tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92034819011776613592024-03-05T14:49:40.012-06:00Minnesota Lawyer BlogIf it's legal, you can discuss it hereMark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.comBlogger896125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-71701498859112605122008-11-21T14:03:00.000-06:002008-11-21T14:05:44.051-06:00Is due process what looks bad?Those of you who are following news of judicial elections in other states may be interested to know that the U.S. Supreme Court last Friday accepted certiorari in the case of <em>Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal Company,</em> which I discussed <a href="http://http//minnlawyer.blogspot.com/2008/11/supreme-court-elections-elsewhere-not.html">here</a>. The plaintiffs, who argue that campaign donations to the justices created the appearance of impropriety amounting to a due process violation, are represented by former Solicitor General Theodore Olson. According to the New York Times, Olson said in his pleadings, “The issue raised by massive campaign contributions to judges from litigants and their attorneys go to the very heart of what it means to be given a fair trial.” The defendants argued that “looks bad” is not a test of due process.Barb Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18202694636561049231noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-31481579407004263082008-11-21T11:19:00.004-06:002008-11-21T11:28:59.126-06:00Looking for a few (really) good attorneys<a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/">Minnesota Lawyer</a> is currently soliciting nominations for its annual "Attorneys of the Year" award. If you know of someone who had a really good year (or did a lot of good this year, for that matter), let us know about it. <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/events.cfm?fuseaction=detail&eid=4">Click here</a> for more information about the award and to submit a nomination online. You can also e-mail information (to mark.cohen@minnlawyer.com) or send it to us by regular mail at:<br /><br />c/o Editorial Department<br />730 2nd Ave. South, Suite 100<br />Minneapolis, MN 55402<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Nominations are due by Dec. 11.</span>Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-76643604391945924852008-11-21T10:38:00.003-06:002008-11-21T10:50:15.262-06:00Civil right to counsel a hot topic in today's economy<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdrqSwBXXsU8lV5ZnhfO6luTVO3JWlNMoLDIGvCSXfLjmaXIo_FVD1TGfbS1SCbNIljUe-0hKCRQAacLaHS8a4Fb_mW8mRQKKC_cdQMUeznOcSNApZqsaCEErOjhM4zmXcK-Z13g1M0Do/s1600-h/MPj04006220000[1].jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271153789108454754" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 160px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdrqSwBXXsU8lV5ZnhfO6luTVO3JWlNMoLDIGvCSXfLjmaXIo_FVD1TGfbS1SCbNIljUe-0hKCRQAacLaHS8a4Fb_mW8mRQKKC_cdQMUeznOcSNApZqsaCEErOjhM4zmXcK-Z13g1M0Do/s200/MPj04006220000%5B1%5D.jpg" border="0" /></a> I attended a CLE yesterday where a Hennepin County judicial law clerk discussed the fact that more and more parties are choosing to represent themselves in court proceedings.<br /><br />I’m sure that at least part of the reason for the increasing numbers of pro se litigants is the economy. Many people simply can’t afford to hire an attorney, which is particularly distressing if they are facing the loss of basic needs like shelter, safety, health care and child custody.<br /><br />While everyone has the “right” to represent themselves, we in the legal community know that it can be a problem -- for the judges who handle the matters and for the lawyers on the other side who struggle with how much, if any, assistance to provide the pro se party. It’s also a problem for the pro se litigants themselves in that they may not get a fair shake due to their unfamiliarity with court procedures and the law that applies to their case.<br /><br />To address the growing problem of pro se and unrepresented litigants, the <a href="http://www2.blogger.com/ABA%20Section%20of%20Litigation">American Bar Association Section of Litigation</a> is holding a two-day symposium on the topic early next month. The seminar will address what the lawyers can do to help overcome the barriers of access to justice, and how the legal community can provide a right to legal counsel in order to assure that people are treated fairly in adversarial proceedings, especially given financial tightening by government.<br /><br />“Real People, Real Needs, Real Solutions: Access to Legal Representation in Civil Litigation” will be held in Atlanta on Dec. 4-5. For more information on the symposium, click <a href="http://www.abanet.org/media/issues/civiljustice/home.shtml">here</a>.Michelle Lore, Associate Editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06578098400641149846noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-59677607555572787592008-11-20T12:05:00.004-06:002008-11-20T12:49:21.703-06:00Judge Kaman up for UN post<span style="font-style: italic;">Here's an interesting piece of news we received in a press release from the Hennepin County District Court today:</span><br /><br /><blockquote>Judge Marilyn Kaman, Hennepin County District Court, is one of 15 finalists for the 7-member United Nations Appeals Tribunal (UNAT), part of a new system for the administration of internal justice at the United Nations.<br /><br />The UNAT will be charged with hearing appeals of decisions on employment disputes from the UN system worldwide. The UN’s Internal Justice Council received 237 applications from professional judges in 55 countries.<br /><br />Applicants were required to have at least 15 years judicial experience, were of high moral character, serve with full judicial independence, and were subject to a rigorous screening process involving both written and oral examination.<br /><br />Chief Justice EricMagnuson remarked, "The Minnesota Judicial Branch is proud of the international recognition afforded to our judges, and of the willingness of those judges to serve above and beyond the call. Judge Kaman is an excellent example of both sources of pride." </blockquote>Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-40144367628925498022008-11-19T10:20:00.001-06:002008-11-19T10:24:24.582-06:00As the recount turnsThe historic recount in the U.S. Senate race between Al Franken and Norm Coleman is under way in St. Paul, and officials at the 100 recount sites are taking the process seriously: In Stearns County, the opening of a sealed box of ballots was shown live on the St. Cloud Times’ <a href="http://www.sctimes.com/article/20081119/NEWS01/111180041">web site</a>.