Magistrate brain dump
Following up on my last entry, another presentation at the federal judicial conference was a view from the Magistrate Judges (Judges Kravchuk and Rich), moderated by Pierce Atwood’s Jim Erw…
In this blog, we seek to discuss issues relating to appeals and appellate law in Maine, including the activities and decisions of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court and First Circuit Court of Appeals relevant to Maine, and other participants in the Maine appellate community.
Following up on my last entry, another presentation at the federal judicial conference was a view from the Magistrate Judges (Judges Kravchuk and Rich), moderated by Pierce Atwood’s Jim Erw…
I have just returned from the Judicial Conference of the District of Maine, held Thurs-Friday at the Samoset in Rockland. Budget cuts eliminated conferences at the circuit court level (stra…
Marshall Rothstein, the latest addition to the Canadian Supreme Court, has graciously allowed me to share his Ten Rules for Appellate Advocacy. As you can see, he is not only a very witty f…
Chief Justice Roberts’ recent foray into Mickey Spillane prose in a certiorari decision (http://www.supremecourtus.gov/opinions/08pdf/07-1486.pdf) brings up the issue of judicial humor. T…
The SJC just issued a Rule 80C decision, so of course I must comment upon it (Matt Manahan of Pierce Atwood also represented one of the interested parties): http://www.maine.gov/tools/whats…
On Friday, applying intermediate scrutiny, the Connecticut Supreme Court held, as did the highest courts in Massachusetts and California, that under its state constitution, marriage rights c…
The SJC decided a criminal case Tuesday in which the defendant asserted various claims of error with respect to jury selection. The Court rejected arguments about taint and bias: while var…
The MSBA and MTLA is sponsoring a one-hour phone seminar tomorrow, 11 am -12 pm (dial-in at 10:55) on Maine Rules of Civil Procedure 76D-76H. These are the rules about appeals to the Superi…
The Maine SJC has posted its schedule for arguments in October (October 22-30): http://www.courts.state.me.us/maine_courts/supreme/oral_arguments.shtml This is their annual Tour of Maine,…
When I was a young pup I represented someone in a divorce as my first pro bono effort. I vowed never to do that again, because that sort of trial work was not for me, and I lacked knowledge…
Joshua D. Dunlap
Partner, Pierce Atwood LLP
Biography / Pierce Atwood Appellate Litigation Page
To reach Josh Dunlap with comments about this blog, please email jdunlap@pierceatwood.com