Happenings, sightings, and other tidbits from the legal world.
Eyewitness: Wall Brawl
Bill Gates has more pesky plaintiffs on his back. This time it's not the feds but a pack of San Francisco muralists and farm-labor activists. The group filed suit late last year, charging that Corbis Corporation, an Internet stock photo agency founded by Gates, has been illegally peddling pictures of its murals. "This is a cutting-edge piece of litigation about the rights of artists and activists to control who has access to their images," says plaintiffs' attorney Brooke Oliver. Corbis lawyer Michael Bettinger declined to discuss the suit's copyright- and trademark-infringement claims. But he said that Corbis is trying to resolve the dispute.
The Docket: A Calendar of Events for May
1
Walk tall, brothers and sisters. It's the official
9
Fifty-nine spankings for the birthday boy—U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft.
12
Porn king Larry Flynt and his brother Jimmy reached a plea bargain on this date in 1999, after their latest skirmish with antismut forces. The result: no more porn videos at the Flynts’ Cincinnati sex-book shop.
13
Eight years, seven months and seventeen days ago, 12-year-old Gregory Kingsley became the first child granted legal standing to sue Mom and Dad for divorce. Happy Mother’s Day.
17
Five years ago today, a federal court reprimanded Georgia prison inmate Matthew Washington, who, in a suit against seven judges, filed a “Motion to Kiss My Ass.” Washington’s prior filings included a “Motion for Catered Food Services” and a “Motion for Restoration of Sanity.”
23
Feast Day of Saint Yves of Chartres, the patron saint of lawyers.
25
Two-month countdown to the multistate bar.
28
Birthday of Joseph-Ignace Guillotin (1738–1814), the Frenchman who promoted beheading as the best form of capital punishment.
31
Seven months until the end of the law-firm billing cycle. Annualize your hours. Yeah: Uh-oh.
—Kristina Dell
If I Made the Laws
"I'd outlaw these gadgets that batters today wear to protect their elbows and shins. Get in the batter’s box and take it like a man!"
—Two-time World Series winner, five-time Major League All-Star and Seinfeld cult hero Keith Hernandez
The Web: Ungreedy.com
Turns out there’s a home on the internet for ungreedy associates, too. Log on to the Web site of the National Association for Public Interest Law: www.napil.org.
The site, aimed at rousing civic-minded law students and attorneys into action, offers information on dozens of public-interest jobs, summer internships and NAPIL-sponsored fellowships. It also supplies details on training programs and an annual career fair and conference, along with practical tips on how debt-saddled new law grads can swing a public-interest career.