<br /><br />Meanwhile at our sister publication, Politics in Minnesota, it’s <a href="http://www.politicsinminnesota.com/2008/nov18/1416/frankens-legal-team-makes-first-huge-blunder">reported </a>that Franken’s legal team too issue with former state attorney general Ken Raschke’s opinion on whether Minnesota law allows the review of rejected absentee ballots. Raschke’s thoughts were solicited by Secretary of State Mark Ritchie.<br /><br />Among other things, Rashcke <a href="http://www.politicsinminnesota.com/files/recount/ag-letter-absentee.pdf">points out</a> that Minnesota Stat. 204C.35 says that “only the ballots cast in the election and the summary statements certified by the election judges may be considered in the recount process.”<br /><br />Attorneys for Franken’s campaign <a href="http://www.politicsinminnesota.com/files/recount/franken-letter.pdf">countered </a>that Raschke’s opinion “incorrectly leaves the distinct impression that the recount cannot include the review of and the counting any absentee ballot wrongly rejected during the election judges’ initial counting of the ballots.”Dan Heilman, staff writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03464719855775186110noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-76670019564688614762008-11-18T09:42:00.002-06:002008-11-18T09:52:06.677-06:00Survey says: Male equity partners earn over $87,000 a year more than female equity partnersYesterday the National Association of Women Lawyers released the results of its third national Survey on Retention and Promotion of Women in Law Firms and the news isn’t good.<br /><br />The 2008 survey shows that women continue to be markedly under-represented in the upper levels of law firms. The majority of women who start as associates in firms do not reach the position of equity partners; law firm leaders, including governing committees and managing partners, are overwhelmingly male. <br /><br />Highlights of the survey findings include the following facts:<br /><p>For more than two decades women have graduated from law schools and started careers in private practice at about the same rate as men, yet women continue to be markedly under-represented in the leadership ranks of firms, accounting for fewer than 16% of equity partners. </p><p> Only about 6% of law firms report that they have a woman in the highest leadership position of managing partner. The highest governing committee in large firms typically counts only one or two women members although governing committees average 11 to 12 members.</p><p>The percentage of women lawyers of color is greatest in the associate category (11%) as compared to women of color who are non-equity partners (3%) or equity partners (1.4%). <br />The market for lateral partners impacts promotion to equity partner. Laterals account for roughly two-thirds of the women and three-quarters of the men who were newly promoted to an equity position. A startling 31% of new equity partners were recent laterals, suggesting that they were specifically recruited or negotiated for an equity position. The data belie the traditional notion that largely homegrown attorneys are promoted to equity partner.</p><p>The survey has captured data on a newly identified category of law firm: the “mixed-tier” firm. In the mixed-tier firm, all “equity” partners are required to contribute capital to the firm but some of them are paid as if they were income partners. About 15% of the nation’s largest firms are mixed-tier firms and preliminary data indicate that women have a somewhat lower chance of advancing to equity partner in mixed-tier firms. </p><p>There is evidence that more recent women graduates are being promoted to equity partner at a somewhat greater rate. These numbers show, however, that even in the best of circumstances, women are promoted to equity partner at only about half the rate as men.</p><p>At every stage of practice, men out-earn women lawyers, a finding that is consistent with NAWL’S previous surveys and data from other sources. Male equity partners earn on average over $87,000 a year more than female equity partners. </p><p><br />Nearly 97% of large firms have implemented women’s initiatives, which provide a combination of programs on professional development, networking, mentoring and/or business development. Given that women’s initiatives and formal programs for business development skills are relatively new activities in firms, it is too early to say whether these various programs will enhance the level of business development among women lawyers. </p><p>For the full NAWL survey visit: <a href="http://www.nawl.org/Assets/Documents/2008+Survey.pdf">http://www.nawl.org/Assets/Documents/2008+Survey.pdf</a>. In addition, NAWL's July 2008 report from its National Leadership Summit, Actions for Advancing Women Into Law Firm Leadership: <a href="http://www.nawl.org/Assets/Summit+Report+2008.pdf">http://www.nawl.org/Assets/Summit+Report+2008.pdf</a>, provides a list of recommended actions for law firms committed to advancing women into leadership positions.<br /> </p>Barb Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18202694636561049231noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-80263632524170366472008-11-17T10:32:00.015-06:002008-11-17T21:15:46.437-06:00Resolving the Coleman/ Franken impasse: How's about a coin toss?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqL_qIDxa53xwloJ8IAT-BNxrAraPHWaZHos3mIqYfVI7HGWsMBFqpmlSGo83Z4CDQarUs5-inZ8tWeolUSVvNV9sqwNHDNhsleAWDDgk_KhTSr06Jh42cGjHYYIZeRB8cdIBWHa1JyL3B/s1600-h/toss.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5269669051732534738" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 127px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqL_qIDxa53xwloJ8IAT-BNxrAraPHWaZHos3mIqYfVI7HGWsMBFqpmlSGo83Z4CDQarUs5-inZ8tWeolUSVvNV9sqwNHDNhsleAWDDgk_KhTSr06Jh42cGjHYYIZeRB8cdIBWHa1JyL3B/s200/toss.JPG" border="0" /></a> I have a modest proposal for resolving whether Norm Coleman or Al Franken should represent our fair state in the U.S. Senate for the next six years -- a coin toss.<br /><br />Let me explain.<br /><br />First of all, all of this back and forth about the relevance of the DFL ties of Secretary of State Mark Ritchie to his role in the recount misses the point. Even if Ritchie were they type of old-style politician to try to bend the entire process to his party's will -- and I don't think he is -- the other four members of the Canvassing Board serve as a sufficient check to prevent that. I cannot imagine Supreme Court Chief Justice Eric Magnuson, Supreme Court Justice G. Barry Anderson and Ramsey District Court Judges Kathleen Gearin and Ed Cleary would stand idly by and allow such a subversion of the process to happen. The two high court justices are both Republican appointees who have done well rising above politics in their judicial roles; Cleary used to head the office charged with overseeing the ethics of all the state's lawyers. If those are supposed to be the co-conspirators that Ritchie hand selected to lead a DFL coup of the democratic process, he ought to be upbraided for his incompetent team-selection skills rather than for his Machiavellian maneuvers. In reality, I think the secretary of state is committed to running a clean process. While there is certainly some subjectivity in declaring which debatable votes should count and which ones shouldn't -- and it's impossible to predict at this point how those calls will affect the final result -- I am reasonably confident at this point that those decisions won't be made on a partisan basis.