If you have Facebook, make sure you add Westlaw Learning as a friend and then have some fun sending gifts with our modest application http://tinyurl.com/wlaw-gifts-use.

A Legal Maxim is an established principle or proposition.

Black’s law dictionary 8th Edition in print and online contains an Appendix listing legal maxims. To pull up the list of legal maxims online, run a terms & connectors search for: appendix-b

Keep in mind that a search for a legal maxim may come up as Appendix-B if the term does not have its own entry in Blacks.

Did you know that Westlaw has a database for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor: SOTOMAYOR-NOM The database includes opinions, law reviews and other legal documents written by or about Judge Sotomayor.

And now this from the Wall Street Journal Law Blog: June 22, 2009
http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2009/06/22/soto-roundup-she-says-goodbye-to-belizean-grove-more/

Judge Sotomayor has resigned her membership at the Belizean Grove, the all-women’s group that bills itself as women’s answer to the 130-year-old all-male Bohemian Club in California. In a letter to Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Judge Sotomayor said she was convinced that the club, the Belizean Grove, did not practice “invidious discrimination” and that her membership in it did not violate judicial ethics. But she said she did not want questions about it to “distract anyone from my qualifications and record.”

From FindLaw By Kevin Fayle on June 17, 2009 11:27 AM
You work hard to make your money, especially in tough times when business can be hard to come by. The last thing you want is for a partner or employee to steal money from the cookie jar while you’re concentrating on representing your clients.Unfortunately, if you’re a small firm or solo attorney, it’s much more likely to happen to you than it is to a large or mid-size firm.

There have been a number of recent news reports about employees embezzling funds from law firms. An excellent article in the National Law Journal offers some theories about the sudden rise in small firm embezzlement, discusses the features of small firms that make them more susceptible to theft, and goes over ways to make firms more secure.The obvious reason for the increase in embezzlement cases is the recession, according to the article.

Employees fall on hard times and begin stealing from their employers. Conversely, those employers start keeping a closer watch on the bottom line as things get leaner and leaner. As a consequence, there are more employees embezzling and more employers discovering the embezzlement.But what about small firms renders them more open to theft? First of all, according to the piece, small firms often tend to have correspondingly small staffs. Many times, there is one person handling both accounts payable and receivable.

This situation allows that person to funnel money out of the firms coffers with little or no oversight. Additionally, attorneys must maintain separate client accounts, which creates large pools of money that many employees may find difficult to resist when they fall on hard times.Overall, a general lack of procedures to place a check on any one person’s ability to move around large sums of money is at the root of the cause.

There are many things law firms should do to address this.First, insurance always helps. Buying a policy that covers intentional acts will help a firm recoup some of the losses from theft, whereas firms without insurance don’t often see their money again.Firms should also break up the responsibilities for accounts receivable and payable, as well as monitor accounts with heavy activity.

Routine audits will also catch any irregularities, as well as let employees know that you’re keeping a watchful eye.Finally, all firms should check to ensure that they comply with their state’s ethical rules for managing client money. Lawyer have a legal fiduciary duty to their clients to protect their money, so if client funds are stolen, the attorney could be on the hook.Just remember: even if it’s their money that’s stolen, it’s your problem.

1. Visit the West eLearning Center
a. Enter your account info or
b. Create an account (all you need is an e-mail address)

2. Then take one of the lessons with a coffee cup icon next to them.

See rules below for details.

Rules:

GIFT CARD eLEARNING OFFER
Terms and Conditions
The Gift Card eLearning offer (as herein described, “Offer”), sponsored by Thomson West (“Sponsor”) is open only to Westlaw customers with an active Westlaw password and who are lawful residents of the United States and the District of Columbia who are at least 18 years of age. The Offer is void in Puerto Rico and where prohibited or restricted by law.

THE OFFER IS NOT OPEN TO MEMBERS OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC.

Employees, officers, directors of West, a Thomson business, their respective staff persons and affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising/promotional agencies and members of their immediate families (parent, child, sibling and spouse of each) and those living in their same households, are ineligible to enter and participate in the Offer. An individual employee representing his/her employer/principal in this Offer is responsible for reviewing, understanding and abiding by his/her principal’s or employer’s policies regarding eligibility to participate in activities such as the Offer described in these Terms and Conditions, communications and publications.

