In a February 6 article in the Toronto Star, Olivia Carville stated that Ontario law schools are failing in providing domestic violence training for their students.

Unfortunately, the outcome of her article was predetermined by the narrow scope of her question. Her focus on whether there is a mandatory subject in which the topic is addressed cannot capture the many things that law schools do, in curricular and in extracurricular ways, to help students learn about and respond to domestic violence and violence against women. What is worse, the ‘single compulsory course’ inquiry is based on a too simplistic . . . [more]

That’s the feeling of Jason Boehmig (president and CEO of Ironclad Inc.) who has teamed up with Ron Dolin (co-founder of Stanford University’s Program for Legal Technology & Design) to teach a new course on legal technology and informatics at Notre Dame Law School.

“The course introduces students to the practical and ethical issues relating to the newest legal technologies and their potentially revolutionary effect on the practice of law. Surveying topics ranging from how to pair technology with legal functions, legal technology startups, law practice management software, and the use of technology to increase access

LawWithoutWalls (LWOW) is a collaboratory investigating the “intersection of law, business, technology, and innovation.” Launched in 2011 by Michele DeStefano, associate professor at the University of Miami School of Law, LWOW aims to “pull down barriers between business and law.”

In many ways, LWOW has been a response to comments that DeStefano and her colleagues have been hearing about legal education and the business and practice of law:

“‘When are legal educators going to start training our law school students to be the 21st century lawyers of tomorrow?,’ and then at the

When I was a new, fresh lawyer, I often lamented the lack of a network of legal professionals who could mentor and support me in my career development. I came from a rural, agricultural background and didn’t know a single lawyer before I went to law school. As I soon learned, that put me at something of a disadvantage in both job seeking and finding the right career path for me.

In the result, I learned early the value of forging and nurturing relationships within the legal profession and began to work hard at developing my own networks.

These days, . . . [more]

Recently, I read this post from the University of Manitoba’s news feed about how pharmacy technician students from the Manitoba Institute of Trades and Technology (MITT) are being trained through the university. The two institutions, U of M and MITT are working together in a unique way delivering a multi-disciplinary, peer-led education experience. Here’s how it works:

“…students from Pharmacy, Social work, and Rehabilitation Sciences provided a presentation to Pharmacy Technician students, teaching the role of each practitioner within a Pulmonary Rehabilitation program.”

Advit Shah, (B.Sc. Pharm, U of M) Pharmacy Technician Program Coordinator at MITT and event organizer says . . . [more]

Daniel Martin Katz and Michael J. Bommarito II are teaching a new course on machine learning this semester at the Michigan State University College of Law. The course is called ‘Legal Analytics‘ and Katz has shared an introduction to their course on Computational Legal Studies. . . . [more]

I have a bit of a writing habit. I am not alone. Over the years, I have tried to determine why I enjoy putting words on a page or screen for others to read. It could be shameless need to promote my ideas, it might fulfill my outgoing introvert soul, and it could be that it helps me solidify the Why for my daily work life.

Why does anyone do what they do?

Regardless of how it came to be, I would like to share a new publication with you.

A Handbook for Corporate Information Professionals, edited by Katharine . . . [more]

Here’s an interesting site on open source digital forensics. The site is maintained by a group of volunteers and was created by Brian Carrier who wrote the “foundational book for file system analysis” in 2005, “File System Forensic Analysis.”

There are some potential legal benefits for using open source software in digital investigations. Brian Carrier looks at these benefits in his paper, “Open Source Digital Forensics Tools: The Legal Argument.”

It’s noted however that open source tools are not necessarily better than “closed source” tools because both may suffer from “serious bugs and faults and . . . [more]

I’m a fan of Life Hacker and as a programmer wannabe this post, “What It Really Takes to Be a Professional Programmer,” captured my attention. Tori Reid canvassed some professional coders and other Life Hacker readers and found these were the four important skills that contribute to successful programmer careers: . . . [more]

When the new tort of the intrusion upon seclusion first emerged in 2012 in Jones v. Tsige, many of us wondered how exactly it would be invoked in litigation. Many of us assumed reasonably that this would be an additional head of damages claimed, given the modest amount recognized by the court as reasonable for privacy breaches.

Since that time we have seen this tort employed in several cases with varying success. One of the more intriguing applications is where these small heads of damages can be advanced in the aggregate, namely in through class proceedings.

The ideal scenario . . . [more]

What lawyer doesn’t daydream about throwing in the towel and leaving practice—at least once in a while? Even if just infrequently like during a trust audit. Or maybe frequently but only during select rituals, like contemplating a depleted retainer, or feeling that file go off-the-rails while pondering what it could be like to have your salary taken care of without all that suspense.

Ruminating about less beaten career paths is perfectly lawyerly. The CBA even publishes a list of career alternatives for lawyers, or writes up profiles of people who have pursued different legal paths from time to time. . . . [more]

When I was young I sang in a choir, still do for that matter. One year we performed the Happiness song (YouTube).Perhaps that long ago practice of articulating what happiness is made me particularly receptive to the message from Sunny Grosso this morning. Sunny was invited to Edmonton to talk about Delivering Happiness for the Edmonton Public Library’s Forward Thinking Speaker Series (EPL: 2014 Library of the Year).

My objective in attending was to learn how to inspire passion and purpose in my organization. As someone involved in process improvement, my work should have a direct, positive impact . . . [more]