<br /><br />An army of lawyers and lay observers will be watching the actual ballot recounts, mitigating the chances for any serious hanky panky at that level.<br /><br />That leaves human error. Even if the hand recount of the 2.8 million ballots is 99.9 percent accurate, that means that 2,800 votes will be inaccurately tallied. When the candidates are only separated by a paltry 200 votes or so, the odds that we will send the right man to the Senate (i.e. the candidate who would be declared the winner in a completely error-free count) are only marginally better than the result that would be generated by random chance. Which gets me to my point. A coin toss would be a lot cheaper, swifter and more certain than any recount could ever be. So let's do it: Heads Coleman, tails Franken ...<br /><br />This proposal is, of course, being made tongue in cheek. A recount is required by law in this situation -- and is needed to determine whether there were any glitches or irregularities in the election process that would demonstrate that there is a more statistically significant margin of votes separating Coleman and Franken. In any case, people will be presumably be more willing to accept the result of the recount because -- even if it isn't -- it at least has the appearance of not being as random as the coin toss. Whatever the recount result, we are likely to be stuck with a bevy of related litigation for some time to come.<br /><br />Of course, even if we were to adopt the coin toss as our method of resolving elections this close, I am not sure we could keep the lawyers out of it. There would likely be lawsuits over who gets to do the toss, who gets heads and who gets tails and which coin to use (e.g. A penny? Sorry, Lincoln was a Republican. A dime? Sorry, FDR was a Democrat).<br /><br />Perhaps we should make that a game of "rock, paper scissors" instead ...Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-6033093743963512312008-11-14T10:36:00.003-06:002008-11-14T11:15:54.320-06:00MSBA weighs in on DOJ hiring practices<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9DFJM4NDtLzrqixJe7nMHk7TOignOXnFXr9BZWkoW6w4bMgOCHJAGpemJStymsUQfStyJMmlAxP8GYEYhQ30LhoQ0AqVaAFrCXcLNECRjr6KrpRZxANKWT43ZYeEGPokRKMA3JWP9mYw/s1600-h/Ford,Mike+08c.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5268563080192065586" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 154px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9DFJM4NDtLzrqixJe7nMHk7TOignOXnFXr9BZWkoW6w4bMgOCHJAGpemJStymsUQfStyJMmlAxP8GYEYhQ30LhoQ0AqVaAFrCXcLNECRjr6KrpRZxANKWT43ZYeEGPokRKMA3JWP9mYw/s200/Ford,Mike+08c.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div>The <a href="http://www.mnbar.org/">Minnesota State Bar Association</a> is making its voice heard on the controversy that came to light this summer over the hiring practices by the Department of Justice.<br /><br />In a recent letter to Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey, MSBA president Michael Ford (at right) notes that the organization recently passed a <a href="http://www2.mnbar.org/committees/lad/AssemblyResolutionSep2008.pdf">resolution</a> affirming its long-standing support for legal services to the disadvantaged. The resolution, Ford writes, was “compelled” by recent reports that DOJ staff had “categorized public interest legal experience of prospective interns and employees on an ideological basis, and had denied employment to those applicants deemed ‘liberal’ by virtue of their involvement with legal aid, public defender, and related organizations.” Ford notes that several of the organizations identified in the reports are in Minnesota.<br />“By potentially dissuading lawyers and law students from participating in these efforts for fear that it could harm their careers, the [DOJ’s] actions reduce critical resources for legal aid and pro bono programs,” the letter states.<br /><br />To that end, the MSBA is requesting that the DOJ “take immediate, concrete steps” to insure that no one is denied employment because of their involvement with legal services organizations and that it communicate to all law students and lawyers its support for equal access to justice.<br /><br />It’s just one voice, but hopefully the DOJ hears it.<br /><br />As an aside, according to an <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/12/AR2008111202679.html?nav=hcmodule">article</a> in the Washington Post yesterday, president-elect Barack Obama’s transition team is looking into how it can restructure the DOJ to avoid the infusion of politics into the organization. I, for one, am encouraged that this seems to be a priority for the incoming administration.</div>Michelle Lore, Associate Editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06578098400641149846noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-14775736715330620402008-11-13T21:39:00.011-06:002008-11-13T22:04:00.063-06:00Bob Woodward on lawyers, George W. BushDelivering the keynote address at Dorsey & Whitney 's 19th annual corporate counsel symposium earlier today, author and legendary journalist Bob Woodward cracked a couple of jokes and shared his thoughts on President George W. Bush and the war in Iraq. The following clip is an excerpt of Woodward's speech, delivered at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Minneapolis.<br /><br /><embed src="http://blip.tv/play/AdnxIY6XMQ" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="510" width="640"></embed><br /><br />For the YouTube version, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8f1G5T88MHM">click here</a>.Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-76322643390731126222008-11-13T06:00:00.004-06:002008-11-13T06:00:00.897-06:00What would 'Tricky Dick' say?Today Dorsey & Whitney's is having its annual Corporate Counsel Symposium, which is a good way to keep up on some of the major corporate law issues. Dorsey also traditionally has some prominent keynote speakers at the event's luncheon. Two years ago it was former Secretary of State <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madeleine_Albright">Madeleine Albright</a>; last year it was former Treasury Secretary <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Rubin">Robert Rubin</a>; this year it's legendary journalist <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Woodward">Bob Woodward</a>.