If you are participating in violation of your principal’s/employer’s policies, you/the registered participant may be disqualified from registering for and/or participating in the Offer and being awarded/retaining prizes. Released Parties disclaim any and all liability or responsibility for disputes arising between an employee/agent and his/her employer (or other principalagent relationships) related to this matter.

To participate in the Gift Card eLearning Offer that begins on July 1, 2007 (12:00:01 AM CT) until December 31, 2009 (11:59:59 AM CT) or when the supplies of gift cards are exhausted. Participants truthfully complete as directed all mandatory elements for the
West eLearning Center registration online at www.westelearning.com click on the ‘Register’ button. Following eLearning registration, a Participant (who is additionally an enduser who uses Westlaw during his/her professional job for purposes of the Offer) will have the opportunity to elect to complete training lessons with an available Card offer.

Completion of an eligible lesson or Webinar and display on the Website of a completion message entitles a Participant eligible for the Offer to receive a Starbuck’s Card (ARV: $5.00 each) (“Offer Prize”), subject to verification at Sponsor’s reasonable discretion, and further constitutes consent to and agreement with the Terms and Conditions of this Offer and official Offer communications and publications by Sponsor, including on the Website.

Limit one (1) Offer Prize per lesson per eligible Participant (supplies of prizes are limited and will be awarded on a first come, first serve basis). Prizes will be shipped within two to four weeks of successfully completing the eLearning training module. Offer is nontransferableand will expire when Offer Prizes are exhausted.

Westlaw now offers you thousands of federal legislative histories compiled by GAO law librarians in an easily searchable format

No more time-consuming searches for rare, scattered documents. With one search in FED-LH, get the compiled history of virtually every statute passed by Congress between 1960 and 1995 – with links to original historical documents in PDF format.

• More than 8,500 compiled histories
• Coverage of most federal public laws enacted between 1960 and 1995
• Original documents in PDF format

See FED-LH for FREE, a sample on Westlaw.On Westlaw you can view and print a sample FED-LH document – and even view all PDF documents linked to it – without incurring search or transactional charges. Go to this database on Westlaw DEMO-FED-LH and see compiled legislative history for Pub. L. No. 99-607, a piece of minor legislation selected to minimize unauthorized use.

Planned Release over four years: More than 20,000 compiled histories

• Coverage from 1915, 1921 to 1995
• Nearly one million legislative documents in PDF format
• Get complete federal legislative histories
• Legislative history for a public law includes original versions of all documents leading up to the passage of the law, including but not limited to: Bill text, Bill tracking and summaries
  Public laws , Committee reports , Congressional Record, Testimony, Presidential statements and messages, Committee schedules and Executive orders

Reaction to President Obama’s nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to replace Justice David Souter on the United States Supreme Court continues to reach across the Web.We caught up with Susan Low Bloch, a professor of law at Georgetown University and co-author of Bloch, Jackson, and Krattenmaker’s Inside the Supreme Court: The Institution and Its Procedures, 2d., published by West, to learn her thoughts of the nomination.

“Judge Sotomayor is no novice to the confirmation process and should appeal to a wide array of people. She was first appointed to the federal trial court by a Republican, the first President Bush, and then elevated to the federal appeals court by a Democrat, President Clinton,” says Bloch. “She has successfully handled two U.S. Senate confirmation hearings. I predict, by the first Monday in October 2009, we will see Justice Sotomayor take Justice Souter’s seat.”

Sotomayor, if confirmed, will become the first Hispanic American on the Supreme Court. She also is the third woman nominated to the Court and, if confirmed, will join Justice Ruth Ginsburg so that, once again, the Court would have two women on the bench.

“Judge Sotomayor brings to the Court an excellent academic background, impressive legal credentials and judicial experience making her an extremely well-qualified nominee,” Bloch said.
Although Bloch believes Sotomayor is a worthy nominee, she doesn’t believe the Senate will give her an easy time. “There will undoubtedly be a number of senators who will argue that she will legislate from the bench and that, therefore, she should not be confirmed. It will be her job to satisfy those senators that she can, and will, follow the law and not make it.”

Employment Law: A State-by-State Compendium (DRI-EMPSTATE) is a new database on Westlaw added in Spring 3009. An easy way to take a look at the content is to use the search recommended in scope which pulls up all of the available documents: CI(DRI-EMPSTATE)The database contains a document for each state and the District of Columbia that answers a number of employment law questions, including those listed below. It was published in 2006, so you may need to use KeyCite to update the information. This is a great place to start any employment research as it links to relevant statutes and cases.

