Law Library Notes

There is an iPad app available for the Bluebook .  You can read details about the app here.

What happens to paintings that are deemed fakes? Some end up in the government’s hands, but others return to the walls of unsuspecting buyers. Full article in the NYT.

FOR A NATION (MOSTLY) OF IMMIGRANTS, overwhelmingly from non-English-speaking countries in the last century, it is remarkable how inept many Americans are at pronouncing foreign words and names. Many thousands of us – including military personnel, government contractors, journalists, and public officials – have been to Iraq, yet how often we hear that country’s name pronounced Eye-rack, even on radio and television. Iran (Eye-ran) suffers a comparable cringe-inducing fate. The same thing is often seen in legal matters.

You can access it here.

The Operational Law Handbook is a “how to” guide for Judge Advocates practicing operational law. It provides references and describes tactics and techniques for the practice of operational law. The Operational Law Handbook is not a substitute for official references. Like operational law itself, the Handbook is a focused collection of diverse legal and practical information. The handbook is not intended to provide “the school solution” to a particular problem, but to help Judge Advocates recognize, analyze, and resolve problems they will encounter in the operational context. Similarly, the Handbook is not intended to represent official U.S. policy regarding the binding application of varied sources of law, though it may reference source documents which themselves do so.

The Handbook was designed and written for Judge Advocates practicing operational law. The size and contents of the Handbook are controlled by this focus. Frequently, the authors were forced to strike a balance between the temptation to include more information and the need to retain the Handbook in its current size and configuration. Simply put, the Handbook is made for the Soldiers, Marines, Sailors, Airmen, and Coast Guardsmen of the military Judge Advocate General’s Corps, who serve alongside their clients in the operational context. Accordingly, the Operational Law Handbook is compatible with current joint and combined doctrine. Unless otherwise stated, masculine pronouns apply to both men and women.

Access the Handbook here.

Google has a major data center in Council Bluffs, IA. The data center is 8 miles from Creighton. NPR has a story that discusses the data center and has inside pictures.

The beta version of the site contains legislation from the 107th Congress (2001) to the present, member profiles from the 93rd Congress (1973) to the present, and some member profiles from the 80th through the 92nd Congresses (1947 to 1972).

Congress.gov is in an initial beta phase with plans to transform the Library of Congress’s existing congressional information system into a modern, durable and user-friendly resource. Eventually, it will incorporate all of the information available on THOMAS.gov. (To compare the scope of legislative information on THOMAS.gov versus the scope of legislative information on the beta site, see Coverage Dates for Legislative Information). Although THOMAS.gov has been updated multiple times since its release in 1995, the foundation of the system can no longer support the capabilities today’s users have come to expect. The goal is to make the site user- friendly with a strong technical infrastructure.

Access Congress.gov here.

Debunking myths is problematic. Unless great care is taken, any effort to debunk misinformation can inadvertently reinforce the very myths one seeks to correct. To avoid these “backfire effects”, an effective debunking requires three major elements. First, the refutation must focus on core facts rather than the myth to avoid the misinformation becoming more familiar. Second, any mention of a myth should be preceded by explicit warnings to notify the reader that the upcoming information is false. Finally, the refutation should include an alternative explanation that accounts for important qualities in the original misinformation.

To read the whole handbook (6 pages of text, plus footnotes) or to download the handbook, go here.

Subtitle: Catholic Legal Education at the Middle of the Twentieth Century by Lee Strang and John Breen.

You can download the article here.

A lawyer who opposes the Justice Department’s proposed antitrust settlement with three publishers of e-books has filed an amicus brief in the form of a comic strip.

Read the full article here.

Download the brief here.