<br /><br />We at Minnesota Lawyer thought we might take some video of Woodward's speech so that we could put a clip on this blog for those of you who wanted to get a taste. Being the polite folks we are, we ran it by the Dorsey folks to make sure that was OK.<br /><br />No problem, we were told, so long as we would only be using brief excerpts. It seems that the journalist instrumental in breaking <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate">Watergate</a> restricts the amount of taping that can be done when he speaks. Fortunately, this idea never occurred to President Nixon ...Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-4286436695734941142008-11-12T09:53:00.002-06:002008-11-12T10:02:38.149-06:00Ramsey bar lauds veteran SMRLS lawyerCongratulations are due to St. Paul attorney Hugh Markley, who was honored last weekend by the Ramsey County Bar Association for more than three decades of pro bono work on behalf of Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services.<br /><br />Markley received the Ramsey County Bar Association's 2008 Pro Bono Award at the recent Bench & Bar Benefit in Roseville. Taking time out from his general practice, Markley has devoted thousands of hours to taking on family law and child custody cases for low-income clients throughout Ramsey County.<br /><br />Markley spent time as a foster child, something that has given him a keen appreication of the needs of at-risk kids and families. The current and coming tough economic times mean more and more lawyers like Markley will be needed -- here's hoping he's an inspiration to young and old lawyers alike to give a little bit back.Dan Heilman, staff writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03464719855775186110noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-50845924760652599432008-11-11T10:56:00.003-06:002008-11-11T11:07:09.166-06:00Supreme Court elections elsewhere: not Minnesota niceA sharp-eyed reader noting our headline that said that this year’s appellate races offered few surprises wrote to remind me about Supreme Court races in other states. In a Mississippi race that shows where <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">John</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Grisham</span> gets his ideas, three justices running for second, eight-year terms lost: Chief Justice Jim Smith lost to Jim Kitchens, Justice Oliver <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Diaz</span> Jr. lost to Randy “<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Bubba</span>” Pierce, and Justice Chuck <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Easley</span> lost to David Chandler. A fourth, Justice Ann Lamar, who was appointed last year by Gov. Haley Barbour, won her race. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Diaz</span> was indicted in 2003 in what he calls a political prosecution in connection with a loan to defray campaign debts, and acquitted. He claimed to have been targeted for defeat by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Oddly, the Mississippi Business and Industry Political Education Committee gave Smith a 72 % rating while giving <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Easley</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Diaz</span> 27 and 28 % respectively.The Smith-Kitchens race reportedly cost over $1 million.<br /><br />In Michigan, Chief Justice Clifford Taylor was defeated by Judge Anne Hathaway, a nominee of the Democratic Party. Reports are Taylor raised over $1.7 million but Hathaway had Bruce Springsteen at a “Vote for Change” concert in which she said her opponent's judicial philosophy is "a death trap, a suicide rap..." An October television ad claimed that Taylor fell asleep during oral argument, which he denied.<br /><br />In West Virginia, former Chief Justice Elliot Maynard <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">didn</span>’t survive a primary after pictures of him vacationing in Monte Carlo with a business executive who had a pending case came to light. The case, <em><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Caperton</span> v. A. T. Massey Coal Company</em>, is awaiting a possible grant of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">certiorari</span> from the U.S. Supreme Court over whether another West Virginia Supreme Court justice must step aside in the case. The <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Caperton</span> plaintiffs won a $50 million fraud verdict against Massey but the West Virginia court has twice set aside the verdict by a 3-2 majority. According to the New York Times, Justice Brent D. Benjamin, both times a member of the <em><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Caperton</span></em> majority, won his seat with the help of more than $3 million from the same Massey executive who took the former chief justice to Monte Carlo but has refused to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">recuse</span> himself from cases involving Massey. The Times says the <em>Caperton </em>case turns largely on whether millions of dollars in campaign support from an interested party creates an appearance of impropriety so strong that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">recusal</span> is required. Two other cases involving West Virginia are pending at the Supreme Court, both of which involve the state’s odd law that denies companies a right to appeal punitive damage awards.)<br /><br />Some of these justices may have been turned out of office deservedly, but our reader reminds us, brace yourselves, Minnesotans, for 2010 when a majority of the Minnesota Supreme Court will be on the ballot.Barb Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18202694636561049231noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-28403739123938391852008-11-10T11:31:00.015-06:002008-11-10T12:36:42.403-06:00The Coleman/ Franken recount re-examinedAs has been reported elsewhere, the recount of the Senate race between Norm Coleman and Al Franken is only the second recount of statewide election results in Minnesota since the 1962 gubernatorial race. The other recount was, of course, just a couple of months ago -- and that came in a judicial election.