Lessors, Daniel J. Koevary Jan 2005

Automobile Leasing And The Vicarious Liability Of Lessors, Daniel J. Koevary

Fordham Urban Law Journal

The Comment begins by discussing the New York Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 388, which makes lessors vicariously liable for their cars even when they are begin leased by others, and how this led many car companies in New York to stop offering leases in the 1920's, the Comment will recommends that Section 388 be amended to exclude lessors from vicarious liability. The Comment then goes through the history of Section 388, explains what leasing is and why it is popular, looks at the recent impact of Section 388 which includes several companies have stopped leasing in New York, looks …


Employer-Based Training Programs For Tanf Recipients: A Public Policy Examination, Nan S. Ellis Jan 2005

Employer-Based Training Programs For Tanf Recipients: A Public Policy Examination, Nan S. Ellis

Fordham Urban Law Journal

The article begins by stating that several programs have been introduced with the goal of lowering the amount of people that live below the poverty level. These programs try to accomplish this by focusing on getting such people jobs, but the focus cannot solely be on workers, it must also be on employers. One type of training that shows promise is Employer-based training, which involves an extensive assessment of the employees skills and job performance, and there are indications that EBT programs might offer better opportunities for at least a segment of the welfare population. The article's goal is to …


Large Law Firms And Their Role In The Educational Continuum Of Lawyers, Paula A. Patton Jan 2005

Large Law Firms And Their Role In The Educational Continuum Of Lawyers, Paula A. Patton

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article examines the ways in which large law firms have served as educators. Furthermore, the Author considers how law firm efforts as educators might be enhanced. The paper looks at the necessity for law firms to continue to educate their associates and the motivation for associate training. The author proposes that law firms must embrace comprehensive strategies that impart performance standards, benchmarks, and core competencies through experiential training.


Should We Mandate Doing Well By Doing Good?, Lawrence J. Fox Jan 2005

Should We Mandate Doing Well By Doing Good?, Lawrence J. Fox

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article looks at Pro Bono work at the top large law firms. The Author examines the pro bono commitment of America's most financially successful firms. The Article describes the contradiction between how the firms present themselves on pro bono work and what they actually accomplish. The Author believes the solution to this situation is mandatory pro bono. The Article proposes that the rules of professional conduct should require pro bono work.


Even More Wrongful Death: Statutes Divorced From Reality, John G. Culhane Jan 2005

Even More Wrongful Death: Statutes Divorced From Reality, John G. Culhane

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article discusses the restrictions on the class of eligible beneficiaries under most wrongful death statutes and considers recent legislative and judicial initiatives that have begun to change these laws to reflect reality. The Article analyzes the Victim Compensation Fund, passed in response to the events of September 11, 2001 as an example of the ability of legislative and regulatory rules to define eligibility for flexible recovery. The Article goes on to discuss recent legislative and judicial developments involving the torts of negligent infliction of emotional distress and loss of consortium, emphasizing that courts and legislatures are increasingly willing to …


Securing America’S Capital, Patricia E. Gallagher Jan 2005

Securing America’S Capital, Patricia E. Gallagher

Fordham Urban Law Journal

The concrete barriers, sewer pipes, and chain-link fencing that prompted the National Capital Planning Commission’s security efforts inconvenienced city residents, workers, and visitors and degraded the appearance of one of the most carefully designed and naturally beautiful cities in the world. And yet, what made these barriers intolerable was their underlying message—that the nation’s capital would allow terrorists to limit the American hallmark of open access. The National Capital Planning Commission does not ask federal agencies to ignore the threat reality, but it does ask that agencies cease to install monuments of fear and retrenchment. As the capital’s watchful steward, …


Felon Disenfranchisement: Law, History, Policy, And Politics, George Brooks Jan 2005

Felon Disenfranchisement: Law, History, Policy, And Politics, George Brooks

Fordham Urban Law Journal

George W. Bush became the forty-third President of the United States when he won the state of Florida by 537 votes in the 2000 election. Because the election was so close, hotly-contested, and divisive, aspects of our electoral system long relegated to dusty books suddenly became topics of water cooler conversation and cocktail party chatter. Some Democrats speculate that if the nearly 600,000 felons in Florida had been allowed to vote, Al Gore would have been elected President. Felon disenfranchisement has thus become a cause celèbre among liberals. There are approximately four million felons who cannot vote nationwide. They are …


The End Of Partnership, Lawrence J. Fox Jan 2005

The End Of Partnership, Lawrence J. Fox

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article addresses what the Author believes are “myths” of the large firm legal practice. The author argues that the path to “partner” at a large firm provides neither a path nor anything that resembles a real partnership. The Article addresses four reasons to support this statement. The author believes that attaining partnership brings a person to a position where they still work many hours, do not receive a big elevation in status, have no sense of tenure, and must have a very large book of business. The Authors believes that it is not young associates who will be wanted …


Professional Challenges In Large Firm Practice, Bruce A. Green Jan 2005

Professional Challenges In Large Firm Practice, Bruce A. Green

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This foreword introduces the idea of Professional Challenges in Large Law Firm practice. The author discusses the culture of large law firm life. This Foreword focused on two goals. First, the author offered an overview of the Stein Center Conference that inspired this issue under the same title as the foreword. Second, the author introduces the writings in this issue that came out of the conference. Overall, it offers an introduction of the nature of large law firm practice.


Reflections On Justice Before And After Brown , Constance Baker Motley Jan 2005

Reflections On Justice Before And After Brown , Constance Baker Motley

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article discusses the important role that Brown v. Board of Education and the federal legislation that followed from it played in nullifying the Jim Crow edits. The Article examines how the result in Brown and certain subsequent events allowed for the creation of a black middle class. Martin Luther King's movement directly challenging state-forced segregation was highly effective in this matter; his 1963 march on Washington, in which 250,000 people turned up in support, became the turning point in the segregation battle. Brown also served as a predicate for the passage of the 1964 Federal Civil Rights Act which …


The Future Of Sodomy , Libby Adler Jan 2005

The Future Of Sodomy , Libby Adler

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article celebrates Lawrence v. Texas as a tremendous advance in civil rights while also recognizing future danger signs associated with the opinion. The Article underscores four elements of the opinion which may cause danger to the pro-sex position the author endorses. The Article points to the Court's: (1) standard of review; (2) reliance on consent; (3) emphasis on privacy, and; (4) respect for dignity. Ultimately, the author warns pro-sex litigators and constituencies against complacency and warns that the words that bring them joy in Lawrence may possibly bring them pain in future opinions. The author calls for vigilance, for …


"Soft Immutability" And "Imputed Gay Identity": Recent Developments In Transgender And Sexual-Orientation-Based Asylum Law, Joseph Landau Jan 2005

"Soft Immutability" And "Imputed Gay Identity": Recent Developments In Transgender And Sexual-Orientation-Based Asylum Law, Joseph Landau

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article surveys the law of LGBT asylum as it has developed over the past fifteen years, first, with the landmark case of Matter of Toboso-Alfonso, which recognized homosexuality as a "particular social group"; second, with the Ninth Circuit's recent cases adopting a soft immutability standard of identity and expanding asylum protection to transgender individuals; and third, with a discussion of the "particular social group" analysis as it applies to transgender asylum seekers and the emergence of the "imputed gay identity" category as an alternative basis for relief for those litigants who do not identify as gay or lesbian but …


The Unbearable “Lite”Ness Of History: American Sodomy Laws From Bowers To Lawrence And The Ramifications Of Announcing A New Past, Neil Margolies Jan 2005

The Unbearable “Lite”Ness Of History: American Sodomy Laws From Bowers To Lawrence And The Ramifications Of Announcing A New Past, Neil Margolies

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article


Sexual Minorities, Criminal Justice, And The Death Penalty, Michael B. Shortnacy Jan 2005

Sexual Minorities, Criminal Justice, And The Death Penalty, Michael B. Shortnacy

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article addresses the biases confronting sexual minorities in the legal system. The author calls upon the legal community including bar associations, judicial councils and conferences, and law schools to recognize that bias against sexual minorities exists and they should devote sufficient resources to allow for comprehensive study of this problem and for the education of the bar and the public. Furthermore, the Article points out that this bias against sexual minorities among key players in the legal system may actually be a factor in the imposition of the death penalty. The author points out the inattention this bias against …


Uncharted Territory: Choosing An Effective Approach In Transgender-Based Asylum Claims, Victoria Neilson Jan 2005

Uncharted Territory: Choosing An Effective Approach In Transgender-Based Asylum Claims, Victoria Neilson

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article focuses on individuals who believe that they are born with the wrong anatomical sex and who suffer persecution as a result of their transgender identity. The Article discusses existing precedent in the context of transgender asylum seekers and suggests possible theories for framing successful transgender asylum claims.


Policing The Police: The Role Of The Courts And The Prosecution, Steven Zeidman Jan 2005

Policing The Police: The Role Of The Courts And The Prosecution, Steven Zeidman

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article focuses on how, and whether, the component parts of the courts - judges, court administrators, and prosecutors - promote justice by actively and critically monitoring or overseeing the police. The author focuses on one of the most common forms of police corruption facing the criminal justice system - what has been termed "falsifications" which includes testimonial perjury, documentary perjury and falsification of police records. The author reflects on what judges and prosecutors have done to combat this form of police corruption and offers ways in which the actors within the criminal justice system can be more effective.


The Return Of Spending Limits: Campaign Finance After Landell V. Sorrell, Richard Briffault Jan 2005

The Return Of Spending Limits: Campaign Finance After Landell V. Sorrell, Richard Briffault

Fordham Urban Law Journal

The article begins by introducing Landell and stating that it is an important decision in campaign finance law because it is the first time since Buckley that a court has held that a candidate expenditure limitation can be constitutional. It then goes through a history of the evolving judicial consideration of candidate expenditure limitations, discussing cases such as Buckley, Homans, and Landell. The article continues by discussing the Landell panels assertion that public funding and spending limits may actually be in conflict with one another. It then goes through some arguments that make the case for spending limits, including prevention …


The Billable Hours Derby: Empirical Data On The Problems And Pressure Point, Susan Saab Fortney Jan 2005

The Billable Hours Derby: Empirical Data On The Problems And Pressure Point, Susan Saab Fortney

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article addresses the frustration with billable hours in large law firms. The Author gathered empirical data to gauge the short and long-term effects of increases in billable hour expectations. An empirical study was conducted in 1999-2000 of associate satisfaction, law firm culture, and billing practices. The Article compares these findings to a 2005 NALP study on billable hours and a Work-Life split. The Article concludes by considering what forces and players will change the current course of conduct in which law firm leaders treat increases in billable hours expectations as a necessary evil. The studies show the costs and …


Legal Education After Law School: Lessons From Scotland And Englan, Clark D. Cunningham Jan 2005

Legal Education After Law School: Lessons From Scotland And Englan, Clark D. Cunningham

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article addresses the issue of the needed collaboration between law schools and law firms about legal education after law school. The author proposes pilot projects be launched to increase collaboration between legal academics and law firms in the provision of legal education after law school. The Article suggests that the programs emulate the close partnerships that exist between the legal academy and legal profession in England and Scotland. The Article acknowledges why the training of lawyers is different now than in the past. The author compares the American law firm training programs with the post school education that takes …


The Nirvana Fallacy In Law Firm Regulation Debate, Elizabeth Chambliss Jan 2005

The Nirvana Fallacy In Law Firm Regulation Debate, Elizabeth Chambliss

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article addresses self-regulation in the legal industry. Lawyers have traditionally resisted the benefits of bureaucratic management. This Article highlights that many lawyers fear that centralized management controls with regard to regulation will undermine individual accountability. This article does not agree with that sentiment. This article uses data to suggest that centralized management, i.e. specialists in charge, may significantly improve individual accountability and compliance with professional rules. This article really reviews what it feels like are misconstrued assumptions about regulation at law firms. This Article argues that the nostalgia for an idealized collegial form has prevented legal scholars and regulators …


The Evils Of “Elasticity”: Reflections On The Rhetoric Of Professionalism And The Part-Time Paradox In Large Firm Practice, Amelia J. Uelmen Jan 2005

The Evils Of “Elasticity”: Reflections On The Rhetoric Of Professionalism And The Part-Time Paradox In Large Firm Practice, Amelia J. Uelmen

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Essay is an examination of part-time arrangements at large law firms. The author sets out to start a conversation about professional life and identity in a large firm context.. Part I looks at the commercialization of large law firm practice and how that has created a “crisis” in legal practice. Part II compares the “tyranny of the billable hours” with the dedication to “client service.” The author considers part time work with both of these elements. Part III confronts the cultural obstacles to part-time work. Here, the author acknowledges that even the analysis is accepted there are still cultural …


How Law Firms Can Do Good While Doing Well (And The Answer Is Not Pro Bono), Russell Pearce Jan 2005

How Law Firms Can Do Good While Doing Well (And The Answer Is Not Pro Bono), Russell Pearce

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Essay looks at whether large law firm business lawyers can do good in today’s society. The author describes the change in the large law firm mentality since the 1960s – most specifically the shift to a focus centered solely on making money. The Article looks at the changes in the legal profession that facilitated this shift. The author proposes that instead of trying to separate making money and doing well, the legal profession should try to integrate the two. The Essay proposes specific suggestions to accomplish this goal, including the creation of a new Model Rule that would restore …


The Professionalization Of Ethics, Margaret Raymond Jan 2005

The Professionalization Of Ethics, Margaret Raymond

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article looks at the importance of teaching law graduates to be ethical lawyers. The author hypothesizes that the current versions of the ethical rules and the structure of law firms have the potential to encourage the professionalization of ethics rather than connecting all practitioners to the values of professional responsibility. This Article sets out the factors that contribute to the increased professionalization of professional responsibility in large law firms. These factors are the need for lawyers to always be accessible, the pressure to specialize in a specific field, and the complexity of the ethics rules as written. The author …


Marilyn & Ed Bellet: A Dedication, William Michael Treanor Jan 2005

Marilyn & Ed Bellet: A Dedication, William Michael Treanor

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Essay was a dedication to Ed and Marilyn Bellet, benefactors of Fordham Law’s ethics and professionalism programs. The Bellets created the Louis Stein Center for Law and Ethics, which educates both the public and lawyers about the importance of the rule of law. The author examines the life of the Bellets and their commitment to Fordham Law.


Profits And Professionalism, Deborah Rhode Jan 2005

Profits And Professionalism, Deborah Rhode

Fordham Urban Law Journal

This Article looks at the financial effect of ethics work. The author examines to what effect and under what circumstances “ethics pays,” and what can be done to increase the rate of return. The article studies this issue in three different contexts. First, it looks at workplace cultures and professional values. The author tries to find how the legal professional can create more organizational structures in which adhering to principles serves prudential interests. The second context is pro bono work. Here, the author looks at the pro bono benefits to, the lawyer, and legal employer, as well as the costs …