Supreme Court Confirmation Process

Now that we have a nominee to fill a Supreme Court vacancy, the process of evaluation and confirmation hearings begins. You can find background about the process, confirmation surveys, and hearings documents on the web sites of two key players: the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, which holds hearings, and the American Bar Association Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary, which peer-evaluates the professional qualifications of Supreme Court and other nominees for the federal bench, issuing "ratings letters" for each nominee. As the process continues this summer, you'll want to have these sites bookmarked for quick access to the relevant documents as they are posted. You'll also be able to compare them with statements, surveys, and hearings for judges now serving on the Court.


Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

SCOTUS Nominee: Sonia Sotomayer

Today Pres. Obama announced Second Circuit judge Sonia Sotomayor as his nominee for the United States Supreme Court. She would replace Justice Souter who announced his decision to retire from the Court at the end of this term. The wikipedia entry on Judge Sotomayor may be found here, and a discussion of her opinions is available on SCOTUSblog here.



Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Kangaroo Courts

The Yankees recently held their first kangaroo court in over a decade. Mariano Rivera presided as judge. The Mariners also recently held a kangaroo court, and it sounds as though Ken Griffey, Jr. had better robes than Rivera, but that neither was dressed quite as poorly as Wade Boggs when he presided over the previous Yankees kangaroo court, if you believe the rumors.

Black's says that the origin of the term "kangaroo court" is uncertain, but that it can be traced to the mid-nineteenth century American West.



Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Write Your Name In Runes

For a light-hearted yet historically informative start to your Summer break, why not see how your name looks when written in the Futhark, the ancient runic alphabet of the Nordic peoples. PBS’s Nova Online Web page allows you to type your name into a little box, and then see how it would look in the runic script. The page also gives an interesting thumbnail introduction to the runes and their historical roots.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Criminal Justice Reform Resources 2008-2009

Criminal justice reform is an issue that does not receive as much attention as it should, but there are people and organizations generating important work on the subject. Criminal Justice Reform Resources 2008-2009 compiles some of the most important resources and documents. From the site:

This article focuses on select current reports, surveys, legislative proposals and scholarship regarding criminal justice reform. It is only a small sampling of the increasing volume of publications on vital matters of interest to criminal practitioners and the public. Therefore, only a few themes are covered: criminal justice, discovery, forensics, juvenile justice, prosecutorial misconduct, public defense, sentencing and wrongful conviction.



Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Human Rights Watch International Film Festival

The 20th annual Human Rights Watch International Film Festival is scheduled from June 11 through June 25. This year, over 20 films are featured, touching human rights issues across the globe. One particularly interesting film is The Reckoning -- a documentary about the International Criminal Court.




Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Holmes Defeats Posner

Brian Leiter surveyed his readers with the question, 'Who were the most influential legal thinkers of the twentieth century?'  The results of the survey are here.  Oliver Wendell Holmes ranked first.  Richard Posner came in second.  Antonin Scalia was tenth.  No other current Supreme Court justices made it into the top 25.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Bottom Line Job Interview Tips

I can't help noticing how quiet my corner of the Library is, with most students celebrating the end of exams and/or Commencement weekend. For those facing law job interviews in the months ahead, it's a good time to review and bookmark these "right to the point" tips and tricks to "Ace that Job Interview" in tough financial times.

Hat tip to JDJungle.com, where you can also find Law Jobs pages focused on the "Screening Interview," the "Callback Interview," and "Summer Law Internship Tips."

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Congratulations, Graduates!

C O N G R A T U L A T I O N S to all graduates!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As soon to be alumni, make sure to come back and visit. You are always welcome in the Library.

As you make your plans to study for the Bar exam, check Library hours at http://law.hofstra.edu/Library/General/libgen_hours.html .



Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Update: Free Rice Vocabulary Game For World Hunger

In a previous post on January 10, 2008, we described the Free Rice game. The game helps to build one’s vocabulary, as follows: For each word you match with its correct synonym, Free Rice donates ten grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program. You’ll find more information about the game in the previous post.

This post is to alert potential players that the vocabulary levels have increased since our last post on the subject. Instead of fifty vocabulary levels, there are now sixty levels. So, be assured that even the most erudite among you will find yourselves challenged in the aid of a good cause!

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat