I don’t like doing evictions. I don’t dislike everything about them, but they are time-consuming, and they expose me to a lot of disagreeable people — some tenants, some landlords, and occasionally, disagreeable attorneys. Every once in a while, like… Continue Reading
I’ve just completed a mediator certification program and now I, like hundreds if not thousands of other lawyers around Los Angeles County, am a certified mediator. My name will be appearing soon on computer-generated lists of people who handle various… Continue Reading
I ran into a buddy today at the courthouse. I asked him how he was doing, and he said, “Living the dream!” That was encouraging and uplifting. It made me feel happy for my friend and reminded me that he… Continue Reading
Now is the time of year that high school seniors are going to start getting either thin or thick letters back from the college to which they’ve applied. I’ve just had the chance to work with a number of high… Continue Reading
A client came to a routine status conference last week. Actually, he came late and missed the whole thing. But that didn’t stop him from running into the other party — his brother — in the parking lot. Pushing and… Continue Reading
Ian Ayres writes on the Freakonomic blog that classic racial discrimination is alive and well, at least with regard to tips to service providers like waiters and cabbies. Blacks both got lower tips, and gave lower tips, than their white… Continue Reading
1. The Wife “quit” Toastmasters last week. I’m only four speeches towards getting the basic certification, and I think I’d like to finish it, if only to have actually finished it rather than stopping going because The Wife did. She… Continue Reading
The legend goes that Julius Caesar came across a statue of Alexander the Great in his travels on assignment to be the junior governor of what is today Portugal. One of his companions noticed that Caesar was the same age… Continue Reading
I got this message in my e-mail today: California Attorneys: Creating a more diverse judiciary in the state of California is imperative. I am writing to invite you and your colleagues to participate in a dynamic workshop to guide interested… Continue Reading
I became a lawyer because of an experience I had as a teenager in traffic court, seeing how the truth could prevail in the adversarial system, despite a deck stacked against you. Today, I sat as a pro tem judge… Continue Reading