Archive for August 2010
Republican Run-Off for Georgia Attorney General Devolves into Dealth Penalty Smackdown
I’ve been talking about the Democratic side of the Attorney General election for too long. But what about the Republic side? Georgia is such a red state, that the Democratic ticket is largely irrelevant anyway. Meanwhile, the Republicans are in a run-off. And, as Republicans are apt to do when they square off, the candidates…
Read MoreGood Appellate Writing is Not Stuffy or Formalistic
I love Kendall Gray’s piece on Brevity and the use of conjunctions to start sentences. I, too, learned never to begin a sentence with But or And. It seemed like good advice at the time. But now I have learned that it is not a law of physics. He quotes Professor Wayne Scheiss, who presented…
Read MoreAre Law Review Articles Relevant in Georgia or 11th Circuit Appellate Decisions?
Kirk Jenkins, at The Appellate Strategist Blog, poses an interesting question. Does Legal Scholarship Have an Impact on the Work of the Courts? The ABA and some judges say no, and a recent study says yes. Mr. Jenkins quotes United States Chief Justice John Roberts who recently characterized legal scholarship as not “particularly helpful” in…
Read MoreU.S. v. Irey: The Return of the Federal Sentencing Guidelines in the 11th Circuit
There is a moment in most great horror movies where the evil presence/bad guy/ghost/homicidal maniac takes out a character who has it coming. For a moment, the audience applauds the wicked antagonist. Think of Jason from Friday the 13th taking out a weaselly teen or the scene in Jurassic Park where the velociraptors eat Dennis…
Read MoreLocal Politicians are Criticizing the High Costs of Interpreters
Due Process comes at a price. According to Patrick Fox, in a recent article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, it is expensive to provide interpreters for non-English-speaking defendants. In 2009, Gwinnett County paid $539,803 to provide interpreters. With a more diverse population comes an increased need for interpreters. Judge Davis of the Superior Court of Gwinnett…
Read MoreThe Supreme Court of Georgia Now Allows E-Filing of Briefs
While it feels like August in Georgia, for appellate practitioners it may feel a little like it is Christmas. Today, the Supreme Court of Georgia has begun accepting briefs through its new e-filing system. From today forward, lawyers who are in good standing and members of the State Bar of Georgia and the the Supreme…
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