<br /><br />As loyal readers of this blog will no doubt recall, Supreme Court Justice Lorie Skjerven Gildea faced three challengers in the primary -- public defender Richard Gallo, Minneapolis attorney Jill Clark and Hennepin County District Court Judge Deborah Hedlund. In judicial races, which are nonpartisan, the top two vote-getters earn a place on the November ballot. Gildea finished on top with about 54 percent of the vote; Gallo was the bottom vote-getter with about 11 percent. That left Clark and Hedlund to vie for the second spot on the general election ballot. Statistically, they were both fairly evenly split, with both getting between 17 and 18 percent of the vote. Hedlund had an edge in the unofficial tally -- 1,369 votes of more than 316,000 cast in the race. Because state law requires a recount if an election is decided by less than a .5 percent margin, an automatic recount was triggered. Clark narrowed the margin by just seven votes in the recount, not nearly enough to displace Hedlund as the number two vote-getter. Hedlund went on to the general election, where she lost her challenge against Gildea.<br /><br />The Coleman/ Franken recount -- which hasn’t even started yet -- has already proved to be a lot less smooth. Last Wednesday morning -- the day after the election -- the unofficial tally had Coleman ahead by 725 votes out of more than 2.8 million cast. However, as counties double check and verify their reporting, Coleman’s lead has shrunk to <a href="http://www.startribune.com/politics/national/senate/34200229.html?elr=KArksLckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aULPQL7PQLanchO7DiUs">just 204 votes</a>.<br /><br />The Coleman/ Franken recount will be much more controversial than the judicial race recount for many reasons, including:<br /><br /><ul><li>The margin is much closer -- 204 votes in a race where each candidate has about 1.21 million votes vs. 1,369 votes in a race where the candidates each had between 55,000 and 57,000 votes.</li><li>Primary races tend to be not as closely watched as general election races, since the “winners” only go onto the November ballot rather than into public office.</li><li>Judicial races garner much less attention than presidential, congressional or even state legislative races. We have chronicled on this blog the many ways that this fact is unfortunate, but that doesn't stop it from being true. </li><li>Senate races, unlike judicial races, are partisan. This makes a difference for many reasons. For example, in a nonpartisan race, you don’t have to worry as much that a voting issue in a GOP or DFL stronghold will affect the candidates disproportionately; you also don’t have to worry about politics affecting vote counters’ decisions about which votes to count (and not count).</li></ul><br />I could go on, but I think you get the general gist. No matter what happens with this recount (and I have every confidence that <a href="http://www.sos.state.mn.us/">Secretary of State Mark Ritchie</a> will do all he can to make it as clean as possible), the race will provide the political blogosphere conspiracy-theory fodder for many years to come.<br /><br />Conspiracy theories aside, our imperfect system of paper ballots and scanning technology with recounts by hand is just not set up well for elections this close. Even an error of just one vote tabulating every 10,000 recounted will yield a difference of 240 votes when counters are sifting through 2.4 million ballots. Are you confident you could work your way through 10,000 ballots without making a single mistake? I sometimes have difficulty double checking my change when I purchase something. Yet I don’t think many of us at this point want to shift our elections completely over to computers. All it would take would be one really good hacker or one really bad virus to make <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_the_plumber">Joe the Plumber</a> the president of the United States. No thanks!<br /><br />I think for the time being we are stuck with our imperfect system. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, it’s the worst system in existence, except for all the other systems.Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-8148256357058988772008-11-07T10:45:00.004-06:002008-11-07T11:01:44.075-06:00Court of Appeals celebrates 25 years of doing Minnesota justice<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ30ut2Pifcp81bkb4HAyM6ZqKLOY9ERWJalHgsqhYYe3FGZyZwE2WMofljHv3VgRYM80aEh6bhVv-ef5if1ux2qMa7ixmDWMou_olit3qzQCDdTWUpYmAlfOELX_B-YEunBzZ3p1gsNQ/s1600-h/LansingHarriet_7-02.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5265961636234083778" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 75px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 91px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ30ut2Pifcp81bkb4HAyM6ZqKLOY9ERWJalHgsqhYYe3FGZyZwE2WMofljHv3VgRYM80aEh6bhVv-ef5if1ux2qMa7ixmDWMou_olit3qzQCDdTWUpYmAlfOELX_B-YEunBzZ3p1gsNQ/s320/LansingHarriet_7-02.jpg" border="0" /></a> The Minnesota Court of Appeals celebrated its 25th anniversary yesterday.<br /><br /><div><div><p>At an all-day symposium commemorating the event -- held at William Mitchell College of Law -- Judge Harriet Lansing (at right) gave a really nice lunchtime address, aptly titled “The Minnesota Court of Appeals: Twenty-five years of Doing Minnesota Justice.”</p><p>Lansing explained that there was a “notable battle” over the whether the state should create an intermediate court. Many influential people opposed it, arguing that it would not provide finality and instead would add another layer of judicial bureaucracy to the appellate process. </p><p>Despite the opposition, a constitutional amendment creating the court passed overwhelming in 1982. The first judges were sworn in on Nov. 2, 1983, at the Landmark Center in St. Paul.<br />Lansing, who was one of those judges, said that the court has met most, if not all, of the goals set out by the people who created it a quarter century ago. To date, the Minnesota Court of Appeals:</p><ul><li>has decided more than 56,000 cases; </li><li>is the final decision maker in 97 percent of cases filed; </li><li>continues to allow oral argument for every litigant who requests it;</li><li>continues to issue written opinions in all cases; </li><li>decides all cases within 90 days of being heard; and</li><li>continues to hear cases all over the state.</li></ul><p>The only area the court has struggled in recently has been promptly setting cases on for oral argument. It’s hoped that the recent addition of three more judges to the court will help it attain its goal of completing all cases within six months of filing. Despite that one area, the Court of Appeals has done what it set out to do and has done it well.