Moritz Legal Information Blog

Slate.com just posted a "fun" article on how you can download your entire Google search history (i.e., searches you ran while logged in to a Google product (e.g. YouTube, Gmail, Blogger)). Presumably, the searches aren't tied to a specific device; they are tied to your Google log-in credentials. That sounds...fun? I haven't quite decided. Would you really want to know how many times you were searching inane stuff during class hours instead of paying attention? It's like calorie counting to really get a picture of your nutritional choices---being in the dark is sometimes preferable than recognizing your patterns. At any rate, there are at least two valuable takeaways: (1) Google letting you get that info means Google has and keeps for all time that info. They may not have it aggregated at the moment, but it seems they can just go call it up at will. It's not just the anonymous searching they use to target ads; this is tying searches to a particular

The Columbus Dispatch reports that the total number of pages of briefs submitted (including Amicus Briefs) in the same-sex marriage cases the US Supreme Court will consider April 28 is over 7,500. That's a lot. Is this the most number of pages ever? No. "Court observers say the volume of filings in the case, combined under the heading of Obergefell v. Hodges, is second in recent memory only to the 2012 Affordable Care Act case in which President Barack Obama’s health-care plan was eventually upheld by a divided Supreme Court." Isn't there a page limit on briefs? Sort of.  The limit is actually a word limit per Supreme Court Rule 33. Merit briefs are limited to 15,000 words. Where do you get all of these briefs if you'd like to brush up before arguments next week? SCOTUS Blog has the various briefs. Amicus briefs are limited to 9,000 words. For comparison, a 28-page law review article has around 15,000 words. So, based on the calculation that there are o

The Ohio State Law Journal has launched a new online publication:   the Sixth Circuit Review .   The Journal aims for this publication to be a “digital public square,” a discussion of important questions arising in the Sixth Circuit.   Scholars, students, practitioners, and judges are all invited to participate. Afraid your comments will go unseen?   Chief Judge R, Guy Cole assures : “ Only through a frank and ongoing dialogue will our court ever achieve its fullest potential. I promise you this: the judges of our circuit and their law clerks will surely read in earnest whatever you write.” Begin the conversation by reading the inaugural issue and sending your own commentary to the Sixth Circuit Review editor .  In the inaugural issue, you will find James M. Hafner, Jr.’s case comment on DeBoer v. Snyder – a good preparation for next week’s oral arguments at the Supreme Court regarding the Sixth Circuit same sex marriage cases.   Other topics include ethics and professionalism

The Boston Marathon takes place today, and you can follow along to track the race leaders along the course. Two stories from the marathon world highlight the importance of race rules. First, the St. Louis Marathon has suffered from a young lady cutting the course and placing or winning two years in a row. Kendall Schler has twice been unable to prove through race photos or otherwise that she began and completed the entire marathon under USATF rules . It appears Ms. Schler violated at least two USATF rules in particular: Runner's identification shall consist of running numbers pinned securely on the front of each runner's uniform and displayed throughout the race. The registration list will contain each runner's name and running number. Any competitor who has been found by the Referee and/or Jury of Appeal to have gained an unfair advantage by intentionally shortening the route of the race ("cutting the course") shall be immediately disqualified from the co

You might need a snack of some sort to get you through the Internal Revenue Code, Treasury Regulations, Revenue Rulings, and the like.   So did Aimee Cvancara, who needed a Snickers to get through work one evening.   Cvancara listed the 89 cent Snickers bar as a business deduction, but the tax court disagreed , calling it a personal expense.   A short, but thrilling documentary , dissects Cvancara’s audit and tax court experience, all in under 5 minutes – an excellent study break (without the non-deductible expense of a Snickers). If you are inspired to learn more about business deductions – or need to because you are completing your taxes today – the IRS offers a helpful publication as well as a Q and A page .   Moritz students also have access to several tax specific databases , in addition to our major legal research databases.   h/t: TaxProf Blog

Libraries provide all kinds of things.  Including books , ebooks, databases of journal articles, images, and  music .  We also share our research expertise at reference desks and through research guides .  During national library week (April 12 - 18), we're asking you to tell us how libraries have helped you out the past year.  In return, you have a chance to win a gift certificate. You can celebrate national library week by sharing what you've made with help from your library, including Moritz, on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram using the hashtag #librarymade.  The American Library Association will award a $100 gift certificate to Maker Shed or Amazon to a lucky winner.  (Promotion details are available here .) Lexis has decided to celebrate national library week by donating coupons for free study aids.  The first two current Moritz Law students who email me  a short description of how Moritz Law Library has helped them will receive a coupon for a free  Lexis Q & A e

In a previous post , we highlighted the curious statistics that suggest it's not so hard to argue before the U.S. Supreme Court . . . if you've done it before. From that post, Reuters news service did a little research and produced The Echo Chamber, which concluded that in the last nine years, "66 of the 17,000 lawyers who petitioned the Supreme Court succeeded at getting their clients’ appeals heard at a remarkable rate. Their appeals were at least six times more likely to be accepted by the court than were all others filed by private lawyers during that period." But there may be more to the story when it comes to some legal issues. From the New York Times, The Case Against Gay Marriage: Top Law Firms Won’t Touch It .  That doesn't mean those arguing against gay marriage (or, possibly, in favor of states' rights) are from tiny mom-and-pop firms that have never stood before the Court before. In one case coming up on April 28, "the main lawyer opposi