Is there a state antidiscrimination statute? If so, are damages capped? Jury trial or not?
What types of damages are available? Are there state-specific labor statutes or a right-to-work law?What are the state wage-hour laws, if any? Is there a state equivalent to FMLA? In the public sector, is there collective bargaining?Is the state an employment-at-will state? What is the impact of an employment policy handbook? Are there public policy exceptions? Covenants not to compete? State statute or not? What are the limitations? Is there a retaliatory discharge provision in your state’s workers’ compensation laws?What is the law of restraint trade? Are there whistle-blower laws? Are there rules regarding military service and employee leave?

Are there state statutes or regulations regarding:
Jury service and court attendance?
Voting?
Political rights?
Polygraph
Smoking?
Rights of same-sex couples to employment benefits
Confidentiality of personnel records
Background checks
Protection of social security number?
Wiretap laws?

Westlaw customers can earn a $5 Starbucks card just for completing a short eLearning lesson! Take one, two, or all of the featured lessons, and receive a complimentary Starbucks card for each completed lesson. Eligible lessons are listed below. In the course catalog, eligible lessons are designated by a coffee-cup icon next to the lesson name. See rules below for details.
Visit the West eLearning Center and take one of the following lessons.

• Using ResultsPlus
• Using KeyCite to Verify Good Law
• Accessing West CiteAdvisor and Setting Options
• Verifying Citation Formats and Creating a Table of Authorities

Rules:

GIFT CARD eLEARNING OFFER
Terms and Conditions
The Gift Card eLearning offer (as herein described, “Offer”), sponsored by Thomson West (“Sponsor”) is open only to Westlaw customers with an active Westlaw password and who are lawful residents of the United States and the District of Columbia who are at least 18 years of age. The Offer is void in Puerto Rico and where prohibited or restricted by law.

THE OFFER IS NOT OPEN TO MEMBERS OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC.

Employees, officers, directors of West, a Thomson business, their respective staff persons and affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising/promotional agencies and members of their immediate families (parent, child, sibling and spouse of each) and those living in their same households, are ineligible to enter and participate in the Offer. An individual employee representing his/her employer/principal in this Offer is responsible for reviewing, understanding and abiding by his/her principal’s or employer’s policies regarding eligibility to participate in activities such as the Offer described in these Terms and Conditions, communications and publications.

If you are participating in violation of your principal’s/employer’s policies, you/the registered participant may be disqualified from registering for and/or participating in the Offer and being awarded/retaining prizes. Released Parties disclaim any and all liability or responsibility for disputes arising between an employee/agent and his/her employer (or other principalagent relationships) related to this matter.

To participate in the Gift Card eLearning Offer that begins on July 1, 2007 (12:00:01 AM CT) until December 31, 2009 (11:59:59 AM CT) or when the supplies of gift cards are exhausted. Participants truthfully complete as directed all mandatory elements for the
West eLearning Center registration online at www.westelearning.com click on the ‘Register’ button. Following eLearning registration, a Participant (who is additionally an enduser who uses Westlaw during his/her professional job for purposes of the Offer) will have the opportunity to elect to complete training lessons with an available Card offer.

Completion of an eligible lesson or Webinar and display on the Website of a completion message entitles a Participant eligible for the Offer to receive a Starbuck’s Card (ARV: $5.00 each) (“Offer Prize”), subject to verification at Sponsor’s reasonable discretion, and further constitutes consent to and agreement with the Terms and Conditions of this Offer and official Offer communications and publications by Sponsor, including on the Website.

Limit one (1) Offer Prize per lesson per eligible Participant (supplies of prizes are limited and will be awarded on a first come, first serve basis). Prizes will be shipped within two to four weeks of successfully completing the eLearning training module. Offer is nontransferableand will expire when Offer Prizes are exhausted.

Westlaw has chapter-specific Bankruptcy databases that contain both briefs and trial filings relating to specific Bankruptcy chapters.

BKR-CTDOCS-C7 has documents relating to Chapter Seven cases, and the other available databases are as follows: BKR-CTDOCS-C11, BKR-CTDOCS-C13 and BKR-CTDOCS-OC, which covers miscellaneous chapters.