</p><p>“We have earned the right to celebrate 25 years of doing Minnesota justice,” Lansing told the audience. </p></div></div>Michelle Lore, Associate Editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06578098400641149846noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-39685463599640192008-11-06T10:32:00.004-06:002008-11-06T10:55:36.776-06:00Recounts and representational rethinkingThe Minnesota Lawyer website has posted its judicial election wrap up story. <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/article.cfm/2008/11/10/Judicial-races-mostly-go-as-expected-Incumbents-win-big-Bohr-Ranum-take-open-seats">Click here</a> to see it.<br /><br />All-in-all the election went pretty smoothly. Unlike the primary, there were no recounts necessary -- which is probably for the best given that the Secretary of State's Office is pretty busy with that whole <a href="http://www.startribune.com/politics/national/senate/33900844.html?elr=KArksLckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aULPQL7PQLanchO7DiUX">Coleman/Franken recount thing</a>. It's an coincidence that there was no statewide recount necessary in Minnesota for 46 years -- and then within a couple of months of each other we get two, one in a judicial race, one is a Senate race.<br /><br />Meanwhile, Minneapolis attorney (and former U.S. attorney) <a href="http://www.bestlaw.com/attorneys/heffelfinger.htm">Tom Heffelfinger</a>, who was to represent Coleman in the recount, has withdrawn.<br /><br />"I am committed to a thorough, expeditious, and non-partisan review of the interaction between law enforcement and the community during the RNC. I have realized that taking a leadership role with Senator Coleman’s recount team would interfere with my commitment to the City and the RNC inquiry. Therefore I have informed the Coleman campaign I will not be available for the recount effort," Heffelfinger said in a press release issued today.<br /><p></p>Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-56054830523912210782008-11-05T15:50:00.003-06:002008-11-05T16:01:27.871-06:00How do Minnesota voters pick judges?We at Minnesota Lawyer were interested in how members of the general public decide whom to cast their ballot for in judicial elections, so we sent intrepid associate editor Barbara Jones -- along with our one-man video crew -- on the road to find out. They stopped off at a polling place in downtown Minneapolis to talk with some voters. As you will find out from this video, judicial election choices can be like sausages, those who love them may not want to see how they are made ...<br /><br /><br /><embed src="http://blip.tv/play/AdiHb46XMQ" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="640" height="510" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed>Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-49394750338087169932008-11-05T12:48:00.006-06:002008-11-05T13:20:19.881-06:00Incumbents sail through judicial racesThe judicial election results were no surprise at the appellate level, with the incumbents winning handily in the two contested state Supreme Court races and one contested Court of Appeals races.<br /><br />Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Paul Anderson skated by his challenger, 9th Judicial District magistrate Tim Tingelstad, by more than a 60/40 margin. A similar margin of victory was enjoyed by Court of Appeals Judge Terri Stoneburner, who turned back a challenge from International Falls attorney Dan Griffith, who was twice before unsuccessfully sought judicial office. (Tingelstad has also made two prior bids for judgeships.)<br /><br />In the most closely watched appellate race, Supreme Court Justice Lorie Skjerven Gildea beat Hennepin County District Court Judge Deborah Hedlund by a 55/45 margin.<br /><br />In the 2nd Judicial District (Ramsey County), Children's Law Center executive director Gail Chang Bohr pulled off what at least one political insider described as a "shocker" against former state lawmaker Howard Orenstein to fill a vacant judicial seat. Many had assumed Orenstein's name recognition in Ramsey County and knowledge of political campaigns would make him tough to beat. It bears pointing out that Bohr did narrowly miss beating Orienstein in a State Bar poll, and was endorsed by the Pioneer Press, so maybe it was not <span style="font-style: italic;">that </span>much of a surprise. Nonetheless, it was quite an impressive feat for a political (errr... judicial) newcomer.<br /><br />In the 4th judicial District (Hennepin County), former state lawmaker Jane Ranum prevailed over Hennepin County District Court referee David Piper in the most closely watched race. Ramum and Piper were competing for an open seat. Piper pumped $100,000 of his own money into his campaign war chest, but in the end lost by about 9 percent of the vote to the better-known ex-lawmaker.<br /><br />In all the other District Court races, the incumbent prevailed. This includes another closely watched race in the 4th Judicial District, where Judge James Swenson turned back a challenge from Thomas Haeg, a former magistrate with the court.<br /><br /><a href="http://electionresults.sos.state.mn.us/20081104/ElecRslts.asp?M=J&P=A">Click here</a> to see the complete breakdown from the Secretary of State's website.Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-41381688618799781912008-11-05T10:25:00.001-06:002008-11-05T10:28:05.050-06:00An up-close look at democracy in actionI spent yesterday (and I mean the whole day -- 5:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.) working as a Ramsey County election judge, and it was an eye-opening experience.<br /><br />The precinct where I worked wasn’t even one of the busiest in town, attracting about 1,100 voters during the 13 hours the polls were open. But there was a long line to start the day, and voters came in steady streams throughout.<br /><br />The evidence that Minnesota saw near-record voter turnout was confirmed by the hundreds of first-time and newly-registered voters, and the willingness of people to go the extra mile to make sure others got a chance to cast a ballot. On a regular basis, registered voters from the neighborhood -- including folks from the precinct’s halfway houses and homeless shelters -- returned to the polls with friends, roommates and neighbors who wanted to vote, too. (Under Minnesota law, a registered voter can “vouch” for the residency of anyone who lives in the same precinct, even if that person doesn’t have a permanent address.)<br /><br />Even though no TVs or radios were allowed inside the polling place, the stream of new and young voters gave me a strong hunch about how the presidential race would turn out. That hunch was confirmed when, after closing, the precinct’s chief election judge ran the final tally and found that almost 900 voters (more than 80 percent) of voters in this mostly white, overwhelmingly working-class precinct voted for Barack Obama.<br /><br />The enthusiasm of the voters even carried over into the judicial elections. Many voters who were advised to examine both sides of the ballot were glad to discover they would have a say in who their judges would be, and a few even brought notes into the voting booth based on research they had done on the judicial candidates.Dan Heilman, staff writerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03464719855775186110noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-6314441704614000292008-11-04T21:43:00.005-06:002008-11-04T21:47:15.333-06:00Updates on judicial election results<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />The Judicial Election results -- updated as they come in -- are available on the Secretary of State's website.<br /><br /></span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://electionresults.sos.state.mn.us/20081104/ElecRslts.asp?M=J&P=A">Click here</a><span style="font-weight: bold;"> to view.</span><br /></span></div>Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-2791502810522205902008-11-04T09:34:00.000-06:002008-11-04T09:35:26.688-06:00Voting early but not oftenI haven’t been this excited to vote since the first time I cast a ballot, and considering that was for Abraham Lincoln, that’s saying something. It was really fun this morning to be part of the crowd and watch our process. It was a beautiful golden morning and actually a pleasure to stand in line. I got to the polling place about 7:20 and I was about the 250th voter when I got in around 8:00. I live in a precinct near a university so my demographics are skewed, but the vast majority of the group was under 30. That was very cool. A number of people brought their children with them, which I haven’t noticed before, and which was also very cool. However, I thought the woman with three very active little girls who asked the election judges if they had any toys for them was a little odd. Did she think she wasn’t going to have to stand in line? Ditto for the woman with the (non-service) dog. I’m kind of nervous around dogs, even when they are leashed, and I didn’t think the canine needed a civics lesson. But that’s just me. On the other hand, the dog wasn’t questioning anybody’s patriotism.Barb Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18202694636561049231noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-64968519034733692042008-11-03T19:00:00.012-06:002008-11-03T22:25:54.744-06:00A brief message from the editorThank you to the thousands of dedicated voters who found and used Minnesota Lawyer's <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/elections/2008/index.cfm">online judicial election guide</a>, our <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/">website</a> and this blog to get information about the 2008 judicial election. I was heartened to see how many folks out there want to cast a meaningful ballot in the judicial races and availed themselves of the information that we provided. A number of you were kind enough to drop me e-mails and calls to express your gratitude at having this information at your fingertips, to which I can only reply the pleasure was ours.<br /><br />If I can be allowed the indulgence of making a few thank yous of my own, I would like to recognize the efforts of the judicial candidates for participating; the rest of our editorial staff (particularly our Web editor, Adam Johnson); Bill Klotz, our photographer/ videographer; the IT folks who made this possible; and our publisher, Steve Jahn, and our corporate parent, <a href="http://www.dolanmedia.com/">Dolan Media</a>, for believing this voter-information project was important enough to allow us to dedicate substantial time and resources to it.<br /><br />This post concludes Minnesota Lawyer's pre-election coverage of the 2008 judicial races. We will, of course, have follow up coverage of the judicial election on our website and in the print edition of <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/">Minnesota Lawyer</a> newspaper.<br /><br />I would also like to take this opportunity to announce that very soon we will be launching a completely revamped version of the Minnesota Lawyer blog with an exciting new look. Stay tuned for details. Thanks again for visiting, and we hope to see you again soon!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">-- Mark A. Cohen</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Editor-in-chief, Minnesota Lawyer<br /><br /></span><span>P.S. Don't forget to vote tomorrow! <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/elections/2008/index.cfm">Click here</a> for more info on the judicial races if you are still doing your research.</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span>Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-5614778853334939292008-11-03T14:57:00.006-06:002008-11-03T18:43:19.451-06:00Hennepin, Ramsey District Court races poised to be most expensiveThe front runner for the honor of the most expensive judicial race this year goes to the contest between David Piper and Jane Ranum for an open seat on the Hennepin County District Court. So far, $203,728 has been raised for that race. Most of the money has been raised by Piper, whose $168,760 in contributions includes the $100,000 which he has loaned to his own campaign.<br /><br />A close second is the race between Gail Chang Bohr and Howard Orenstein for the open Ramsey County seat. So far, a combined $158,730 has been raised by those candidates.<br /><br />At the statewide level, Minnesota Supreme Court Justices Lorie Gildea and Paul Anderson have done comparatively well individually in attracting contributions, garnering $64,070 and $58,278, respectively. Meanwhile, their opponents, Judge Deborah Hedlund and Tim Tingelstad, have collected only about $28,000 combined.<br /><br />At the other end of the spectrum is Alan Eugene Link, who has challenged Hennepin County District Court Judge Philip Bush. Link -- who has declined to provide any information about his campaign to Minnesota Lawyer and other media outlets and who has not participated in any public candidate forums -- reports self-financing his $536 campaign. He reportedly spent $300 on his filing fee and $236.76 on "door hangers," which can't have gone far in the state's most populous county. To my knowledge, this stealth candidate has made no public appearances during his entire campaign. Bush has raised $16,977 to defeat the missing Link. (Some have speculated that Link is hoping that voters somehow equate his opponent's name with that of our not-so-popular president. There is, by the way, no relation.)<br /><br />More information about the candidates' funding is available at the <a href="http://www.cfbreport.state.mn.us/rptViewer/viewRptsCan.php">Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board website</a>.Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-44447964598590771892008-11-03T10:24:00.001-06:002008-11-03T18:45:15.320-06:00The statewide judicial races: An analysis<span style="font-style: italic;">Minnesota Lawyer doesn’t offer endorsements of judges, so the comments below are strictly my own as someone who has closely followed these races.</span><br /><br />Justice <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/elections/2008/anderson.cfm">Paul Anderson</a> is the second most senior justice on the high court, and was previously the chief judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals. He takes a scholarly approach to the law, and is the court’s resident historian. He has spearheaded the court’s public outreach efforts and has become its unofficial “goodwill ambassador.” <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/elections/2008/tingelstad.cfm">Tim Tingelstad</a> is a magistrate in the 9<sup>th</sup> Judicial District whose campaign emphasizes his “biblical worldview,” but does not make the case that his qualifications are superior to Anderson’s. (Tingelstad has said that he would decide cases on the facts and law rather than on his religious views, although most of his website, <a href="http://www.highesthill.com/">www.highesthill.com</a>, seems to be dedicated to the latter.) Tingelstad strikes me as a sincere individual, but has nowhere near the breadth of experience and support that Anderson has. Anderson is the clear choice here.<p></p> <p style="font-family: georgia;" class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p style="font-family: georgia;" class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Justice Lorie Skjerven Gildea vs. Judge Deborah Hedlund<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p style="font-family: georgia;" class="MsoNormal">It’s highly unusual for a sitting trial court judge to challenge a sitting Supreme Court justice, which is why this race has generated a lot of interest. Gov. Tim Pawlenty appointed Justice <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/elections/2008/gildea.cfm">Lorie Skjerven Gildea</a> just about three years ago after she served a brief stint in the District Court. She has experience as a prosecutor and as an attorney in private practice. Her challenger, <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/elections/2008/hedlund.cfm">Deborah Hedlund</a>, has been a Hennepin County District Court judge for 28 years. Hedlund has made as a center point of her campaign the idea of adding someone with extensive experience on the trial court bench on the Supreme Court. (Gildea, who was on the Hennepin bench for a few months, is the only justice on the seven-justice court who served as a trial judge.) Hedlund also stresses her criminal trial experience. Gildea, on the other hand, counters she has worked on the high court for three years and has “done well.” Indeed, the Minnesota Supreme Court has an excellent reputation and is fairly collegial. Gildea’s transition onto the court did not change that. While I think Hedlund makes a good point that a seasoned trial court judge could add something to the court, I don’t think she’s made the case that that person should be her or that she would make a better justice than Gildea, who is already on the court and has garnered the support of <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/article.cfm?recid=79030">more than 115 appellate attorneys</a> and the majority of <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/article.cfm/2008/10/06/Incumbents-win-handily-in-MSBA-poll-of-statewide-races">State Bar members polled</a>. While this is a closer call than the Anderson/ Tingelstad matchup, I think Gildea is the better choice. (I make this conclusion without regard to <a href="http://minnlawyer.blogspot.com/2008/10/e-mail-etiquette-judicial-candidates.html">the recent curious e-mail dustup involving Hedlund</a> since it is unclear what was actually going on there.)</p> <p style="font-family: georgia;" class="MsoNormal"><o:p><br /></o:p></p><p style="text-align: center;font-family:georgia;" class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-weight: bold;">Court of Appeals </span><br /></o:p></p> <p style="font-family: georgia;" class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Terri Stoneburner vs. Dan Griffith<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p style="font-family: georgia;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/elections/2008/Stoneburner.cfm">Terri Stoneburner</a> spent 10 years as a trial court judge before Gov. Jesse Ventura elevated her to the Court of Appeals eight years ago. She was in private practice for 10 years prior to that. I think that this is the perfect background for a seat on the Court of Appeals, which has as its primary job reviewing trial court cases to determine if an error has been made. Her opponent, <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/elections/2008/griffith.cfm">Dan Griffith</a>, who is running for a judgeship for the third time, is an attorney in private practice in International Falls. He has emphasized his belief in contested judicial elections as his reason for running rather than making the case he would make a better appellate judge than Stoneburner. I think Stoneburner is the clear choice here. </p>Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-27924341564720778462008-11-03T10:05:00.007-06:002008-11-03T10:15:57.083-06:00Information on Minnesota's judicial races<span style="font-weight: bold;">Don't forget to check out Minnesota Lawyer's online Judicial election guide to get information on the judicial races.</span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/elections/2008/index.cfm"> Click here to visit</a><span style="font-weight: bold;">.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">And don't forget to vote tomorrow!</span>Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9203481901177661359.post-72936853328204592662008-11-02T15:47:00.002-06:002008-11-02T15:51:02.353-06:00Video clip: Howard OrensteinHennepin County prosecutor <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/elections/2008/orenstein.cfm">Howard Orenstein</a> is running against Children's Law Center of Minnesota executive director <a href="http://www.minnlawyer.com/elections/2008/bohr.cfm">Gail Chang Bohr</a> for an open seat on the Ramsey County bench. The following clip is from a debate between the two candidates at Hamline University School of Law on Oct. 29, 2008.<br /><br /><embed src="http://blip.tv/play/Adb_V46XMQ" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="510"></embed><br /><br />To view the YouTube version, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKq70jS1XZE&feature=related">click here</a>.Mark Cohen, editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10119858489884538496noreply@blogger.com0