We continue this month with more from Melvin Mencher’s News Reporting and Writing, my journalism textbook that, in my opinion, should be required reading for lawyers too. In Chapter 7, the “Writer’s Art” (in my copy, the 7th edition), Mencher…
Ten Things You Don’t Know About Barristers’ Treasurer Manny Alvarez
Manny Alvarez is the general counsel and chief compliance officer of Affirm, Inc., a San Francisco-based startup offering innovative point-of-sale consumer credit alternatives. Learn more about Alvarez, who also serves as treasurer of the Barristers Board of Directors: Lawyer jokes…
Haywood Gilliam Nominated For U.S. District Court By President Obama
Former BASF board member Haywood S. Gilliam Jr., a partner and vice-chair of the White Collar Defense and Inestigations Practice Group at Covington & Burling was recently nominated by President Barack Obama to serve on the San Francisco-based U.S. District…
Annual Labor and Employment Conference in Yosemite set for January 29-31
Have you ever been to Yosemite in the winter? It is among the most gorgeous, serene locations on earth. For years, the Labor and Employment Law Section has taken advantage of this wonderful location to hold its annual employment law…
Marie Ma and Na’il Benjamin Honored for Diversity Efforts
The Barristers Club held its 6th Annual Diversity reception in August where Marie Ma and Na’il Benjamin were recognized for their efforts to increase awareness of diversity issues in the Bay Area legal community. Ma, Corporate Counsel and Director of…
Scholarship Donors and Recipients Honored at Reception
BASF held its 16th annual Bay Area Minority Law Student Scholarship Reception in late August at Coblentz Patch Duffy & Bass where it recognized the 2014 donors and the recipients. This year six $10,000 annual scholarships were awarded. Scholarship donors…
Kick Off Fleet Week on a Bay Cruise on Oct 9
Join the Barristers board, Barristers Club members, and special guests from in-house legal departments on October 9 around the Bay Area for an evening on the bay. Honorary event chairs and special guests include: Paul Alsdorf, Counsel, Litigation, McKesson; Scott…
Innovation Needed to Attract Silicon Valley In-House Counsel
In a meeting billed as the “In-House Counsel Summit” on Wednesday afternoon, a panel of three legal leaders from prominent Silicon Valley hi-tech companies moderated by David Bruns, Director of Client Services at Farella Braun + Martel LLP, spoke to…
Tips for Better Presenting Photographs in Court
This article was first published by Michael Kelleher on the Cogent Legal Blog at cogentlegal.com/blog/2014/08/tips-for-photographs-in-court Well-presented photographs are powerful tools for litigators. In this post, I’ll share some samples that show how we’ve helped litigators use photographs in court, along with a…
Interesting News from the World of Estate Planning
Learn from Zsa Zsa’s Family Conservatorship Feud Anyone who has a lot of money and gets married nine times (as legendary actress Zsa Zsa Gabor has) can expect a family fight or two about money. Gabor’s current husband, Prince Frederic von Anhalt, and estranged daughter Francesca Hilton…
Legal Writing Tip: Get Active in Your Editing; Eliminate Passive Voice
One of my chief editing tips is to read your document repeatedly, each time scanning for only one thing – excessive commas, unnecessary capitalization, throat-clearing, etc. The first scan should probably be devoted to eliminating passive voice. Passive voice: The ball was thrown by Cathy. Active voice:…
Law Firms and Accounting Firms Team Up With JDC to Volunteer For Nonprofit Organizations
To provide pro bono help to nonprofit organizations that serve low-income communities, the Justice & Diversity Center (JDC) partnered with volunteer attorneys and accounting professionals from two law firms and two accounting firms in July to hold a clinic for nonprofit organizations. The firms included Bingham McCutchen; Sheppard…